Hi. I have an old back boiler. The system has an F&E tank and a Grundfos pump.
This week I turned on the heating for the first time of the winter and the boiler turns on but cuts out quickly. The pipe nearby gets hot, but none of the radiators do.
Around 5 years ago, a Fernox Total Filter 1 was added.
I checked the F&E tank and it was filthy with orange-brown gunge, and the connection to the feed pipe looked like it was blocked. So I cleaned out the tank with a wet vac. But the system still didn't seem to fill and the radiators still don't heat up.
I get the impression that the boiler is ok and there is either not enough water in the system or there is a blockage of dirt/airlock - something to do with poor circulation. The pipework around the pump, magnetic filter and boiler gets hot, but the radiators don't.
I have checked the Grundfos pump turns easily with a screwdriver, and have tried it on all three speeds. It makes a gurgling sound and gets very hot.
I have bled all the rads, pump and emptied and bled the TF1. Not much air comes out and, until I cleaned out the F&E, not much water either.
A theory is that when I cleaned the tank, I didn't cover the feed pipe because it looked blocked and the tank was full of water, so maybe some of the dirty water got into the system but then got blocked further down as it was dirty water, hence the rads initially seeming to have more water but then the heating still not working
I am reluctant to call a plumber until I've given up. I would be extremely grateful for any ideas.
Mine include: 1) emptying the system and seeing if it refills 2) adding water via the air vent of the TF1 3) poking something into the feed pipe to try and unblock it 4) adding chemicals to the feed pipe to try and unblock it
This week I turned on the heating for the first time of the winter and the boiler turns on but cuts out quickly. The pipe nearby gets hot, but none of the radiators do.
Around 5 years ago, a Fernox Total Filter 1 was added.
I checked the F&E tank and it was filthy with orange-brown gunge, and the connection to the feed pipe looked like it was blocked. So I cleaned out the tank with a wet vac. But the system still didn't seem to fill and the radiators still don't heat up.
I get the impression that the boiler is ok and there is either not enough water in the system or there is a blockage of dirt/airlock - something to do with poor circulation. The pipework around the pump, magnetic filter and boiler gets hot, but the radiators don't.
I have checked the Grundfos pump turns easily with a screwdriver, and have tried it on all three speeds. It makes a gurgling sound and gets very hot.
I have bled all the rads, pump and emptied and bled the TF1. Not much air comes out and, until I cleaned out the F&E, not much water either.
A theory is that when I cleaned the tank, I didn't cover the feed pipe because it looked blocked and the tank was full of water, so maybe some of the dirty water got into the system but then got blocked further down as it was dirty water, hence the rads initially seeming to have more water but then the heating still not working
I am reluctant to call a plumber until I've given up. I would be extremely grateful for any ideas.
Mine include: 1) emptying the system and seeing if it refills 2) adding water via the air vent of the TF1 3) poking something into the feed pipe to try and unblock it 4) adding chemicals to the feed pipe to try and unblock it
