Draining Central Heating System

[sallybgood]

Hi.
I'm away from my property this winter. My insurance company has advised that I should drain the central heating system. Is this the same as power flushing?
Thanks in advance for any replies.

 

[HERTS P&D]

No, call a plumber to drain all your water.

Andy

 

[sallybgood]

Thanks for your reply Andy. I do know that there's quite a bit of sludge in the system. Does that matter? And approx how much does it cost to drain a system? 3 bed semi, 6 radiators, non-combi boiler.

 

[HERTS P&D]

Draining your system to be safe or having a power flush is completely different. You will also need to drain the cold water storage tanks in the loft and your cylinder.

Andy

 

[muggles]

Much better to just leave the heating turned on at a very low level IMHO - this will both prevent freezing, and prevent damp

 

[sallybgood]

Much better to just leave the heating turned on at a very low level IMHO - this will both prevent freezing, and prevent damp

Thanks. I would do this but earlier in the year one of my radiators developed a leak from a small hole due to sludge in the system. So I don't want to risk this whilst i am away.

 

[someonelse]

Draining = emptying all the water out of the system so the pipes, tanks, cylinder etc are all empty (and can't freeze)/crack).

Flushing = pumping water round the system under pressure, and out, to flush out the sludge.

 

[JohnD]

If you know it has a lot of sludge in it, and you are going to drain it, you might consider using a chemical cleaner (for a few days but preferably weeks if you use X400) to loosen the sludge before draining.

Two birds, one stone.

It will not be as effective as a powerflush, but the cost of the chemical is trifling, and so is the extra effort.