Hot water tank drained causing airlock

GDB2222

sandsni wrote: »

Thanks for your input guys, but in any house, particularly an older one, if the hot water is used without adequate hot water to refill it (like when the central heating oil is allowed to run out) it will drain and inevitably airlock. Anyone who owns and maintains their own home will be aware of this. I know rent-paying tenants have the right to expect functioning utilities, but surely they also have some responsibility to use the utilities in such a way as not to cause faults? I know for sure that the system was working perfectly before they moved in because I was with the plumber when he checked it.

I think that you are completely wrong on the plumbing issue. There is no reason why using up all the hot water in the hot water cylinder should create an airlock. All that should happen is that cold water is drawn into the cylinder to replace the hot water that is being used up. Something is wrong with the system, and possibly something as simple as a stopcock being half closed when it should be open.

I say this as someone who does all his own plumbing on a do-it-yourself basis, but I am not a plumbing professional.

Having said all that, the tenants have an obligation to use the property in an appropriate manner, and if there is some work-around with whatever is wrong with the system, you should explain to them what to do and expect them to do it in future. In the meantime, I suggest that you get a plumber out to look at the system and find out what is wrong with it, or at least to get rid of the airlock.

Before doing that, try the following simple self-cure. Put your hand under the end of the kitchen tap, so no water can get out. Then, turn both the hot and cold taps on a little. You may start to hear lots of bubbling noises as the mains water pressure pushes the airlock out of the way. If you are lucky!

dodger1

sandsni wrote: »

Yup, that's what he did when the previous tenant caused the same problem and that's when he told me why it occurs in the first place! I live in the adjoining semi so I'm aware that older houses sometimes require a little more tlc to keep things running smoothly, but I don't think it's unreasonable to expect the tenant to keep the central heating on for an hour or so a day!

I'd say it's very unreasonable to expect a tenant to spend money heating a property when it's not cold, unless I'm completely missing something here.

googler

sandsni wrote: »

If a tenant allows the hot water tank to drain (because they didn't keep the central heating going), thus causing an airlock, who is responsible for getting the hot water flowing again? I don't fancy having to get a plumber out if it's going to happen on a regular basis!

How do you know there's an airlock?

Lack of hot water merely indicates that the water in the HW tank has gone cold, as it hasn't been heated.

Does the HW tank have an immersion heater fitted as well as the CH circuit?

sandsni

Ok, maybe I've got the plumbing side of it wrong regarding the cause of the airlock (I'm realising now the plumber told me about the tank draining last year when there were a couple of bursts after the big freeze), but I do know he checked the whole system and didn't find anything that needed upgraded, otherwise we would have done it before reletting the property. All utilities were checked, serviced, all that stuff, and were in perfect working order before the most recent tenant moved in. And, during the 4 months I spent over the winter sorting the property out after the last tenant left, I never had any problems with the hot water from any of the taps, so it seems odd that a tenant should encounter a problem after just a month.

We're not trying to be cheapskates, I'm sorry if it sounds like we're trying to shirk our responsibility. Our previous tenants have been friends and worked with us to keep the house right. This is the first time we've rented to strangers and we're doing everything we can to accommodate them, but I'm still on a learning curve about who is responsible for what. The house is let at relatively low rent and by the time my parents pay the rates and house insurance there isn't a lot left over, so £80 call-out for a plumber is a bigger deal to them than it might be to a "professional" landlord!

theartfullodger

Parents paying rates?

Do you mean they are the landlord?

Doesn't matter if rent is low or high, you have responsibities , need to fix things & make tenant feel he is being looked after.

Some might suggest you start being professional about things, but I'm sure that would be going too far.

Why are parents paying rates? Do you mean council tax?

CLAPTON

assuming the hot water is heated in a cylinder and the feed is from a a cold water tank in the loft; then it may be that the ballcock in the cold water tank has stuck in the closed position

trivial to correct and it's NOT the tenants fault

G_M

What a load of rubbish! I too have an oil-fired system. Turning off the heating does not, and never should, either drain the tank or cause an airlock.

You have a faulty system and it is your responsibility as a landlord to fix it.

And if, by some chance, I am wrong, and this really is caused by some idiosyncracy of the system, has the tenant been a) given a traing session and b) provided with written instructions as to how the system works?

If not, again, you as LL are at fault.

googler

sandsni wrote: »

We're not trying to be cheapskates ..... Our previous tenants have been friends ............. This is the first time we've rented to strangers .......................so £80 call-out for a plumber is a bigger deal to them than it might be to a "professional" landlord!

Like it or not, your parents, as landlords, are in business, and have to accept expenses like this as part of their business.

They're not helping friends out anymore, they're dealing with paying customers, and should be aware of exactly what their legal responsibilities are. They should be acting professionally right now.

G_M

£80 call out?! Instead of trying to get out of your (or your parents? Not sure who the lanlord is here...) responsibilities, start looking for a decent plumber you can call on when needed!

The economics of the rental are irrelevant to your responsibilities.

As this seems to be all new to you, have a look at this post here. It may not answer your plumbing question, but will give other pointers...

sandsni

theartfullodger wrote: »

Parents paying rates?

Do you mean they are the landlord?

Doesn't matter if rent is low or high, you have responsibities , need to fix things & make tenant feel he is being looked after.

Some might suggest you start being professional about things, but I'm sure that would be going too far.

Why are parents paying rates? Do you mean council tax?

We live in Northern Ireland, so it's Rates and not council tax, and my parents own the property in question so they are the landlords and responsible for paying rates (even if the property was unoccupied they would have to pay).
Anyway, I was just looking for a bit of advice, it wasn't intended to become a full-on debate :-)