10mm pipe cold radiator.

[thatsitivehadenough]

A plumber has just moved a radiator from one side of a room to the other for me.

He used 10mm as he said it was fine for a small radiator. The existing pipework is 15mm.

All the radiators in my house get hot but my new one stays stone cold! I kept it on for an hour and the one pipe gets hot almost up to the radiator and that's it. I have bled the radiator of air.

Any ideas? I want some info before I phone him up and tell him.

Thanks.

 

[buck51]

You have all the info you need, Just tell him its not working,
Did he try it before he left ?

 

[Agile]

If you want to get involved then you could do the bucket test ( see FAQ on this site ).

Or just call him back.

Tony

 

[Redhotferrari]

I just never understand why poeple pay a plumber to do a job, let him/she leave if its not working, then come on sites like this asking for help.

The buck stops with him, get him back to sort it out......................

 

[namsag]

Turn heating on and turn off all the other rads except the one that is playing up , it will more than likely be air in the pipe and this should push it out the way. Once hot leave for ten mins then turn the others back on.

 

[thatsitivehadenough]

I just didn't want him running around my house again in his work clothes!

I have not carried out a complete bucket test I will do that tomorrow. I have released about a pint of water from the pipes both sides of the RAD and managed to get both the pipes very hot! But thats it. I have a new rad and valves, could there be a faulty valve?

 

[thatsitivehadenough]

Turn heating on and turn off all the other rads except the one that is playing up , it will more than likely be air in the pipe and this should push it out the way. Once hot leave for ten mins then turn the others back on.

I can only turn half my Rads off as some of the valves are seized. I am working through replacing them all.

 

[namsag]

Turn off what you can and try it

 

[buck51]

"I just didn't want him running around my house again in his work clothes! "
I have read anough now!
There is a company who work for a Public house and hotel chain in the north west.they go about in twos, wear black suites shoes and ties and white shirts, and believe it or not they carry there tools in large black brief cases
you should try them I bet they charge 10 times the amount your local plumber charges
I for one would never want to work for somebody like you

 

[thatsitivehadenough]

"
I for one would never want to work for somebody like you

I'm very good to work for actually! I haven't even phoned him up about this problem and when he was here I let him get on with the work and didn't bother him once!

BUT! I don't wear shoes myself in my house and I washed all the floors after he had gone. Thats all I meant. If you had worked for me you would never have known. You would have thought I was a good customer. I just like to clean up afterwards. I mean. Your boots have been in pooey toilet water.

 

[D_Hailsham]

He used 10mm as he said it was fine for a small radiator.

Need to know rad details to check if 10mm is OK.

How big is the rad? Single or double? With/Without fins?

I kept it on for an hour and the one pipe gets hot almost up to the radiator and that's it.

Which one gets hot? The one with the wheel valve/TRV or the one with the lockshield valve?

Open both valves fully.

If you have a thermostatic valve, remove the top and check that the pin of the valve will push down and then spring up.

Then feel the rad, if still cold, there is a blockage in the rad, though it could be just air. You may be able to get rid of the air by shutting off all the other rads, so the water just flows through the problem one.

If the rad is hot, close the lockshield completely then open about half a turn. Moving the rad and using 10mm pipe will have upset the balance, but that should be near enough.

 

[thatsitivehadenough]

It is a 2ft by 2ft single radiator.

Both valves are turn ones. No lockshields.

 

[D_Hailsham]

It is a 2ft by 2ft single radiator.

That's about 600 Watts; 10mm pipe is fine.

Both valves are turn ones. No lockshields.

A lockshield valve is the same as a turn one, it just has a cover instead of a knob. In your case, the LS valve will be the one on the cold pipe. You can usually buy the caps to replace the knob; this would prevent any accidentally fiddling with the setting.

Have you checked for heating up with both valves fully open?
Have you tried closing all other radiator valves so the water only flows through the problem one?

 

[thatsitivehadenough]

He has put turn ones on both sides of the rad. I have opened them both up full.

I can only turn off half of my existing radiators as the valves are too stiff on some of them! But when I do this I get a hot pipe on one side of the radiator.

I can undo the valves on either side to drain some water through and I then get 2 hot pipes. But as soon as I tighten them back up nothing!

I can close one valve on either side and get water squirting out of the bleed off thingy on the top. So I know that both sides will supply water.

I will leave it till Monday when I am not in work. I will have a really good go at turning the stiff rad valves off through out the house and just levave the problem one on.

If that doesnt work I will phone him up and tell him to sort it out.

Thanks.

 

[fekarrs]

Is your heating system a one pipe or a two pipe system?

If its a one pipe, and your plumber has extended the radiator tails (the pipe that links the radiator valves to the main heating circuit flow and return pipes) too much, this could be causing your problems.

One pipe systems prefer short tails. Doing it in 10mm instead of 15mm could exacerbate the problem.

Don't let your plumber off the hook. If he has left the job with your new radiator not working you need to get him back.