I wish to be able to circulate the water in my central heating system without the boiler being turned on (so I can use the under floor heating system as a heat dump). My question is do I need to need to isolate the boiler so the secondary pump does not force water into it. Or its it just fine (like the underfloor heating pump is, just being turned off when not wanted). As I wish to connect the pump in series with the boiler so it can also be used to aid the flow also it will mean it is impossible to create a reverse flow into the boiler, I plan to make a bypass for the boiler which I can activate with a motor operated valve, Is this enough to avoid damaging the boiler pumped or should I fully isolate it using more valves, if so do I need to protect both the flow and return? I don't mind doing things that are needed however I do not wish to make things over complicated.
Circulating water in house without boiler being on.
- Thread starter oolon
- Start date
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Unless your upstairs rads are the size of the Cutty Sark's sails, it won't work.
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I really not interested in critics of why I wanted to do things. You say it will not work, which is clearly incorrect, it will transfer energy from one place to another, its the question of how effective that is, you may feel the experiment its not worthwhile however I don't, and wish to try anyway, as I think it will be fun. Now if people could try to answer my question rather than question my motives that would be great.
My house currently is 38 degrees upstairs, and 22 down.... Your assuming the heat is all generated enviromentally. Its not currently my computing equipment immits its heat into the room air, its very easy for me to change that, using say water cooling. Why just vent heat outside I could effectly use elsewhere? Also my downstairs is cooler than outside. Now Dan, you have done nothing to show the idea is flawed using any kind of calculations, just I expect a life time of doing things a certain way. However I do know a ground source heat pump in reverse can lower a room with underfloor heating by 2-5 degrees, and there is nothing to say I can't add things like a heat pump too.
Delta T.
Surface area.
Why not try and tell us what boiler and system you have brainiac....
It will not work regardless though. And if you can't see that, then you have no chance of retrofitting a heat pump to make it work
.
But hey, what do I know?
It will not work regardless though. And if you can't see that, then you have no chance of retrofitting a heat pump to make it work
. But hey, what do I know?
I have a valient combi boiler* so no hot water S or Y tank going on, All my pipework from under the ground floor is terminated above ground in a plumbing cupboard, no feeds are take off the boiler before this point and all the returns are also here. I didn't wish to have a magnetic filter mounted where the plumber wished in the middle of my kitchen work top, and I can assure you it to at lot of explaining to him that all it needed was to be fitted after the last radiator... and that it does not need to be 6 inchs from the boiler. All flows and returns are terminated in this cupboard, I have vertical risers and returns feeding the 2 other floors in the house. So I can completely change how the complete house is interconnected from this one place. The plumbing cupboard is 7 meters away from the boiler.
* for the hot water to activate the the central heating loop needs to be pressurised I presume so it can dump heat into it, should the hot water flow stop, in a hurry hense why I am resisitant to completely isolating it with 3 way valves.
* for the hot water to activate the the central heating loop needs to be pressurised I presume so it can dump heat into it, should the hot water flow stop, in a hurry hense why I am resisitant to completely isolating it with 3 way valves.
Yes and no. Best not apply any presumptions here from you part as you have no idea how all this works.
Easiest option would be to bridge the F&R between boiler and first take off's with a pump and NRV wired to whatever half baked controller you think will do the trick.
But I'm telling you. This will achieve the sum total of nothing but a bigger electric bill.
Im with Dan, its not going to work.
If its 38 upstairs the radiators will not absorb enough heat to transfer downstairs.
Touch them, are they even warm?
Your boiler heats the water in your heating much higher than 38 and it heats it directly. You are relying on passive heat exchange at a much much lower temp than the boiler heats directly.
The human body is approx 38 degrees. Do you heat the downstairs when you're in it from body heat? And thats direct into the room and not via two storeys worth of pipework etc above.
Just trying to be helpful. Ducting the air directly with a fan would work better or painting the radiators black
If its 38 upstairs the radiators will not absorb enough heat to transfer downstairs.
Touch them, are they even warm?
Your boiler heats the water in your heating much higher than 38 and it heats it directly. You are relying on passive heat exchange at a much much lower temp than the boiler heats directly.
The human body is approx 38 degrees. Do you heat the downstairs when you're in it from body heat? And thats direct into the room and not via two storeys worth of pipework etc above.
Just trying to be helpful. Ducting the air directly with a fan would work better or painting the radiators black
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