Help with radiators please!

[Minnie_the_Minx]

See other post about Closed Central heating thingy.

Now the hissing won't be SSSSSSSSSSSssssssssssssss

but then again it won't be sssss either. It'll be a good decent Ssssssss and should go on for MAX 2-3 minutes, more likely 30 seconds.

If it's a small Ssssss that goes on and on and on and on for 5 minutes + and it getting quieter and quieter then it could be that you need to let more water into the system.

hm,

well the council replaced all the knob things on the radiators there was something wrong with them and replaced them with thermostat knob thingies, so my bleeding the radiator made no difference anyway.

Maybe at some stage before Christmas I will post pictures of radiators so you can tell me all about letting more water into system.

Is that what knob on other end of radiator's for?

 

[_pH_]

hm,

well the council replaced all the knob things on the radiators there was something wrong with them and replaced them with thermostat knob thingies, so my bleeding the radiator made no difference anyway.

Maybe at some stage before Christmas I will post pictures of radiators so you can tell me all about letting more water into system.

Is that what knob on other end of radiator's for?

no don't undo that!!

how you get more water in depends on whether it's an open or closed system as high voltage says, but you certainly don't do it via the rads!

 

[High Voltage]

MtM do you get ANY heat at all from any of the radiators? or is it just one that doesn't get warm?

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

MtM do you get ANY heat at all from any of the radiators? or is it just one that doesn't get warm?

The only one that's ever ever worked permanently is the one in the bathroom

 

[_pH_]

The only one that's ever ever worked permanently is the one in the bathroom

have you got the council in to sort it out though? maybe you should get them to fix it given your b/f's needs. a halogen heater's gonna be expensive to run!

 

[claphamboy]

oi! leave minnie alone claphamboy!

*polishes halo*

What do you mean?

That was sound advice!

*it has always seen me good anyway.*

 

[High Voltage]

The "knobs" that are on the radiators are, basically Taps.

One of the pipes has hot water coming INTO the radiator and the other pipe lets hot water OUT of the radiator.

You can find out which by switching the central heating on and catching hold of both pipes ON A RADIATOR that works and see which one gets hot first. (That'll be the hot water in), then the radiator gets warm and the other pipe starts to warm up. (That'll be the hot water out).

The Knobs / Taps (or valves) are there so you can switch off a radiator, or adjust the amount of hot water that goes to the radiator and allows you to adjust the temperature of a room, manually.

Now the council have put thermostatic valves on to the radiator this is done automatically.

The other use for these TAPs is if they are both switched off, then you can drain a radiator and remove it from the wall for easier decorating. You only have to empty the radiator and not drain down the entire central heating system.

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

have you got the council in to sort it out though? maybe you should get them to fix it given your b/f's needs. a halogen heater's gonna be expensive to run!

No, don't want people in to flat. Means moving big heavy furniture as well.

Halogen heater is only 800w and means he doesn't have to have oil-filled radiator on as well.

Definitely cheaper for him just sitting on sofa in front of tv rather than trying to get oil-filled radiator to heat whole room before he starts to feel warm

 

[High Voltage]

The only one that's ever ever worked permanently is the one in the bathroom

OK

Right. Sounds like the entire system is FULL of air then.

OR

The one that is in the bathroom, it's not a heated towel rail as well is it?? and if it is, it's not got any electric wires coming out of it has it. Not taking the piss, asking a question.

Are you in a flat or a house? (with an upstairs?) How many radiators do you have (ish?) Do you know where the central heating boiler is (and does it do for your hot water as well?

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

OK

Right. Sounds like the entire system is FULL of air then.

OR

The one that is in the bathroom, it's not a heated towel rail as well is it?? and if it is, it's not got any electric wires coming out of it has it. Not taking the piss, asking a question.

Are you in a flat or a house? (with an upstairs?) How many radiators do you have (ish?) Do you know where the central heating boiler is (and does it do for your hot water as well?

Bathroom one a normal radiator, but different knobs. They didn't touch that one last time

In a 4th floor flat.

9 radiators.

We have boiler on the kitchen wall which we switch on every day for hot water

 

[High Voltage]

We have boiler on the kitchen wall which we switch on every day for hot water

Do you have a hot water tank (usually in an airing cupboard)?

The boiler in the kitchen does it have a gauge on it, probably about 1" round going from 0-10(??) bar

Can you see any pipes coming out of the boiler? How many?

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

Do you have a hot water tank (usually in an airing cupboard)?

The boiler in the kitchen does it have a gauge on it, probably about 1" round going from 0-10(??) bar

Can you see any pipes coming out of the boiler? How many?

Have hot water tank in cupboard.

Don't know about gauges

Loads of pipes above skirting that seem to lead to somewhere blocked off near gas meter cupboard. Half a dozen of them.

 

[High Voltage]

1 Bleed ALL the radiators
2 Check ALL the radiator valves are open FULL The thermostat ones turn up to max the ones at the other side of the radiator open as well
3 Switch on boiler and hope.

Got to go out now, will be back tomorrow.

Fingers crossed eh!!

 

[Kuso]

All radiators bled, the cold one didn't seem to have any more air in it than any of the rest of them. Still doesn't heat up at all

That's about as far as I'm gonna fuck about with it all. THe amount of rent I pay here the landlord can bleeding well sort it out

Cheers for all the help and advice though

 

[Kuso]

This has been bugging me all day so I went and took all the cap things off to look at the valves/ pins. The one on the cold radiator looks like its depressed so gonna tackle it with some pliers when my flatmate brings them home from work.

 

[Maggot]

Sometimes you can fix this problem by turning all the radiators off apart from the one which is cold. Turn the heating on and hey presto!

Minnie appears to have hijacked your thread Chutch.

 

[Kuso]

WOOOHOOOO! fixed!

pulled the wee pin up with a pair of pliers and the radiator is working fine now!

Ta for all the info, esp High Voltage- those links you gave me were proper useful

Once again, urban to the rescue

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

All radiators bled, the cold one didn't seem to have any more air in it than any of the rest of them. Still doesn't heat up at all

That's about as far as I'm gonna fuck about with it all. THe amount of rent I pay here the landlord can bleeding well sort it out

Cheers for all the help and advice though

did you do them in the correct order though?

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

WOOOHOOOO! fixed!

pulled the wee pin up with a pair of pliers and the radiator is working fine now!

Ta for all the info, esp High Voltage- those links you gave me were proper useful

Once again, urban to the rescue

Excellent. Hope you're all cosy now.

I'm leaving mine as I don't have a radiator key and there's too much heavy stuff to move

Might do it over the Christmas period though when I have time to make the place a bombsite and clear it back up

 

[laptop]

pulled the wee pin up with a pair of pliers and the radiator is working fine now!

I was just about to warn you not to do that

Unless you took the entire thermostat off and it was the valve underneath it that was stuck...

The 4mm or so wide round pins with a flat side are taps. You turn them. With a handle. Turn them with pliers, and slip, and they're completely fucked ('cos they don't have a flat side for the handle to engage with, any more). Pull them... lord knows.

Glad it worked, for you. Others: put those pliers down, now!

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

I was just about to warn you not to do that



Glad it worked, for you. Others: put those pliers down, now!

bit late if he'd fucked it?

 

[Kuso]

By thermostat do you mean the thing with the temperature markings on that you turn to determine how warm/cold the radiator is?

I took that off so all I could see was a little brass pin sticking out of a pipe. Had to bang the pipe a few times to get the pin up enough that I could get a grasp on it with the pliers then pulled it up about 0.5cm

Did I do right? Or was I just lucky? There was me all proud n all. I'm a chemist- I muck about with electrons and such like, not valves and pipes so I felt all good I'd fixed it. Now you're telling me I was just lucky- thanx for bursting my bubble

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

By thermostat do you mean the thing with the temperature markings on that you turn to determine how warm/cold the radiator is?

I took that off so all I could see was a little brass pin sticking out of a pipe. Had to bang the pipe a few times to get the pin up enough that I could get a grasp on it with the pliers then pulled it up about 0.5cm

Did I do right? Or was I just lucky? There was me all proud n all. I'm a chemist- I muck about with electrons and such like, not valves and pipes so I felt all good I'd fixed it. Now you're telling me I was just lucky- thanx for bursting my bubble

You're proud? You're a right clever bastard. I'm a secretary

 

[Kuso]

You're proud? You're a right clever bastard. I'm a secretary

sure staple it or hole punch it or summit then sure...

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

sure staple it or hole punch it or summit then sure...

My hole punch is broke and my stapler has no staples

Next?

 

[Kuso]

jam a biro in it?

 

[laptop]

By thermostat do you mean the thing with the temperature markings on that you turn to determine how warm/cold the radiator is?

That'll be the definition of "thermostat", yes

I took that off so all I could see was a little brass pin sticking out of a pipe. Had to bang the pipe a few times to get the pin up enough that I could get a grasp on it with the pliers then pulled it up about 0.5cm

Did I do right? Or was I just lucky? There was me all proud n all.

So long as you only pulled gently-ish on the thin pin, you did right. Seems it was stuck down.

I had visions of someone pulling hard on the shut-off tap's "pin" at the other end of the radiator, snapping it off, water everywhere...

I'm a chemist- I muck about with electrons and such like, not valves and pipes so I felt all good I'd fixed it. Now you're telling me I was just lucky- thanx for bursting my bubble

Knowing what "gently-ish" means in context, is, it is true, an engineer/fitter thing, not a chemist thing. But... you have thermostats in the lab, yes? For reaction temperature control? Your home operates on much the same principle

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

jam a biro in it?

Where exactly?

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

By thermostat do you mean the thing with the temperature markings on that you turn to determine how warm/cold the radiator is?

That'll be the definition of "thermostat", yes

pffft, even I knew that

 

[Kuso]

That'll be the definition of "thermostat", yes

I know that lol, I just wasn't sure if you meant the whole thing or what.

Anyhoo, I'm only playing on the chemist thing to mask the fact that I am absolutely useless at anything practical

I'm just proud cuz it's the first thing I've ever attempted to fix in the house and not broke it more

Good luck with your heating minnie