Noise, and temperature not regulating itself

Hi-

I rent, first off, and so I'm trying to discover information that will make my landlord believe that I have a problem.

First, a few days ago the radiators started making a noise that sounds like a generator. In the middle of the night this is very loud and wakes me up.

Second, the temperature regulation appears to be off. Essentially, two nights ago I came home and it was freeeezing in the house. About 55 degrees. I leave the thermostat at 60. I turned it up to 62 and heard the heat click on. A couple of hours later I'm working and I realize that I'm sweating. I go to look at the thermostat and it is 78 degrees in the house! I turn it back down to 60 and hear it click off.

The repairman replaces my thermostat after this incident.

The next night, it is set at 60 as usual and is fine. I am having guests over so I turn the heat up to 70. An hour and a half later my guests and I are freezing, and I go to the thermostat and it is still 60 degrees in the house. I turn it back down to 55, then back up to 65 and within half an hour it's about 64 in the house. Because of the shut-off problems the night before, I go and turn it down myself, moving it until I hear the heat click off.

My repairman says that the noise is normal, despite my having taken videos at 4:45 in the morning from my bed to show the noise. He also says that there is nothing wrong with the boiler because when he moves the thermostat it works just fine.

I accept that a non-constant problem is hard to diagnose, but the repairman is treating me like an idiot. I find it hard to believe that the only thing that would cause this problem is the thermostat, and that this noise is 'normal.' He also tells me that 'it takes water some time to cool down' which somehow explains the 16 degree increase in temperature.

I may be a woman, but I am assuredly not stupid.

Anyway, I was hoping that someone here might be able to give me some pointers as to what this problem might be, and if there is any literature on the web about it. I'm going to inform myself about this so I can argue my case better. I'm fairly tired of alternately freezing and burning up.

(The boiler is probably about 30-40 years old, I'd say. It's in a mint green case, if that's any indication of how old it is).

Thanks!

If your system is as old as you think it is you may not have a neutral connection on the room stat. A stat without a neutral connection will give large temperature swings in the house (go very cold before if comes on and get very hot before it switches off).

The repair man might have fitted a three wire room stat (requiring a neutral) to replace the old stat which could have had only the two wires. This does send the temperatue in the house all over the place but it does not account for the noise your hearing.

Is it the pump you are hearing in the night.....I see you are from the States. Have you lived here long and had wet central heating before? In the States its mainly warm air heating, very different form here in the UK.

I've had radiators before, yes... The noise didn't start til the temperature swinging started though - although perhaps it was there and just quieter? I've lived in this house for a year and 3 months, and this is all a new occurrence - everything has been fine up until now....