How can I fix a wobbly TRV?

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When going to remove a radiator, so we can decorate our hallway, I noticed that the TRV was wobbly - so that the joint between the TRV and the vertical pipe into it was moving, even though the nut was fully tightened. Also noticed it is prone to leaking a bit. On the other radiators in the house, the TRVs seem to be joined solidly to the pipe and don't move.

With some trepidation I have managed to drain the system and taken the TRV off. I noticed that the olive doesn't go very far down the pipe, just stays flush with the top. I wondered if the problem is that not enough of the pipe is going up into the TRV, making the joint not very strong?

The olive does come off the pipe, but I can't get it to slide down any further. I wondered about lightly sanding the lower bit of the pipe to see if I can get it to slip down more. But I don't know if this is the right approach at all. How far should an olive go down the pipe? Is exactly flush with the top OK? How do I get a better join?

Right now the join leaks as soon as I put any pressure in the system. Hence I can't use the combi boiler for hot water either... I am loath to call out a plumber for this. Even though I don't know what I'm doing, it seems like I should be able to fix it... help! :p
 
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new olive req but do you have that half inch of play once valve is on pipe properly for it still to reach rad ,otherwise its extend pipe to
 
Ha! Well spotted.

I'm not sure that I have that extra play in the pipe to get the extra half inch.

Now I'm thinking that the plumber I got in last year to install these radiators was a lazy *%@*. I bet he made the upright pipe too short, then tried to bodge it by connecting the TRV anyway. Now it looks like I will need to call another plumber to extend the pipe. Grrrr....
 
Or lower the rad - no soldering then :idea: What Baa pressure is the system running at :mrgreen:
 
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I guess I could lower the radiator... would have to check that the pipe the other side can go down of course.

While I'm sorting this out I'm thinking of just capping the leaky pipe for now (so we get our hot water back!), then sorting this out once we've finished decorating and I have more time (since I have a lot to do at work as well).

Could I just put one of those pushfit caps on the end? Like this: http://www.screwfix.com/p/floplast-flo-fit-stop-ends-22mm-pack-of-2/48920 – would that just cap it off temporarily OK? Do I need to use something called a "pipe insert" with that? (I don't know what this is, but it mentions it on that product page).

Thanks
 
A pushfit cap should be fine, I do it all the time.

You do not need an insert, these are only required on plastic pipes.
 

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