Central Heating in South Tyneside

How a wet central heating system works

In a wet central heating system, the boiler heats water that a pump pushes through pipework to the radiators and back again. Valves, a thermostat and a programmer decide when and where the heat goes, and the system is either sealed and pressurised or fed from a small tank in the loft.

When one part of that loop stops doing its job, the symptoms show up in the rooms: radiators that stay cold, heating that takes an age to warm the house, or a pressure gauge on the boiler that keeps dropping.

Common central heating problems

Air trapped at the top of a radiator leaves it warm below and cold above, and bleeding it usually lets the air out. The opposite pattern, hot along the top but cold across the bottom, often means sludge, a mix of rust and debris that settles in a system over the years.

Other common faults include a pump that has failed or seized, a motorised valve stuck in one position so only the heating or only the hot water works, radiator valves that leak or will not shut off, and rooms that never warm up because the system is out of balance.

Heating that comes on but never gets the house comfortable can point to a pump running too slowly, a room thermostat in the wrong spot, or radiators too small for the rooms they serve. A thermostat in a hallway beside the front door sees very different temperatures from the living room it is meant to control.

Radiators, pipework and upgrades

A radiator can be swapped for a different size, moved to a better wall, or added to a room that has never had one, such as an extension. Older single panel radiators can give way to larger double panel ones where a room needs more heat.

Adding radiators puts more demand on the boiler, so we look at whether the boiler and pipework can carry the extra load and explain what the job involves before starting.

Thermostatic radiator valves let individual rooms settle at their own temperature, while a room thermostat tells the boiler when the house as a whole is warm enough. The two need to be set up to work together, or the boiler can keep firing when the rooms are already warm.

Replacing an older system

Some older homes still run on narrow microbore pipework, gravity fed hot water or very old radiators. When a system reaches that stage, replacing the pipework, radiators and controls together can make more sense than chasing one fault after another.

A full replacement is a bigger job that means lifting floorboards and draining everything down, so it is worth talking through the layout of the house and how you use each room when you call.

Terraces, bungalows and newer homes

Pipework runs differently from one type of home to another. In a terrace it often sits under suspended timber floors, a bungalow may carry its pipes through the loft, and a newer house on a solid floor can have pipework set in the screed or boxed in along the walls. Those details change how a radiator is moved or a leak is reached, so mention the age and type of your home when you call.

If you notice a gas smell

Central heating faults are about water rather than gas, but a gas smell near the boiler is different: leave the home, avoid switches and call the National Gas Emergency line on 0800 111 999, turning the gas off at the meter first if you can get to it safely.