Thing to shut off a radiator - what's it called?

SailorSam

27col wrote: »

You already have a specific attachment to seal the pipe once the rad is removed. It is called a radiator valve, there will be one of them on each pipe. If they drip slightly then just put a plastic container underneath to catch the drips.

That's a good idea.
Now if we put the valves back on the radiator all we have to think about is how can we stop the water spurting out of the open ended pipes.

prowla

Actually I have previously taken off a radiator and put caps on the ends, as a 2nd failsafe over the valve.

It is bad when you go to a place and they try and make you feel stupid because you don't know the name of something; a bloke in an electrical shop tried that with me and I just looked him in the eye and said I didn't like his attitude and I was going somewhere else.

Leif

SailorSam wrote: »

That's a good idea.
Now if we put the valves back on the radiator all we have to think about is how can we stop the water spurting out of the open ended pipes.

What do you mean?

27col

SailorSam wrote: »

That's a good idea.
Now if we put the valves back on the radiator all we have to think about is how can we stop the water spurting out of the open ended pipes.

What the hell are you talking about. Radiator valves come in two parts. the part with the isolator is on the feed pipes and they can therefore be isolated. The other half is fixed to the radiator. Obviously,care needs to be taken to ensure that the water in the radiator is collected before the radiator is removed from the wall.

A.Penny.Saved

Leif wrote: »

This is an easy job as long as you are careful. There are lots of online guides. Make sure you record how many turns of the lock valve it takes to close it. Then when you put the radiator back on, open it up the same number of turns. The valves should have been adjusted. That said, when my radiators were put back on by professionals, they just opened the valves fully, and did not adjust them. I am sure that is not right. But it is consistent with the general impression I had of get in, do the job as quickly as possible, get out.

When you take the radiator off, be aware that there will be black water inside, and when you tilt it, that water will flood out. So put old towels etc down at each end, and try and lift it off, tilt, and empty into a container. Two people are better than one.



From a small builders merchants, 50p, from B&Q, or Coomers, £5 for 2, or something equally silly.

It's called Radiator balancing and is meant to ensure that heat reaches each radiator equally or to ones where more heat is required by default, such as a bathroom. Noting the number of turns and restoring afterwards should get it right if it was ever done in the first place.

abankerbutnotafatcat wrote: »

Thanks, everyone. We were under the impression (from hearing descriptions of the job) that we needed some sort of specific attachment to seal the pipe once the rad was removed. Obviously, not!!

There are tools available to aid radiator removal but I don't think many people bother with them. Sealing the heating system by turning off both valves either side and then disconnecting the nut connecting the valve to the radiator and draining the radiator as you do so. It can be messy if not done carefully because of all the black gunk in the rads!

Turn the radiator upside down after you have drained it to prevent any remaining dirty water from dripping out when you move it. Having something to screw into the radiator to seal them is the costlier method of doing it.

Therefore prepare for hissy fits by the missus when you get black/dirty water on her carpet. lol

You can get special valves that sit between the radiator valves and the radiators which have a screw on them and you turn it to turn off the water flow to the radiator and then turn off the valves and the radiator can then be removed without draining it when decoration is done.

I purchased some myself because I wanted to replace radiators and fit TRV's and knew that I would need to decorate afterwards so decided to fit the valves to make it easy. Easy apart from the weight of the radiators full of water. They cost me about £8-£9 a pair. Wickes etc sell them for about £18/£19.

abankerbutnotafatcat

A.Penny.Saved wrote: »

Therefore prepare for hissy fits by the missus when you get black/dirty water on her carpet. lol

:rotfl:Haha I AM the missus!!:rotfl:

Thank you for your detailed reply. The messy floor won't be a problem as the room (kitchen) is gutted and back to the original quarry tiles.

We won't be putting it back. It's probably off to radiator heaven and our kitchen installer will eventually be putting a new, slimmer one in its place.

penrhyn

TRVs do not completely stop the flow of water to the radiator even if turned to the minimum setting. To turn them off completely you have to remove the head and use a specific adapter to close the valve completely, it varies between TRVs...........or pt up with drips.

SailorSam

27col wrote: »

What the hell are you talking about. Radiator valves come in two parts. the part with the isolator is on the feed pipes and they can therefore be isolated. The other half is fixed to the radiator. Obviously,care needs to be taken to ensure that the water in the radiator is collected before the radiator is removed from the wall.

I'm sorry i thought you were suggesting leaving the valves on the radiator, but re-reading your post i was wrong. Even though the valves can be split and half stay on the radiator i think you'll still need blanks to stop drips of sludge coming out.
I'll read twice next time before i post.

Leif

A.Penny.Saved wrote: »

It's called Radiator balancing and is meant to ensure that heat reaches each radiator equally or to ones where more heat is required by default, such as a bathroom. Noting the number of turns and restoring afterwards should get it right if it was ever done in the first place.

Yes, I know. The point I was making is that people claiming to be professional plumbers did not care about balancing the system. Too much like work. They also put a TRV on the radiator near the thermostat, and did not bother to show me how to use the boiler, which is in the list of things the installer should do according to Worcester Bosch.

A.Penny.Saved

prowla wrote: »

A radiatorshutoffthingyENDCAP?

The item that needs to be asked for at the heating supplies place is a radiatorshuttyoffythingy. It should at least raise a smile, if nothing else.

penrhyn wrote: »

TRVs do not completely stop the flow of water to the radiator even if turned to the minimum setting. To turn them off completely you have to remove the head and use a specific adapter to close the valve completely, it varies between TRVs...........or pt up with drips.

It's unclear from abankerbutnotafatcat's post whether the radiator has a TRV or not. She only mentions having a TRV available so whether that is already fitted or not is unknown. You do of course, correctly as usual, point out that TRV's do need a cap fitted to totally seal off water flow and it was worth pointing that out so that they don't make any mistake in thinking that the water is off, just by turning the dial if a TRV is fitted.

Some TRV's are sold with the shut off cap, however whether it can be found when it's needed is another matter.

If there is no TRV fitted then it's a fairly simple job.

Leif wrote: »

Yes, I know. The point I was making is that people claiming to be professional plumbers did not care about balancing the system. Too much like work. They also put a TRV on the radiator near the thermostat, and did not bother to show me how to use the boiler, which is in the list of things the installer should do according to Worcester Bosch.

lol don't start me on plumbers and heating engineers and their "do a quick job" type of work that creates countless problems down the road. Unless you ask them to do it and pay for it then it probably won't get done.