Radiator Heating (chilly 1st floor)

I Just moved into an old farm-style house, it's a 1.5 masonary house with a pitched roof. It has Hot water Radiator heating. All of the Radiators get hot, however the upstairs is always really hot and the 1st floor is chilly (poor insulation on the 1st floor also) Can I safely close down the radiator's upstairs and just leave the 1st floor on? Also, sometimes I hear a Bang from the pipes is this normal?

Cheers,
Mike Brand
Phila, PA

Yes, you can safely shut off the upper floor radiators; you'll find that the system probably just needs balancing.

As for the banging; that depends on what the banging is caused by; sometimes it is just expansion of the pipework as it heats up and rubs on the likes of joists, etc... Which is quite normal.