Locating Central Heating Manifold

[gruntt]

Hi, hope somebody can help.

Four out of ten of my radiators are stone cold, three downstairs, one upstairs.
I did the usual checks, air bleed (no air), thermostatic valves all free (not stuck down).
Finally got a plumber to take a look.

We disconnected a radiator, took it out in to the garden and emptied out almost clear water.

Opened the thermo valve and a trickle of water is running out. Opened the lock shield valve nothing running out.

The plumber then connected a compressor to the lock shield pipe to try and blow back any obstruction, no joy. He reckons the system is bunged with eight years of sediment.

The guy is coming back next Monday to try his compressor from the manifold end of the piping.

Which leads to my question, can anybody give me a clue where I can find the manifold.

I've had carpets up this afternoon and I'm struggling to find an obvious entry point through the floor boards.

I've looked in the obvious places, stairs landing, airing cupboard floor, the cylinder covers the whole area of the floor.
I'm a bit wary about using a jig saw to cut out sections of the floor to gain access

I now know why the plumber asked me to find it !!

If it helps the house is a Bellway Beaulieu built about 2004, the boiler is a Baxi Suprima, 10 mm microbore.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[onecog]

Do you know for sure there's a manifold ?
I've installed hundreds of microbore systems without using a manifold but if there is one then it is usually in a central location.

 

[gruntt]

No don't know for sure if there is a manifold, the plumber seems to think there should be ???

If there isn't one any idea how he would carry out a back with his compressor ?

 

[easyas123Viessmann]

10 mm pipe doesn't necessarily imply a manifold. Is their no flow at all to the rads mentioned? i would be tempted to take a chemical approach. measure the temperature differance between flow and return with the boiler on full fire. It should be able to distribute the full load around the remainder of your system if the blockage is just localised. if the boiler cycles rapidly. check the pump for debris in the impeller. If clear check you don't have any aluminium in the boiler or system. dose the system with hyper flush and run for a few days. This should loosen any debris. If not a power flush may shift it. if this fails you will be to broke and baffled. i'll only be baffled.

 

[gruntt]

Thanks for the reply, I think I need to investigate whether I actually have a manifold or not before I start tearing up floor boards looking for something that don't exist.

I may go down the chemical route.

Thanks.