No heating or hot water after being drained

[sean140]

Hi,


I have recently fitted a new bathroom, to install the towel radiator i had to drain the central heating with a hose pipe connected to a radiator downstairs.

Now that the towel radiator is installed i have tried to put the hot water & central heating back on. When i do this i can see & hear the boiler fire up with the pilot light staying on and the pipes are making the right noises,from this i do have water in the radiators downstairs but nothing upstairs, the radiators are not evening getting warm. I have bled all of the radiators with some air coming out.


I've been in the loft to check the F&E tank which has water in, the water tank also has water in but the hot water tank is enclosed so i check that?


I have a really old boiler, the boiler is a glow worm fuelsaver mk2 and it only seems to have 2 pipes connected at the top.


any help & suggestions would be great

 

[gassafe]

If you have water in the downstairs but not up stairs then you should not be turning the boiler on... Sounds like a blocked cold feed or air lock in the system

 

[oz-plumber]

Turn the boiler heating thermostat down as low as it can go, and let the pump try and push the air into the panels.

You obviously have airlocks and depending on the piping, could take some time and effort to clear

 

[sean140]

Cheers guys, How long do you think it would take to clear?

Also, should I drain the water from the existing radiators down stairs?

 

[MSM]

Long shot but it is possible if you left your new towel radiator valves opened all the way so all the flow in now only going through it, path of less resistance. Try to close a bit or a lot depending where it is on the system. Obviously if you got not enough water/air lock then it probably wont make any difference.

 

[sean140]

thanks, will try that suggestion tonight, If I drain the system and started again, would I potentially get the same issue again?

 

[AWheating]

open any air vents in the airing cupboard. look for little thumb vents on pipework by cylinder coil and heating pipework.

Its going to be an air lock if your rad filled back up ok.

if theres no air vents open a nut to vent, put towels on floor underneath to catch wata.

 

[walterwhite]

And bleed the pump....

 

[sean140]

Should I open the nut on the rad? I've checked the new towel rad upstairs and half closed the valve, also a little air come out when I bled the rad

 

[newcastle phill]

Airlock is there an av at a high point near pump

 

[Gas Man G]

Undo the big screw on the face of the pump to bleed the air out.

 

[sean140]

Is there a 'usual' place where the pump will be? trying to find mine and I haven't a clue..

The boiler is located in the garage, these then go into the house, under the floor boards, across the width of the house and then up the wall next to the chimney breast.

Tried a couple of things last night, there was a drain off valve for the hot water tank, I opened that fully but nothing came out.. I also went round and bled all the radiators, a couple of them was gushing out black stuff, but still no water upstairs.

 

[AWheating]

post a picture of your boiler and your airing cupboard/ cylinder set up.

 

[Gas Man G]

The pump is normally next to the cylinder in the airing cupboard.
If you don't have a Hot Water Storage cylinder then the pump is inside the boiler

 

[sean140]

The pump is normally next to the cylinder in the airing cupboard.
If you don't have a Hot Water Storage cylinder then the pump is inside the boiler

The hot water storage cylinder is in the loft, I will upload a picture and try to show you guys.

 

[kris]

You defo have an air lock . If it's a s or y plan system then it's best to open the zone valves manually when refilling the system , bleed the pump by slackening the bleed screw and open any air vent that's situated at the coil or top of any pipework .

 

[sean140]

You defo have an air lock . If it's a s or y plan system then it's best to open the zone valves manually when refilling the system , bleed the pump by slackening the bleed screw and open any air vent that's situated at the coil or top of any pipework .

Thanks, I just need to find the pump now, where is it likely to be located? loft?

 

[Dotty]

What make and model is your boiler?

 

[sean140]

What make and model is your boiler?

Hey, It's a glow worm fuelsaver mk2 (old as me)

Link: i149.photobucket.com/albums/s79/kaytee576/b.jpg

 

[Dotty]

Email us the pictures, I'll post them up for you. And of your airing cupboard.

[email protected]

 

[LaMont5way]

It has been known in the past for time to be the only cure for a radiator that has stopped working. This was especially true for one pipe systems.

 

[sean140]

Update:

keep back from work and the pipes were banging like mad, I bled all the rads (still no water in the upstairs rads)

I then went into the garage and felt the pipes and they were red hot, pipes still seem to bang every now and then

 

[Toggles]

Update:

keep back from work and the pipes were banging like mad, I bled all the rads (still no water in the upstairs rads)

I then went into the garage and felt the pipes and they were red hot, pipes still seem to bang every now and then

I'd get a plumber in before you burn the pump out.
I hated draining these systems as not one of them didn't give me problems when filling back up, air locks mostly were a nightmare to get out.
This sounds like a job for plumber as it may need back filling (Not an ideal way, but qualified guys will use this method it if needs must and as a last resort) it may also take two people now to fill, vent and generally chase the airlock and get the air out of your system.

 

[julesverne]

You could try using a wet vac to suck the air lock out. But getting air locks out of an open vented ch system can be be nightmare if your not an experienced plumber.
Have you tried turning off all the rads that are working and turn all the rads off that are not working then turn each non working rad on 1 by 1 to try and push the air lock through. something easy to try but doesnt always work. As already stated look for thumb vents in the airing cupboard or where cylinder is.