Radiator (2yrs old) leaking from the top face.

JustAnotherSaver

We're having some plumbing joy in our house lately :mad:

This must have just happened in the last 24 hours. We have a fish tank in this corner of the room so we're often around this radiator & as much as this blob of paint has oozed out we would've surely noticed it by now if it was old. Tonight it stood out like a sore thumb.





It was my wife that noticed it. Touched the blob of paint & water came out of it.

Looking through my emails i ordered this from Screwfix. My email says 3rd December 2015 but the invoice states 25/01/2015. I don't know how that is because i know for certain it was Christmas time that i bought the thing because i had it fitted while i had my Christmas break from work.

Basically this is the radiator: https://www.screwfix.com/p/kudox-premium-type-22-double-panel-double-convector-radiator-white-600-x-900mm/68129?_requestid=458671


I don't know if inhibitor will be talked about but just in case, i think early in our ownership of the house it maybe didn't have inhibitor for perhaps 6 months at a guess. That was back around 2014.

Anyway since then the system has been fully drained a few times and before these rads were fitted it was totally drained, filled, drained etc until the water ran crystal clear.

Then i personally added at least 1 tub of that sentinel inhibitor. I think i actually added 2 tubs because i remember asking about whether you can add too much and i wouldn't think 1 tub would be too much. So in all the time these have been fitted it's had inhibitor in the system.


Anyway i'm looking to find out...

what that is?
why it's happened?
can it be fixed or does the whole rad need replacing?


I note screwfix website says manufacturer 15 year guarantee. Worth getting in touch & telling them to send a new one out or are they really just crap? I've heard good & bad things about Screwfix rads.


Right now i've closed both left & right valves off on the rad just in case.

tonyh66

interesting, can you take the end panels then the top panel off to get a better look at it.

JustAnotherSaver

tonyh66 wrote: »

interesting, can you take the end panels then the top panel off to get a better look at it.

Are they supposed to just clip off? Don't want to end up damaging it but if they're supposed to come off then i'll have a do

southcoastrgi

You can’t fix it, I’m sure it will be covered although it will be the manufacturer & not screwfix after this amount of time

JustAnotherSaver

southcoastrgi wrote: »

You can’t fix it, I’m sure it will be covered although it will be the manufacturer & not screwfix after this amount of time

What would you say do here then? Does it 100% need to be replaced?

I guess go to Screwfix with a photo? Be a bit of a faff taking the whole radiator & saying hi i've got a bit of a problem i guess?

Alex1983

I’d say a manufacturing issue, I’ve never seen a radiator do that, I’ve fitted loads of kudos rads, including in my own house.

tonyh66

its weird, its on a bend rather than a seam definitely a leak from the rad and a warranty job.

JustAnotherSaver

Ok that'll do me then. I'm out the way of Screwfix in the morning. I'll go armed with photo & see what they say to do.

DaftyDuck

They'll replace it, no trouble. Those rads have a 10 year guarantee, and Screwfix are good with problems like that. Definitely replace, fixing rarely works and will probably go wrong just as you get off the plane to start a three week holiday. Your return will be miserable, and your wife will skin you, then pickle you for your bodge!

TheCyclingProgrammer

Screwfix would be your first port of call. We have Kudox radiators. Build quality is a bit hit and miss (the grills can sometimes be a bit loose or too tight) but nothing like this.

They (Kudox) claim you need to register to get the extended warranty, I never have. Beware if your system doesn’t have corrosion inhibitor it will probably invalidate any warranty. But knowing Screwfix as long as they can trace the order they will probably just offer to replace it.

JustAnotherSaver

Well called in to Screwfix today. The lad at the counter didn't seem sure at all, on account of him saying he wasn't sure :rotfl:

After looking at my photos and the invoice for a while and looking at his screen for a while and not really pressing any buttons or asking for any supervisor the response sort of went a bit like this....

Him: uhhh, errrr, well uhh just uhhh bring it back and we'll exchange it
Me: so bring that radiator back to this store & you'll give me a new one?
Him: errr, yeah

with a puzzled look on his face.

Maybe best i actually call Screwfix through the week to find out for sure.