Central heating is the most cost effective way of supplying hot water to your home as well as keeping it warm when the temperatures fall. What we often find is that systems that lay dormant in the summer can play up and fail to work when they’re needed the most over winter.
If this sounds like you then read on as we’re going to run through a list of central heating problems and tell you several ways you may be able to fix them.
There is No Heating or Hot Water
This issue will become apparent when your boiler isn’t able to ignite and therefore can’t heat the water supplied to your taps or to your homes radiators. The cause will usually be a blown fuse within your boilers power supply so this is where we suggest you start.
- Make sure that there is power to your boiler by checking its control panel. No data shown would suggest a power supply issue. In this case we would suggest that you replace the appropriate fuse.
- If there is power to your boiler but it won’t provide a flame, check the systems water pressure. It water pressure drops below 0.5 bar, your boiler won’t be able to ignite until the system is re pressurised.
- Locate your boilers water supply tap and open it – you will hear the system fill with water and the pressure gauge will rise.
- At this point, if switched on, you will hear your boiler start working.
There is Hot Water but No Heating
This issue suggests that the boiler itself is working correctly but there may be a problem with the diverter valve or pump used to circulate hot water around your home. We suggest you first start with the diverter valve and work from there by:
- Locating the motorised diverter valve. It will usually be situated near to your boiler.
- This valve is powered by electricity and may need to be reset for it to become operational so switch of your boilers power supply and turn it back on again.
- If the problem hasn’t resolved itself then it is likely to be the water pump which forces hot water through your homes pipework.
- Switch off the power supply and disconnect the pump to check for any obvious signs of a blockage due to the build up of sludge. Clean what is visible and reassemble.
Only Some of My Radiators Are Hot
This is likely a problem caused by trapped air within your central heating system. Locate your bleed valve key and use it to bleed the offending radiator. This will release any trapped air and allow it to fill with hot water.
Call a Central Heating Engineer
Central heating systems can often be temperamental and require the services of a heating engineer. You will be able to find one local to you by consulting a directory or performing an online web search. Central heating services in Blackwood are available to all those living in South Wales through one of several local heating engineers. If you’re a little further afield, there will be a local heating engineer available to assist you.
The appropriate central heating and boiler maintenance can extend the life of your hot water system so keep on top of it to ensure it works when you need it.