Issues with 22mm piping??

[Ben Miners]

yes all the other rads work fine

 

[Scott_D]

Pipes to the new rads getting hot?

 

[Ben Miners]

one of the pipes is hot but the others don't seem to be

 

[Ben Miners]

one rad has been on for about 20 mins and still not heated up yet

 

[ShaunCorbs]

both valves open?

 

[Ben Miners]

only one valve open as the plumber said i only need to open 1 on each rad??

 

[ShaunCorbs]

only one valve open as the plumber said i only need to open 1 on each rad??

open both

 

[Ben Miners]

ok I have opened both on all rads but still nothing yet

 

[jtsplumbing]

I recon you have either a blockage or air lock, 3 rads with an output of 4500 btu's each 15mm should cope with it. things you need to try first to see if water is going through when you turn on one of the new rads does any of the pipes start to get hot ?? did the old rads work B4 and what was the output on those were they single or double panel rads

 

[Ben Miners]

so just to clarify the 3 rads are currently on 22mm, previously were standard rads on 15mm. not sure of the previous rads but but were standard size etc.

one of the rads started to get hot when the water flowed in but then seems to cool down again.

the old rads worked fine which were single column

thanks again for your helps

 

[Ben Miners]

how do I check for a blockage or air lock??

 

[ShaunCorbs]

how do I check for a blockage or air lock??

turn half the working rads off

 

[Ben Miners]

ok so once I have turned half the working rads off, then what do I do? Should I turn off half the rads in the house off or just downstairs?

 

[jtsplumbing]

how do I check for a blockage or air lock??

Are you using a plumber or DIY ? you will need to disconnect one side off one of the new rads both ends closed, open up a valve let water into a bucket if that side is getting hot then repeat with other side , any plumber would know how to do these basic checks, total waste of time changing pipe to 22mm if its connecting back to 15mm, it should 22mm going onto 15mm, it seems your going to finish up digging up floors until you find the original 22 mm pipe.

 

[Ben Miners]

can I just turn the stats down to zero???

 

[Ben Miners]

it is a plumber we are using. I presume he has checked for a blockage or airlock already, but I can double check with him.

I think he is thinking that if he makes it 22mm from the boiler to the lounge it will be ok, as currently its 15mm and then to 22mm.

sounds like I could do with another plumber to come and take a look.

cheers

Ben

 

[ShaunCorbs]

ok so once I have turned half the working rads off, then what do I do? Should I turn off half the rads in the house off or just downstairs?

turn the upstairs rads off via there trv does that one rad heat up?

 

[gmartine]

By turning the working rads off upstairs we/you can establish whether the lounge rads are capable of working correctly or if there is a blockage or air in the system. I'd also be wary of the fact that it looks like the pipes aren't being insulated properly before being buried, we certainly can use fabric tape to protect pipes on short runs but it looks like he's taken the easiest route by digging a fairly shallow trench and wont be insulating the pipes. That's heat energy being lost to the concrete instead of your radiators.

 

[Scott_D]

Try and post a picture or drawing of the pipes from the boiler as im confused
Whats been upsized
What is planned to be upsized

Sounds like crossed wires and bad communication to me

 

[jtsplumbing]

Try and post a picture or drawing of the pipes from the boiler as im confused
Whats been upsized
What is planned to be upsized

Sounds like crossed wires and bad communication to me

From what I can gather he has just upsized the pipes around that room joining back on to excising 15mm but the heat load of his new rads should be ok for 15mm pipe now they are digging up rest of floor until they find 22mm

 

[steadyon]

If he has essentially inserted a 22m section into each of flow and return, with the remainder of that flow and return in 15mm, and in particular the section between new and boiler in 15mm, then the inserted 22mm section is a waste of time. The heat carrying capacity of the entire circuit will be limited by what the 15mm can carry.

The solution of taking the 22mm pipework back to the boiler from the inserted section is the best technical solution, but sounds very disruptive. I'd want to test it by using a temporary surface laid connection in 22mm plastic before digging up floors.

It was mentioned earlier that some designer radiators MUST be connected the right way round. If they are of this type and not correctly connected, they will never heat up properly.

In terms of an action plan:

1. Check and re-check that the new radiators are connected properly.
2. Bridge flow and return from the boiler to the flow and return of the new 22mm section using surface laid plastic pipework.
3. If it still doesn't work after 2., there is something else wrong.
4. If it does work after 2. you'll have to decide whether its worth the upheaval to extend the 22mm back to the boiler or even consider putting the old radiators (or equivalents) back.

 

[Ben Miners]

the plumber has upsized the pipes in one room to 22mm joining back to 15mm. now they want to dig up the rest of the floor so they can change all this piping leading to the boiler to 22mm also. I don't think they are looking for 22mm in the floor, they are just replacing the 15mm to 22mm.

 

[Ben Miners]

when the plumber left he had the new rads working but with a low heat output hence him wanting to change the pipes leading to the boiler to 22mm

 

[Ric2013]

I don't think it's fair to say that connecting 22 onto the existing 15 is a total waste of time. The pressure drop is related to the length of pipe in the circuit, and a short section of pipe that is too narrow could well allow satisfactory flow even though it isn't an ideal solution (and perhaps the 15 will run noisily and the pipe walls will erode over a number of years).
Without knowing the details of how the new 22 connects to the existing 15 and how the existing 15 is run, it is hard to pass judgement, but if you are turning off other radiators (at the thermostatic radiator valves) and firing up the system and your new radiators are not getting hot at all, then the problem is something more fundemental than pipe sizing. Sounds like a total blockage (perhaps an airlock) somewhere.

 

[Ric2013]

when the plumber left he had the new rads working but with a low heat output hence him wanting to change the pipes leading to the boiler to 22mm

I thought you said they now aren't working at all?