Remove a leaking radiator

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Have a radiator job to do, so I thought I'd ask the experts. I'm a 'DIY red neck' so be patient with me.

700 x 1400 radiator (horizontal) leak (from a rust spot on the base of radiator, not from valve) Leaking slowly - a small drip tray full per day. I have closed down the valves and the radiator remains cold when heating on elsewhere in house.

Therefore, no flow in or out ? If so, why when I open the bleed nut, to allow air in and force more water out through leak, does the jet of water shoot out of the bleed hole? Surely, the radiator is not under pressure, so why does the water shoot out? I would have thought the level would have dropped in the radiator to below bleed hole level. I just wanted it to reduce further by way of the leak If it is still under pressure, then I will be unable to release the nuts as the in-flow valve does not appear to have closed the flow. If the valve is still open, then why doesn't the radiator get hot like the others in the house? I'm puzzled.

Hope you experts can help or explain the law of physics.

Thanks

Keith
 
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Only one valve needs to be fully shut to prevent the radiator from heating. Both valves need to be fully shut to prevent water from entering radiator - one of yours is not.

BTW if you're getting rust spots on your rads, your system is rotten and needs urgent attention.
 
Valve(s) not closing. If one valve is a TRV it may not have 'positive off', ie if the room is cold and it is set at 0 there remains a small flow of water through it.
 
water gets in only one end so will never be replaced by more water and therefore won't get hot, unless you keep the bleed valve open when it will get hot and you will get wet.

might be a stuck trv.

Leak forces rad change.

Check trv.
 
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Thanks for the suggestions so far.

The rust spot is at the bottom of the rad, so its obviously been knocked at some stage and caused a weakness, hence the leak.

I may have confused the issue here. Both valves are shut (as far as I can tell - fully turned clockwise. Radiator does not get warm/hot, when heating on elsewhere.

Therefore, I am trying to empty as much water from rad as I can before tackling the replacement job. I have emptied about 7 drip trays full from the leak (2/3 pints) and about 3 pints from the bleed hole (when loosened but not removed). The radiator must be still under pressure or topping itself up from a faulty valve, as the jet from the bleed hole is still quite strong, although quite fine. If valve faulty, then why doesn't the rad get hot when the heating is on elsewhere?If not a faulty valve, then will the pressure drop eventually, when the water finally empties/reduces sufficiently?

I am trying to avoid draining the whole system, but it may be best option as it has none of that protective stuff you are supposed to put in the header tank before re-filling.

Hope this is clearer, but thanks so far for the help.

Keith
 
Could be that the return valve is letting by. The radiator would not then heat up when CH call is on, but water would still enter the rad when pump is not on. BTW, the rust spot is unlikely to be from a dent or a knock, more likely to be rusting from the inside out due to sediment (sludge) internally.

If you don;t want to pay someone for this, go to your local DIY warehouse, buy an aquavac for £30-40, buy some 1/2" & 3/4" iron plugs (female) and get some plastic bags & dustsheets down - then remove the rad live with the aquavac on, take the tails out of the rad and put them back on the valves, then plug them with the caps. Hope you don't mind getting a bit wet.
 
Turn off the boiler, turn off all the power to the CH timer, isolate the water supply to the header tank (by tieing up the ball valve for example) and DRAIN DOWN. Its not that big a deal.

When you refill remember to bleed the pump, the radiators, the hot water cylinder and (on some systems) the boiler before you turn on the power.
 
That would maybe be the easy thing to do Brumylad, but he said he didn't want to drain down.

Also, on a system with radiators rusting from the inside out i would be inclined not to drain down myself if possible due to potential blocked cold feed probs. He may also not be experienced enought o deal with airlocks etc.
 

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