Just a bit of information sharing which might be of use to others:
Had struggled for 2 years with inefficient central heating, half of the house always cold, radiators luke warm etc. Seemed to be spending a fortune on logs as well trying to boost the heat with the additional log burner. The cold part happens to be in the original bit of the house so figured it might just be something to do with that and not a lot you can do.
Before calling an engineer in had a shufti on YouTube. Balancing the system appeared to be what was required. Drew a radiator diagram showing the order with inlets and outlets as per the tutorial, then set the first one up and patiently on to the next. Took about half a day all in all with some fine tuning required at the end, but blimey was it worth it, a really warm house throughout.
Worth mentioning as the system started working efficiently the trapped air came pouring out of the release valves, so much so the water pressure in the boiler dropped to zero cutting the thing out! A moment of panic but our friend YouTube showed how to refill the boiler and off you go again. Let out the last bit of air, then a last tweak on the balancing and for the first time since moving in have a toasty house.
Saved a good few quid and learned something along the way which is always a good feeling.
This guy was very clear and used the idiot speak I found very helpful:
All boilers will be slightly different but this is the one I used. I suppose normally the annual gas service guy would top up if required but as mentioned was forced suddenly to top up. Something that the thought of was quite scary was in fact a piece of cake.
Can’t believe we struggled so long and am hoping as it’s finally efficient the bills will come down next winter too. Don't be afraid of having a go guys.
Had struggled for 2 years with inefficient central heating, half of the house always cold, radiators luke warm etc. Seemed to be spending a fortune on logs as well trying to boost the heat with the additional log burner. The cold part happens to be in the original bit of the house so figured it might just be something to do with that and not a lot you can do.
Before calling an engineer in had a shufti on YouTube. Balancing the system appeared to be what was required. Drew a radiator diagram showing the order with inlets and outlets as per the tutorial, then set the first one up and patiently on to the next. Took about half a day all in all with some fine tuning required at the end, but blimey was it worth it, a really warm house throughout.
Worth mentioning as the system started working efficiently the trapped air came pouring out of the release valves, so much so the water pressure in the boiler dropped to zero cutting the thing out! A moment of panic but our friend YouTube showed how to refill the boiler and off you go again. Let out the last bit of air, then a last tweak on the balancing and for the first time since moving in have a toasty house.
Saved a good few quid and learned something along the way which is always a good feeling.
This guy was very clear and used the idiot speak I found very helpful:
All boilers will be slightly different but this is the one I used. I suppose normally the annual gas service guy would top up if required but as mentioned was forced suddenly to top up. Something that the thought of was quite scary was in fact a piece of cake.
Can’t believe we struggled so long and am hoping as it’s finally efficient the bills will come down next winter too. Don't be afraid of having a go guys.
Last edited:
