My central heating system (traditional, Potterton Kingfisher) is 'gaining air', quite significantly. It's not Gas, I've done the trick with the jar.
3 radiators are gaining air - a small upstairs shower room rad at the end of a run (gains most air), a large upstairs bedroom radiator at the middle of a run (gains least air) and a large downstairs radiator at the beginning of a run (which gains a lot of air too).
The small upstairs shower room radiator was the first to exhibit the symptoms about a year ago, but then it clearded, but has now returned and got worse - it can become full of air overnight. The problem is at it's worst when the weather is colder and the system is working harder, which, I guess can be down to both the activity of the central heating pump drawing in air, and the expanding contracting of heated and cooled pipework, exacerbating the leak.
With so much air entering the system and presumably, obviously, water escaping, there is no evidence of a leak in the upstairs pipework as, by now, the ceilings would surely have produced damp marks if not fallen in by now.
I have examined the entire downstairs pipework, such that is visible, and again there are no obvious signs of water escaping. In the case of some rooms I have done this two or three times, in case I missed something earlier, and expecting greater evidence given the leak over time.
In December, I tried a very expensive sealant, injected via a bleed valve, which seemed to work for a few hours but for no longer.
The header tank appears to be fine, working properly, normal tidemark etc. but I am bleeding the 3 radiators almost daily.
I feel like I have tried everything, I thought that any leakage would be near to the radiator (s) with the air in.
What's puzzling me that if the air (or gas) has entered the system it would increase the overall volume of the system, resulting in a rise of level in the expansion tank, overflow and the consequent evidence of increased water level. It's not doing this.
Can the system 'pressurise' through generated gas or ingested air, without causing overflow?
Please....... The main thing is..... How can I locate and fix this damn leak?
3 radiators are gaining air - a small upstairs shower room rad at the end of a run (gains most air), a large upstairs bedroom radiator at the middle of a run (gains least air) and a large downstairs radiator at the beginning of a run (which gains a lot of air too).
The small upstairs shower room radiator was the first to exhibit the symptoms about a year ago, but then it clearded, but has now returned and got worse - it can become full of air overnight. The problem is at it's worst when the weather is colder and the system is working harder, which, I guess can be down to both the activity of the central heating pump drawing in air, and the expanding contracting of heated and cooled pipework, exacerbating the leak.
With so much air entering the system and presumably, obviously, water escaping, there is no evidence of a leak in the upstairs pipework as, by now, the ceilings would surely have produced damp marks if not fallen in by now.
I have examined the entire downstairs pipework, such that is visible, and again there are no obvious signs of water escaping. In the case of some rooms I have done this two or three times, in case I missed something earlier, and expecting greater evidence given the leak over time.
In December, I tried a very expensive sealant, injected via a bleed valve, which seemed to work for a few hours but for no longer.
The header tank appears to be fine, working properly, normal tidemark etc. but I am bleeding the 3 radiators almost daily.
I feel like I have tried everything, I thought that any leakage would be near to the radiator (s) with the air in.
What's puzzling me that if the air (or gas) has entered the system it would increase the overall volume of the system, resulting in a rise of level in the expansion tank, overflow and the consequent evidence of increased water level. It's not doing this.
Can the system 'pressurise' through generated gas or ingested air, without causing overflow?
Please....... The main thing is..... How can I locate and fix this damn leak?
