No Hot Water after Heating Switch-on

[pufferfish91]

Hi folks,

New to the forum and a total noob. Please be patient .

We're in the process of moving into a newly renovated house. One of the renovation jobs was the heating system. We've had an unvented Warmflow pressurised system installed along with new radiators. We've been without heat or any water for almost a month due to bit-part work from the plumber who has apparently been very busy.

We were assured weeks ago that the heating would be on. Thankfully we were able to get it back on last Thursday. The plumber left before the heating was back on and I got my electrician to connect the newly installed Nest 3rd Generation thermostat to the boiler.

The heating switches on OK and the thermostat will click on/off based on the selected temperature however, the hot water does not work.

If I select hot water boost from the Nest thermostat I can clearly hear the clicking noise that would lead me to believe it is working, but the Warmflow pressurised system doesn't appear to be heating anything.

Our plumber assured as when he left that this would all work no problem. What is going on here? Is it something simple? The hineysell 2 port valve just stays at auto. Is it supposed to move when hot water is engaged? The plumber did mention something about a valve in the attic. I wonder is this left closed maybe? He said the Nest thermostat should open any closed valves.

I've attached a few photos of the install. If I'm right, the valve to release air/steam is connected to a pipe which points to the ground. This means water would just empty on the floor. I thought this was supposed to release somewhere outside the building? Appreciate any help you can provide. Our plumber said he won't be back until next Wednesday to finish off one or two things. Could really do with this on ASAP as we were looking to fully move in any day now. Its been well over a month now. Thanks all!

 

[Gasmk1]

yes that pipe must be run outside of the building also should have Tundish fitted so you can see if the valves are passing due to fault conditions, the honeywell valve should move to open when there is a call for hot water you can tell if it is open by the handle on the end will have no restriction when no call the valve will close and you can feel the restriction. the other valve in the loft is probably the honeywell valve for the heating, which he will have opend and locked in manual to fill the system. if you still have no hot water you could try the immersion heater on th cylinder. looking at the photo this is the switch next to the isolator but get it checked as that should be fused also.

 

[ShaunCorbs]

That's an absolute mess, bet the plumber isn't G3 registered

Did he install the boiler ?

Any chance of a few pics of the boiler ??

Also your electrics are a mess and need sorting out

 

[pufferfish91]

That's an absolute mess, bet the plumber isn't G3 registered

Did he install the boiler ?

Any chance of a few pics of the boiler ??

Also your electrics are a mess and need sorting out

Hi,

No, the boiler is in the garage and it's about 10 years old. The burner also needs replaced. It is from the 90's. We're getting these replaced after Christmas along with the tank being moved. It is car too close to the house.

Wouldn't know of the plumber is G3 registered or not. Could the pipes not have been tidied away a lot better than they are?

Another real concern I have is that pipes were tracked through the concrete flooring and the water wasn't switched on until after these were filled in. There could be a leak. The problem here is that, because of the repeated delays with the plumber, the other tradesmen we had lined up to do the floors had to go ahead and fit them. Delays can caused all sorts of issues. When you're told a 'million percent' that the heating and water will be on by a certain date, you'd think that would be confident enough to organise the other jobs but typically, this wasn't completed in time.

What electrics need sorting out? Compared the the pipes I don't think it looks too bad. Thank you!

 

[pufferfish91]

yes that pipe must be run outside of the building also should have Tundish fitted so you can see if the valves are passing due to fault conditions, the honeywell valve should move to open when there is a call for hot water you can tell if it is open by the handle on the end will have no restriction when no call the valve will close and you can feel the restriction. the other valve in the loft is probably the honeywell valve for the heating, which he will have opend and locked in manual to fill the system. if you still have no hot water you could try the immersion heater on th cylinder. looking at the photo this is the switch next to the isolator but get it checked as that should be fused also.

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. The valve doesn't appear to do anything when the hot water is switched on. I can hear the clicking noise when selecting hot water but no activity whatsoever from the pressurised system or the Honeywell valve. If I move it manually to the right it sounds like water is passing, then the lever slowly moves back into the auto position.

Thanks!

 

[Gasmk1]

you can lock the valve open temporary if you look at the valve pull the lever fullly open and liftit slightly and let it nestle into the recess you will get hot water while the heating is calling

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Hi,

No, the boiler is in the garage and it's about 10 years old. The burner also needs replaced. It is from the 90's. We're getting these replaced after Christmas along with the tank being moved. It is car too close to the house.

Wouldn't know of the plumber is G3 registered or not. Could the pipes not have been tidied away a lot better than they are?

Another real concern I have is that pipes were tracked through the concrete flooring and the water wasn't switched on until after these were filled in. There could be a leak. The problem here is that, because of the repeated delays with the plumber, the other tradesmen we had lined up to do the floors had to go ahead and fit them. Delays can caused all sorts of issues. When you're told a 'million percent' that the heating and water will be on by a certain date, you'd think that would be confident enough to organise the other jobs but typically, this wasn't completed in time.

What electrics need sorting out? Compared the the pipes I don't think it looks too bad. Thank you!

You need to check he has his G3 else he can't / shouldn't of fitted your unvented water cylinder

We're the pipes insulated/ protected from the screed ?? Or was it just bare copper pipes in the floor

No grommets used clips fixings etc

Bet if you look at the left spur / switch you can poke your finger where the wire goes which is a big nonono

Also no protection where the cables enter the adaptable box

 

[pufferfish91]

you can lock the valve open temporary if you look at the valve pull the lever fullly open and liftit slightly and let it nestle into the recess you will get hot water while the heating is calling

Thanks a lot for that. I've moved it over and locked it in the manual position. The system is making all sorted of stomach gargling noises. Maybe that's a good thing!

