Would appreciate some guidance/advice to see if I'm on the right track...
I'm trying to rule out all possible causes of my central heating system (system boiler incorporating circ. pump & expansion vessel) losing water pressure. These are my thoughts (and observations) so far. Am I missing any other possible cause of pressure loss?
Leaking underfloor pipework to radiators. Who knows?
Leaking original pipework to radiators (original supply/return pipework runs around loft of bungalow and drops down to individual radiators). No visible leaks
Boiler safety valve leaking (connected to condensate drain). Can't tell - poor visibility
Heat exchanger leak into boiler casing or into condensate drain. No leaks into boiler casing
Other pipe/valve/pump leakage within boiler casing. No leaks into boiler casing
Hot water tank heating coils leaking into hot water. Pressure drops even when hot water port valve is closed so not leaking HW tank coils.
Gas/air or water leakage from expansion vessel. No water leaks. Air/gas leak? I'd guestimate the amount of top-up water I've added would probably have overfilled the expansion vessel by now so its probably not leaking expansion tank.
Thanks for your consideration.
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Background:
Had a new gas system boiler installed last summer as part of a new extension. Three new radiators were added to the system at the same time. As expected, the system lost pressure as air left through the boiler's automatic air vent and therefore required topping up with water 3 or 4 times over the first few months. All was fine after that - system held pressure well.
Unfortunately, we had a problem with the final few feet of supply & return water pipes feeding one of the new radiators because a section of the new supply/return pipes set into screed were close to the floor surface and made the floor far too hot to fit the final covering. As a consequence, the radiator, and a section of supply/return pipework, had to be temporarily removed and part of the floor screed dug up so that these speedfit plastic pipes could be set deeper. Following this work, the screed was relaid over the new pipes.
Problem is, the system now loses pressure at a faster rate than it did before. I expected a few top-ups initially but now I'm getting worried. Around 7 top-ups required since the work was carried out less than three weeks ago. At present, the system requires a top-up every 3 days.
Digging up the floor - again - to look for leaks is a last resort. Before I get that done, I'd like to rule out all other possible causes of pressure loss.
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I'm trying to rule out all possible causes of my central heating system (system boiler incorporating circ. pump & expansion vessel) losing water pressure. These are my thoughts (and observations) so far. Am I missing any other possible cause of pressure loss?
Leaking underfloor pipework to radiators. Who knows?
Leaking original pipework to radiators (original supply/return pipework runs around loft of bungalow and drops down to individual radiators). No visible leaks
Boiler safety valve leaking (connected to condensate drain). Can't tell - poor visibility
Heat exchanger leak into boiler casing or into condensate drain. No leaks into boiler casing
Other pipe/valve/pump leakage within boiler casing. No leaks into boiler casing
Hot water tank heating coils leaking into hot water. Pressure drops even when hot water port valve is closed so not leaking HW tank coils.
Gas/air or water leakage from expansion vessel. No water leaks. Air/gas leak? I'd guestimate the amount of top-up water I've added would probably have overfilled the expansion vessel by now so its probably not leaking expansion tank.
Thanks for your consideration.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Background:
Had a new gas system boiler installed last summer as part of a new extension. Three new radiators were added to the system at the same time. As expected, the system lost pressure as air left through the boiler's automatic air vent and therefore required topping up with water 3 or 4 times over the first few months. All was fine after that - system held pressure well.
Unfortunately, we had a problem with the final few feet of supply & return water pipes feeding one of the new radiators because a section of the new supply/return pipes set into screed were close to the floor surface and made the floor far too hot to fit the final covering. As a consequence, the radiator, and a section of supply/return pipework, had to be temporarily removed and part of the floor screed dug up so that these speedfit plastic pipes could be set deeper. Following this work, the screed was relaid over the new pipes.
Problem is, the system now loses pressure at a faster rate than it did before. I expected a few top-ups initially but now I'm getting worried. Around 7 top-ups required since the work was carried out less than three weeks ago. At present, the system requires a top-up every 3 days.
Digging up the floor - again - to look for leaks is a last resort. Before I get that done, I'd like to rule out all other possible causes of pressure loss.
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