Central heating 'Reversed Flow'

[stardanny]

Try this, start from cold, switch on heating, and feel the pipe on top of pump, does that get hot first than return pipe going back to boiler?

If the pump pipe get hot first, that is correct and fine. It does not matter which flow or return to lock shield or TRV.

It need to be balanced to get even heat across.

Daniel

 

[gigz]

If its a new boiler i doubt the flow going through it will be wrong, as the F&R ntc will pick up the error (return would be hotter than flow). It sounds like they've picked up the return instead of the flow, this is how its getting to the lockshields first. It doesn't make any difference unless you had an anti gravity valve (which you obviously haven't as it wouldn't work). Have you tried what i said in my first post ?

 

[chewymix]

It's a Greenstar 30 CDI Classic Regulator according to the sticker just inside the door.

Alas this was all done as part of a kitchen extension job so I can't contact the guy who installed it and to top it off the builder went bust too so can't get in touch with them either.

 

[ScottishGasMan]

The flow pipe to a radiator is the pipe that heats up first. It is as simple as that. Whatever pipe on whatever rad heats up first you can mark that as the flow for that radiator, and the cooler pipe will be the return.

 

[chewymix]

So tonight i turned off one of the rads that gets hottest and yes one of the less hot ones got hotter - So i guess i have to turn the lockshields down on the hot rads even though they are the inlet side. I will try it and see how i get on although i bet some of them will start weeping as they have not been turned in quite a few years.

I'll report back after more experimenting.

 

[Agile]

So tonight i turned off one of the rads that gets hottest and yes one of the less hot ones got hotter - So i guess i have to turn the lockshields down on the hot rads even though they are the inlet side. I will try it and see how i get on although i bet some of them will start weeping as they have not been turned in quite a few years.

I'll report back after more experimenting.

It does seem to be difficult to get you to understand that the flow can be adjusted at EITHER valve as they are in series.

Obviously your system needs balancing!

Tony

 

[Agile]

It's a Greenstar 30 CDI Classic Regulator according to the sticker just inside the door.

Alas this was all done as part of a kitchen extension job so I can't contact the guy who installed it and to top it off the builder went bust too so can't get in touch with them either.

Are you sure the boiler Benchmark Certificate has been filled in and the boiler warranty registered?

It should also have been notified to Building Control too.

Note the warranty conditions which will need a documented service every year to validate the warranty.

Tony

 

[chewymix]

Not difficult for me to understand, just that when all the information i get from 'guides' mentions that the lockshield is the return then i guess i understood there was a reason for that. I of course understand that a radiator just works by water flowing through it, and so direction should not matter, but since the flow of the system has clearly reversed since the boiler was put in i did not know if that had any bearing on the problem i faced.

Its clear this needs balancing but its going to be fiddly - two lockshields have clearly not been turned in a very long time so dont want to budge and another 2 not weep a little... Oh well i guess thats old pipes for you.

Is it possible to 'refurbish' a valve innards without replacing the actual valve?

 

[JohnD]

some are made so you can take them apart and replace the tiny "O" rings inside, I have done it in an old house for some radiators where the pipes came up through a concrete floor and there was insufficient play to fit a new valve of slightly different dimensions, and I cleaned, polished and lubricated the moving parts, but it is a lot of time and trouble, and the rings were expensive.

Just fit new.

If you can get an identical valve it will be easy, with no need to change the olive, nuts or tail.