Will I need a new central heating system??

masonsmum

We moved into a new house at the summer and the central heating system seems to be well dodgy. The radiators never seemed to get really warm and now they are not getting warm at all.

The system has a boiler behind the gas fire and the radiators seem to need bled on a daily basis to get the radiators to get any sort of heat at all. Do you think I will need a new system or will it be a fault that can be fixed.

Thanks for any advice

littleredhen

can you get a local person to come and check it over - it may need a service - did you check with previous owners on workings of it??
we have a back boiler and a thermostat in hall - so if thermostat is accidently knocked down the way the radiators don't come on - can you hear the boiler firing up - we can take the bottom piece off the gas fire and see the boiler light up - may not be the same of course but i would get a trusted local person not British Gas or anyone like that

ormus

there may be a stat under the fire (under a plate), numbered from 1 to 6. try turning it up.
maybe the boiler just needs a service?

Robbo77

Tricky one. If your system is needing bled (gassing) a lot, it may be a badly corroded system. This causes restrictions throughout the pipework and will lead to poor heat. When you bleed thr rads, is the water clear or black?.
As the boiler is behind your fire, it will be quite old. 18yrs + i would reckon, so its likely you will need a new boiler very soon. If the system water is very dirty when you bleed a radiator, contact a reputable registered installer and enquired about a system power flush. Its a bit pricey im afraid, but a hell of a lot cheaper than replacing every pipe and radiator in the house.

When the radiators do heat up, check the whole radiator and check for cold spots. If you have them, its time to get that power flush done.

masonsmum

When bleeding the radiators the water is clear.

We have turned the thermostat up and the radiators are still only luke warm

Robbo77

Does the hot water work ok, without use of the immersion heater?.

masonsmum

I am not getting a lot of hot water it seems to be only giving me a small amount when I used to be able to get enough for my sons bath and then I would have one as well.

Canucklehead

Good evening: Don't throw out 'the baby with the bath water': the OH has many clients down here with boilers 30 years old+....safe and fully functioning helped along by annual boiler servicing and whole system checks. Find a RGI recommended to you by a source you trust to service your boiler and give you a bit of advice based on a site visit/inspection.

HTH

Canucklehead

ariba10

Your best bet is to have a local plumber in to give you his opinion.

Do not go to British Gas in the first instance. They will probably condemn it.

jimexbox

masonsmum wrote: »

When bleeding the radiators the water is clear.

We have turned the thermostat up and the radiators are still only luke warm

Does your boiler have a thermostat? If it does this regualtes the temperature of the water in your radiators. If I remember right, between 30c-82c, you could try turning that up.

Otherwise I would reiterate what others have said. Employ a CORGI plumber to give your boiler a good service.