I've been told that if the gauge on this orange vessel thingy is too low then we might have a leak. Looks a little on the low side to me. Is this normal? See attached. Thanks again for the help. Really appreciate it!

 

[ShaunCorbs]

You might

Do you even know if your old boiler is capable of being sealed most old ones arnt?

 

[pufferfish91]

You might

Do you even know if your old boiler is capable of being sealed most old ones arnt?

Wouldn't know that but I've attached a picture of the boiler and burner. We're hopefully getting them replaced some time after Christmas. Thanks.

 

[Gasmk1]

Is that the thermostat phial if it is I would be worried

 

[pufferfish91]

Is that the thermostat phial if it is I would be worried

I use a Nest smart thermostat which appears to be working correctly. Don't even know what that one on the boiler does but it's getting replaced soon anyway.

The hot water is working now. Thanks @Gasmk1 for your help! I suppose this means that either there is an issue with the way the Honeywell valve is wired up, or the valve itself is at fault. I don't think it's the, Nest Link thing as it seems to make a clicking noise when I turn hot water on, as if it's working. It's just the valve doesn't do anything.

 

[ShaunCorbs]

I would say the wiring is at fault

 

[pufferfish91]

I would say the wiring is at fault

Thanks. I'll get my electrician to check it when he's back

 

[SimonG]

That's the fire valve capillary above the burner to cut off the oil in a fire. The blue bird does have a high limit stay.

Your 'plumber', and I use that term loosely, has made a bit of a pigs ear of that cylinder install. The combination valve will be fun to change. D1 looks too long and D2 and tundish are missing. If the safety valves let go then you could be flooded.

On the plus side, he didn't use a hotun

 

[pufferfish91]

Hi @ShaunCorbs sorry I didn't reply to this earlier. You make some interesting points...

We're the pipes insulated/ protected from the screed ?? Or was it just bare copper pipes in the floor

Nope. No insulation whatsoever. He used plastic piping which goes across the floor. I've attached a photo of stuff used. Doesn't seem very durable. Is hot water OK to flow through that? More worryingly, over time this may move as it is installed across a walkway - between 2 radiators either side of a 2M opening to the kitchen. I'm not sure where else they're installed.

No grommets used clips fixings etc

Is this standard practice for an install like this? I don't see any grommets used. In addition, the hot water outlet is clearly leaking. See attached photo.

Bet if you look at the left spur / switch you can poke your finger where the wire goes which is a big nonono

Wish I knew what that was lol. I'll see if I can get someone who knows more about it to check. Thanks.

Also no protection where the cables enter the adaptable box

What kind of protection is needed for them? Just a cover? Thanks

 

[ShaunCorbs]

That's not good any heat in the pipe / from your hot water system is going to be heating the floor, it does look good so far

No and over time the wire could rub and fray leading to live wires on show

 

[pufferfish91]

That's not good any heat in the pipe / from your hot water system is going to be heating the floor, it does look good so far

Does or doesn't look good? I'll take a guess and assume you mean doesn't!

There's a pipe with a termination type handle on the end just hanging there. Could this possibly be for the shower which is going to be plumbed in through the wall on the right? Not totally sure what this is for.

Sorry about all the questions, but believe me, I am learning a lot from all the replies, so thank you!

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Sorry but your right doesn't look good

And that point shouldn't be there as really that pipe is just for the expansion vessel

 

[pufferfish91]

Sorry but your right doesn't look good

And that point shouldn't be there as really that pipe is just for the expansion vessel

Hmmm. I wonder what it is for then. I'll ask him when he's back Wednesday. Thanks!

 

[pufferfish91]

Hi folks,

Sorry to reignite this thread. The heating system appears to at least be working ok since my last post however, one thing happened a few mornings ago that concerned me.

When the heat switched on as scheduled around 07:15 a few mornings ago, there was loud banging and knocking noises that appeared to be coming from the attic. From my bathroom I could hear the knocking noise clearly alongside a louder than usual sound of flowing water. It sounded like there was water being poured on the ceiling above me!

I checked the newly installed cylinder and noticed the gauge below the expansion vessel had dropped to zero. I turned the little tap which I believe allows water to flow into the system and switched it off again when the gauge got to around 1.5 bar. The system seems to be working ok and the gauge hasn't really dropped since this happened a few days ago. It is concerning that this happened and I'm not sure if something more serious would have happened if we weren't at home. Any ideas what may have caused this?

One final point. Should we not be getting an installation certificate of some kind? Thanks!

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Not good can you get into the loft / where the noise was ?

Pressure should be a min 1 bar in the system

And yes both an unvented certificate and a building control certificate

 

[pufferfish91]

Not good can you get into the loft / where the noise was ?

Pressure should be a min 1 bar in the system

And yes both an unvented certificate and a building control certificate

Great thanks a lot. I'll grab a ladder and stick my head up to see what's going on.

Good point about the building control certificate too. I think they will most certainly have an issue with that emergency pipe or whatever it is that will just dump water on the floor. Our plumber said that a friend of hours said he would run the pipe outside but no one mentioned this to me at the time or I would have disputed it. It still isn't done.

 

[SimonG]

Sounds like the boiler was boiling.

 

[SimonG]

I have a grundfoss ups2 that occasionally decides not to run. Wakes the street up. I have one in the van but waiting on landlord to sort it.