Problems found after moving into house

MarkBargain

ash28 wrote: »

Could just need you to turn off all the other radiators in the house - leave your cold one on and then give your central heating a good blast - it could just be a small blockage.

Worked for us.

Thanks for that, I will give it a try later (need to remove some radiator covers first, but no problem).

MarkBargain

ultrarunner wrote: »

Ever heard of WD40?

Yes, and coincidentally, I tried it on this door lock!

The door was old anyway and the whole thing has been properly replaced now. It's not a problem, it was just annoying at the point of moving in and an unexpected immediate expense.

MarkBargain

k3lvc wrote: »

Loads of good advice on here and the OP seems to be taking it in the spirit it's intended.

Yep, I appreciate all the comments. At the end of the day I am very happy with the house and all's well that ends well.

MarkBargain

ToasterScheme wrote: »

Does this cold radiator have a thermostatic valve on it already?

If so, sometimes these can get stuck closed, especially if they are old or if the valve is turned off for a while, e.g. over the summer.

Remove the top part of the valve (the bit you turn to set the heat level) - using the knurled nut at the base of it. Don't use a tool (if this is tight you're probably undoing the wrong part...). You won't lose any water by doing this.
Inside there will be a small pin that should be free to move up and down by 2 or 3 mm. If it seems stuck, grab it gently with a pair of pliers and try to pull it vertically upwards.
Don't bend it or hit it with a hammer.

It's a really good idea to compare it with a working rad to see what sort of travel is normal for your make of valve.

In my last house this was part of my routine for switching on the heating in the autumn.

Thanks very much for this, I do appreciate it and I'll take a look.

As luck would have it I have a builder coming round shortly so I'll get him to take a look as I'm sure he can sort it out for us if we can't.

MarkBargain

artbaron wrote: »

I had to laugh at that OP, not least that you didn't notice the house had no doors apart from one, which didn't open. Cross your fingers and look up - is there a roof? Phew.

It could be of course that the doors were here when we viewed and they were taken out before we moved in, but it's true I can't be sure and I surprise myself in that respect as we were looking carefully at the windows, looking out for damp spots etc. There were a family living here at the time and we immediately liked the place so put in an offer after a quick look round. No regrets though, as doors or no doors we are delighted with the house.

MarkBargain

juliebunny wrote: »

The thing is, when you are looking round a house, and the current owners are still there, it's pretty uncomfortable to start testing out electric sockets etc - you do have to assume that generally people have some sort of common decency - even though there will be those who hide behind 'buyer beware'.

Yes, you're absolutely right. It's their house and I am sure most viewers don't start opening cupboards and checking the radiators. There is also a light* which doesn't work and a dead electric socket, but c'est la vie. Had we have known earlier, we'd still have bought the house.

* I await the smart comments about me never having heard of light bulbs.

juliebunny wrote: »

Apparently in Scotland, if the heating doesn't work and you move in over Winter, you can bill back to the previous owner.

That's interesting. It goes back to my original point in that a seller has filled in a form to say the heating works then the buyer finds out it doesn't all work. OK, only one radiator in this case so not a major problem.

artbaron

MarkBargain wrote: »

It could be of course that the doors were here when we viewed and they were taken out before we moved in, but it's true I can't be sure and I surprise myself in that respect as we were looking carefully at the windows, looking out for damp spots etc. There were a family living here at the time and we immediately liked the place so put in an offer after a quick look round. No regrets though, as doors or no doors we are delighted with the house.

And that's what matters. There are almost always jobs that need doing when moving in. In my case it's new windows & doors all round (completed last week), new kitchen with all appliances, complete new bathroom (it's the worst you can imagine), reposition and rebuild the garage so I can get the car in, repave parking area, full external and internal painting, a bit of roof work, 2 new radiators, some floor levelling, new fireplace, curtains, blinds, floorboards, carpets and internal doorknobs. None of this was even hinted at in the ad and although I caught 80% of it on the viewings there's always stuff that escapes you (and whilst I would have noticed a lack of doors I admit I didn't notice that the back door only opened from outside and when I later opened the garage door it fell off and nearly killed me). But like you I'm delighted with the house.

geoffky

juliebunny wrote: »

The thing is, when you are looking round a house, and the current owners are still there, it's pretty uncomfortable to start testing out electric sockets etc - you do have to assume that generally people have some sort of common decency - even though there will be those who hide behind 'buyer beware'.

When I moved into my house, I asked to go round again so they could show us how the boiler worked and they were really huffing and puffing about it, but at least it showed that it all worked. They left the house in good conditon and even had the carpets cleaned - there were a few dodgy bits of DIY mind you, but haven't found anything major (yet!)

Apparently in Scotland, if the heating doesn't work and you move in over Winter, you can bill back to the previous owner.
And I knew a woman who had her solicitor hold back funds on the day she was moving in due to damage at the property - not sure how she managed that one - getting into the property before the funds had been tranferred.

What do you do if the previous owners have had a massive party and trashed the place? It seems unfair that there should be no recourse at all. I guess you do live and learn from bad experiences, and it's good to share too.

Our solicitor insisted that we do a inspection on moving in day and insisted that money was held back until we phoned her with the ok..
She was amazing and had to handhold the other solicitors through a big problem with there being two sets of deeds and marked boundary problems that need a land registry visit...6 months later we moved in..

martindow

geoffky wrote: »

Our solicitor insisted that we do a inspection on moving in day and insisted that money was held back until we phoned her with the ok..
She was amazing and had to handhold the other solicitors through a big problem with there being two sets of deeds and marked boundary problems that need a land registry visit...6 months later we moved in..

Were you exchanging and completing on the same day?

globetraveller

We once viewed a house with no internal doors. Turns out they had them in the loft- worth checking yours?