House not getting warm any more

[1066irons]

Hi, I have lived in a large Victorian house for the last 7 years and never had a problem heating it. I could get the house toasty warm without problem. On paper it’s not energy efficient(high ceilings, wooden floors etc). It is mostly double glazed with the odd single glazed window. Although the radiators are old most of them are double and have always heated the rooms well. I had the boiler replaced last year with an ideal S32 which I have been told is more than adequate for the size of the house. There is a room thermostat in the large hallway and the radiators have thermostats too. In the last year, the new boiler has worked really well and the house has been well heated. In January the boiler had its first annual service and since then I have had problems heating the house. The temperature in the house feels about 16 degrees even though I have the thermostat on 24 and I have tried putting it on higher to see if that makes a difference and it doesn’t. In the past I only needed the thermostat to be on 22. The week after the service there were some REALLY LOUD noises from some of the radiators, I have never heard them make noises that loud. I assumed it was air and when I realised the heating wasn’t working properly I bled the radiators. By the way all the radiators get hot all over but they just don’t seem to heat the rooms anymore adequately. I have had the plumber who did the service back again and he can’t see anything wrong. I have also had another plumber and he also can’t see anything wrong. They both said the radiators are hot and that the boiler is working fine. They said that maybe the radiators are not adequate and that I have high ceilings and wooden floors etc but clearly I have had high ceilings etc for the last 7 years and the house heated properly. Somehow raising the thermostat temperature has no impact now. does anyone have any ideas please? Thanks!

 

[Allgoode]

Firstly check the rad temp control knob on boiler that it is turned up to correct level.

Also installer &/or GSR who serviced boiler may have set the central heating flow/rtn temps set lower for greater efficiency which is in the menu system.

A different option is to buy a cheap temp sensor (ideally magnetic) from hardware store or online & put on each radiator in turn to get temps which may not be the same as when originally installed.

You may have a duff thermostat or if weather comp sensor is fitted then possibly the heating gradient slope has been reset/set incorrectly.

A different cause can be the valves in or near the hot water cylinder/unvented cylinder, in that they may be stuck in incorrect position meaning boiler is trying to heat rads & water at same time.

There are various other things to check also also but best to get a GSR engineer back out to give system a full check over & check settings in menu system as well,

Hope this helps,

Andy

 

[SimonG]

Turn boiler thermostat up.

 

[1066irons]

Firstly check the rad temp control knob on boiler that it is turned up to correct level.

Also installer &/or GSR who serviced boiler may have set the central heating flow/rtn temps set lower for greater efficiency which is in the menu system.

A different option is to buy a cheap temp sensor (ideally magnetic) from hardware store or online & put on each radiator in turn to get temps which may not be the same as when originally installed.

You may have a duff thermostat or if weather comp sensor is fitted then possibly the heating gradient slope has been reset/set incorrectly.

A different cause can be the valves in or near the hot water cylinder/unvented cylinder, in that they may be stuck in incorrect position meaning boiler is trying to heat rads & water at same time.

There are various other things to check also also but best to get a GSR engineer back out to give system a full check over & check settings in menu system as well,

Hope this helps,

Andy

Hi thank you for your replies. I forgot to mention in previous post that the boiler is set on max. Previously it was on around 75 when it was working really well. At the time of servicing I told the engineer that the water was too hot. He said that was the only he adjusted on the cylinder. The water was still really hot but the heating as I said got cooler. When he returned he adjusted it to what it was before on the cylinder and said it wouldn’t have affected the heating. It is such a marked difference in temperature only about 16 degrees do you think something could have blown when I heard all those loud noises? My gut feeling is it is something to do with the room thermostat(basic Honeywell dial) as the room temperature just doesn’t climb up. The room thermostat does click at around 15 degrees and I have seen it is connecting to the boiler. Thanks again.

 

[heatservice]

How hot are your rads? if there at max temp you shouldn't comfortably be able to hold your hand on them for very long 80+ deg C, the click on your room stat is roughly the current air temperature.

 

[1066irons]

Thanks for your reply. The radiators are hot but the rooms are not getting really warm. There is definitely some thing very different to before. I know the house I have lived here 7 years but the plumbers are now saying it’s the high ceilings etc. Nothing in the house has changed in the last two months to make such a dramatic difference. I also used to be able to control the heat with the room thermostat and that no longer seems to make any difference whatsoever even if I put it on 28. I have an elderly mother and she always used to put it on at 24/25 and I was always lowering to 22 and even 2 degrees you could feel the difference as I said the rooms now feel like 16 and in the evening I feel I need a blanket. Thanks.

 

[heatservice]

If you rads are very hot to the touch then maybe it just the cold weather has been more penetrating than the past few years, my property is old and been hard to heat this year compared to the last 3.

 

[1066irons]

Hi again, I really don’t think it’s that. It’s not that cold now so they should be back to normal now. I actually dont even have the heating on today as it doesn’t make much difference. I have also done a comparison with the weather back in December and it’s comparable and the house was getting warmer. I was also here when we had that bad winter about 7 years ago. I have been here through several winters so I know the house and you just know when something is not right. Thanks for your replies and suggestions.

 

[bacon_sandwich]

Are the radiators the same temp?, any cooler ones mean return temps may be too high as flow is bypassing them.
If you cannot keep your hand on the rads they are hot if you can they are not hot enough...

 

[Murdoch]

Makes me wonder if the room stat is working .... Have you got an old fashioned thermostat you could place near the room stat?

 

[1066irons]

Thanks for your replies. I really appreciate everyone trying to help. I am going to try and buy a temp sensor tomorrow as someone suggested . I have bed and breakfast people staying in part of the house now until Tuesday so don’t have access to the whole house to check all the radiators but those I have put my hand on, some I can only keep me hands on for about 6 seconds and others which are still hot I can keep my hands on without burning them. I am sitting in the living room this evening with a thick cardigan and the room which is about 16x10 has a double rad and a single rad and my face and nose are cold. I really do think it’s something to do with the room thermostat. Thanks!

 

[heatservice]

All the room stat does is turn the heating on when the air temp surronding it falls below your setting and turns it off when the temp is reached, its just a temperature switch.

 

[heatservice]

Consider having a wirless stat as hard wired ones are rarely fitted in the ideal position Also check the convection fin on you rads aren't blocked with dust & fluff as it can really affect heat output

 

[1066irons]

Thanks Heatservice, I will give it a go.

 

[rpm]

Thanks for your replies. I really appreciate everyone trying to help. I am going to try and buy a temp sensor tomorrow as someone suggested . I have bed and breakfast people staying in part of the house now until Tuesday so don’t have access to the whole house to check all the radiators but those I have put my hand on, some I can only keep me hands on for about 6 seconds and others which are still hot I can keep my hands on without burning them. I am sitting in the living room this evening with a thick cardigan and the room which is about 16x10 has a double rad and a single rad and my face and nose are cold. I really do think it’s something to do with the room thermostat. Thanks!

Don`t suppose you would consider the idea that perhaps it is your body feeling the cold more. How is your health generally?

 

[dan_the_plumber]

I would say, set your boiler temp where it was before.
Sometimes when you have old rads, the circulation has been reduced and so if you try to put too much heat energy into the system your boiler will ‘cycle’ on and off.
You’re better off putting a nice even temperature through the system. I would also advise changing 3 rads per year. You’re going to have to do it anyway and don’t waste your money on power flushing