Creaky radiators

[spdavies]

Dear all,
Our radiator currently creaks both when coming up to temperature and the whole time the heating is on. THe creaking sounds cyclic whereby we get about 10-10 creaks over a 30 second period which stop and the re-occur every 2-3 mins.

I've looked at all the existing posts and even spoken to my plumber and the conclusion appears to be pipes rubbing against each other or against joist/floorboards.

I'd like to question this logic if i may. I can see how creaking would occur as pipes expand and get hot ok. However surely once they are hot they stop expanding any more and the creaking should stop unless there are temperature changes?

Thoughts please ?

 

[gas4you]

Are you sure it is not going on/off somehow with a trv or room stat?

Your logic seems about right to me as they only creak heating up or cooling down usually.

 

[spdavies]

We do have a TRV fitted which will be adjusting the temperature but how regularly? And would this really cause a noise due to temp fluctuations every few minutes? (Surely the pipes don't cool down that quick even at this time of the year).

 

[patagonia]

I have exactly the same problem and also question that it is just expansion for reasons you have given, especially since it didn't happen before we had a new boiler and pump and some alterations to the pipework, including a 28mm combined feed and vent and some sort of vent pipe in the airing cupboard. No changes were made to the rads or trvs. I'll reply here if I ever solve the problem (have to have a htg firm in to replace a failed motorised valve so will pursue with them) and perhaps you could do the same if you beat me to it.

 

[patagonia]

P.S. I can relate the ticking to the zone thermostat clicking on and off or even the boiler clicking on and off. As you say, one can expect it first time on if another zone is already hot but if the thermostat is only maintaining an existing temperature, it doesn't seem logical that it's only expansion. Am wondering if it cd be anything to do with the fact that we ended up with a 100k btu boiler instead of the l25k we had before (thanks to a cock-up by the plumber) and so it takes too long for the water temperature to recover, though that's not entirely logical either. Do you know that your boiler is correctly sized for the no. of radiators? The other thing is that we now have a variable speed pump which seems to surge at start up or if another zone switches on. What sort of pump do you have?

 

[spdavies]

Don't know what sort of pump we've got to be honest. Had BG man round last night to assess the bolier and he agreed with the local plumber that the boiler was way underpowered for the size of house. His suggestion was that it might be crud in the system or a broken radiator - again not sure how that works.

We're going to get this sorted after xmas so i'll let you chaps know what the problem was once they fix it (or should that be if).

 

[patagonia]

I've just remembered that when we first came to this house the boiler was even smaller and we didn't get all this creaking, knocking and ticking in the pipes and upstairs rads then. Best of luck. I don't seem to be getting anywhere. None of the heating firms is phoning me back.

 

[Gerard Harbinson]

It's the sound of the metal wall brackets scraping off the rad lugs when the metal expands and contracts during the heat/cool cycles. New radiators come with small plastic blocks to place on top of the brackets before the rad is fitted to prevent. At least that's what caused mine.

 

[Madrab]

@Gerard Harbinson there's really no point in responding, the post is 12years old and the OP was last on 7 years ago!!