38 year old gas central heating system not working fully.

[sfbait]

The system is based on an old Concord WRS boiler with a fairly simple time clock and some recently change radiators. The pump has been changed just twice and I think the time clock once. We have a thermostat in the hall and we can have water only or water and heating controlled by the on off switch on the time clock. When the boiler is running, we get hot water to all the radiators so the thermostat in the hall and the switch on the boiler do not stop the hot water going to the radiators. We recently had a problem with the system being air locked near the boiler and our young plumber replaced the valve which lets the air out of the system. I thought the pump was controlled by the hall thermostat and the switch on the time clock; so the pump being stopped, stoppped the hot water going round the radiators, but our young plumber tells me the pump runs all the time the heating is on.
This would mean there must be a valve that is opened and closed to let the hot water go to the radiators, but we have always had the radiator in the bath room getting hot when the others were switched off. Can you tell me how my system is likely to work and what should I have done to re-establish the control of the system.

 

[mountainman]

I recommend you get an older heating engineer to sort it out for you.

 

[jtsplumbing]

You have a very basic system, gravity for the hot water, the bathroom radiator is used to dispel extra heat from boiler when only running for hot water, Pump runs all the time radiators are calling for heat, room stat satisfied pump & boiler stop, if heating system is not going of it is getting a power feed from somewhere, could be faulty timer, easy for experienced plumber to find, if radiators getting hot and pump not running, could be you have a faulty check valve on the system that stops gravity circulating when only on for hot water

 

[bigads28]

It's most likely that once the heating is on on the timer then to the stat and then the pump. The boiler is actually brought on by the hot water on the timer. Once the stat comes to temp then the pump goes off.

The rad in your bathroom is plumbed into the water circuit not the heating.

Yours is a traditional gravity hot, water pumped heating.

 

[happyflyer]

I recommend you get an older heating engineer to sort it out for you.

I'm Sparticus.... :hurray:

 

[sfbait]

I recommend you get an older heating engineer to sort it out for you.

Not so daft, this did actually cross my mind.

 

[sfbait]

Many thanks, this will help when I try to get things sorted out.

 

[sfbait]

Many thanks, I think I have seen the pipe work for the rad in the bathroom coming off the pipes near the hot water tank.