Heating on top floor but nowhere else

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Please bear with me why I try to explain what has happened. Our house is over three floors and is on a boiler and hot water tank system with Honeywell smartfit. Everything seemed fine but we had a few radiators where the TRVs needed replacing as threads had gone and one which didn’t switch on but the TRV was stuck so most likely the cause.
Got a plumber (who was recommended) to change the TRVs. He did this and emptied the system but then when he filled it again only the radiator on the top floor where the water tanks are worked. He said we needed to replace all lock valves and have draining ones put on as they didn’t have currently. He then drained down again but still the same problem when refilled.
We now have no heating on ground floor and middle floor. Plumber is refusing to come back saying we were trying to find a cheap solution to a deeper heating issue. Note we paid him £400 for labour and paid for parts and didn’t really have a ‘heating issue’ before he came. Please could someone help with suggestions as to what it could be. Thanks so much.
 
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I should add that he was attempting to balance the system. Is it possible that it could have been ‘balanced’ badly so that only the first two radiators closest to tanks work and all others are freezing?
 
He either didn't manage to balance the system, or you've an air lock, those would be my guesses.

Might be worth asking mods to put this thread into plumbing & central heating section, you hopefully will get good advice there.
 
Seems you had a cowboy, the first thing he should have done is checked what was working and what wasn't.

Then fixed what was faulty. Turn off all the rads but the ones on the ground floor, bleed them, make sure header tank is full. Put the heating on and see if you can force the ground floor rads to get hot. Ensure there's water circulating through the boiler.

I wouldn't get the same chap back he seems to be a plonker.

It could be air locked or he's left some valve closed ..........not hard to fix .....simply really.

And you don't need all new valves.......drain down or whatever.
 
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Seems you had a cowboy, the first thing he should have done is checked what was working and what wasn't.

Then fixed what was faulty. Turn off all the rads but the ones on the ground floor, bleed them, make sure header tank is full. Put the heating on and see if you can force the ground floor rads to get hot. Ensure there's water circulating through the boiler.

I wouldn't get the same chap back he seems to be a plonker.

It could be air locked or he's left some valve closed ..........not hard to fix .....simply really.

And you don't need all new valves.......drain down or whatever.
 
Thanks for your reply. I’ve been through the house and there is a real mixture of lock valves closed to open and not in a logical order ie downstairs two fully closed but top floor half open. So I’ve turned off system, closed all valves fully and turned all TRVs to zero. Plan is to now open furthest away on ground floor and turn heating on to see if I can get pump to get water down there. Will open up ground floor rads and bleed as I go along one by one. Hoping that may get out any airlock and then can work way up house balancing.
I don’t know much about plumbing really so if anything I’ve said sounds disastrous please let me know!
Have contacted a plumber we can absolutely trust but he can’t get here until tonight at earliest so was ok with me trying this first.
 
I don’t think it was playing up. There were two where the TRV thread had gone so needed new TRVs to turn down and one which was constantly off but the TRV was totally stuck so presume that’s needed a new TRV too.
I’ve turned very rad in house off and closed all lock valves. I then bled all starting at bottom up. Only the final one on top floor nearest tank had any air in. I’ve then opened up the valves and turned on the bottom floor rads one at a time but they’re not heating up. How do I turn up the pump? And/or check the cold water feed? The pipes around tanks and motorised valves are hot and valve is switching as it should.
Should also say that original plumber said he’s checked the pump and it seemed ok although not sure I trust him.
 
Thanks for your reply. I’ve been through the house and there is a real mixture of lock valves closed to open and not in a logical order ie downstairs two fully closed but top floor half open. So I’ve turned off system, closed all valves fully and turned all TRVs to zero. Plan is to now open furthest away on ground floor and turn heating on to see if I can get pump to get water down there. Will open up ground floor rads and bleed as I go along one by one. Hoping that may get out any airlock and then can work way up house balancing.
I don’t know much about plumbing really so if anything I’ve said sounds disastrous please let me know!
Have contacted a plumber we can absolutely trust but he can’t get here until tonight at earliest so was ok with me trying this first.

You should close all the valves apart from downstairs and see if they then work.
If they don't it's air locked, if they do go from floor to floor going up opening the valves fully when they get hot move up to the next floor.

You could private message me with just your postcode not your address .......there's chaps in the combustion chamber who could help you if the area you live is known.
 
It could be a number of things within five minutes the fault should be known by a competent heating engineer ..........
 
If the pipes are 10mm at the rads it could also be a blocked manifold or two.
I've seen it before, guy before me changed a rad, it didn't work, so he swapped it for a bigger one. Didn't work so he didn't come back.

Charged her for it though. I went and traced pipe work back to a manifold on the landing.
 
If the pipes are 10mm at the rads it could also be a blocked manifold or two.
I've seen it before, guy before me changed a rad, it didn't work, so he swapped it for a bigger one. Didn't work so he didn't come back.

Charged her for it though. I went and traced pipe work back to a manifold on the landing.
 
It is 10mm although original plumber said there aren’t any blockages as he managed to drain down twice (and charge me for two bottles of inhibitor ). By switching all the upstairs lock valves and TRVs off I’ve managed to force heat down into 5 of 7 ground floor radiators so thinking a couple may be airlocked. Trying to get someone to come out to sort that (as I don’t have the hose or skulls to do it myself) so I’ll mention about manifolds and see if they can check.
Thanks for taking the time to reply.
 
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