Oil Fired Central Heating

[Papillon2]

We have a portable thermastat for our radiators which also have thermastat valves fitted, apart from the one in the sitting room where we usually keep the Thermastat.
I can't see the sense in this as the thermastat only seems to work with the radiator in whichever room it happens to be in. So once that room has reached the target temperature the heating goes off in all rooms regardless of whether or not they have reached the target temperature!
For instance this morning the target temperature was 22 it had reached that temperature in the sitting room where the thermastat was situated but the study next door was only 18 and the rad was cold? The radiator doesn't need bleeding, we have tested it. The rad in that room is on 5 and the sitting room is blank.
Is this normal? If so what is the point of the valves?

 

[endecotp]

With that arrangement the boiler will go off when the room with the thermostat has reached the temperature that the thermostat is set to. There are various obvious problems with this, e.g. if other rooms need more heat they won’t get it. One option is to put the thermostat in the place that is slowest to heat up.

You say that the radiator in the study was cold. If it was stone cold as if it had never been on, you may have a problem. If it had been on, and gone off when the sitting room reached its target temperature and the boiler turned off, then the system is “working as designed”.

 

[Papillon2]

Thank you Endecopt. The study radiator is working it had gone off because the other room had reached the set temperature.
The plumber who installed it told us that if the woodburner was alight the radiator in that room wouldn't get hot! He forgot to mention, ' only if the thermastat is in the same room' ! As we found out to our cost when I put the thermastat in the study!
We also have a control on the wall by the boiler which controls the hot water and the heating. The plumber had turned the heating side of it off. We are now experimenting by turning that back on and turning the portable thermastat off. Am I right in thinking the number on the rads will control the heat in each room? If so I think it is a much better idea than the portable thermastat.

 

[endecotp]

You do need something that will cause the boiler to turn off when everywhere is warm enough.

 

[Papillon2]

Won't each individual valve do that when the room is warm enough? There is a choice of timed or on. We have got it permanently on at the moment. It hasn't come on yet but I think the rooms are too warm.

 

[endecotp]

Won't each individual valve do that when the room is warm enough?

No. The valves on the radiators will turn the radiators off when the rooms are warm enough, but the boiler doesn’t know that. (The boiler will actually turn itself off because no water is moving, but it will keep coming on every couple of minutes; this is inefficient.)

BTW, you would have got more answers if you had posted in “plumbing and central heating”.

 

[Mottie]

Sounds like the system needs balancing properly.

 

[foxhole]

We have a portable thermastat for our radiators which also have thermastat valves fitted, apart from the one in the sitting room where we usually keep the Thermastat.
I can't see the sense in this as the thermastat only seems to work with the radiator in whichever room it happens to be in. So once that room has reached the target temperature the heating goes off in all rooms regardless of whether or not they have reached the target temperature!
For instance this morning the target temperature was 22 it had reached that temperature in the sitting room where the thermastat was situated but the study next door was only 18 and the rad was cold? The radiator doesn't need bleeding, we have tested it. The rad in that room is on 5 and the sitting room is blank.
Is this normal? If so what is the point of the valves?

The study rad valve needs turning up or is stuck in locked position, often happens this time of year when heating has been off over summer .

 

[Papillon2]

Mattie, the system was supposed to have been balanced at the beginning of the year when a new one was put in!! Not sure that it was, our landlord is a bit of a cheapskate!

 

[Papillon2]

The study rad valve needs turning up or is stuck in locked position, often happens this time of year when heating has been off over summer .

So does that mean when I think I have turned it up it is really much lower?

 

[Papillon2]

No. The valves on the radiators will turn the radiators off when the rooms are warm enough, but the boiler doesn’t know that. (The boiler will actually turn itself off because no water is moving, but it will keep coming on every couple of minutes; this is inefficient.)

BTW, you would have got more answers if you had posted in “plumbing and central heating”.

Would it work better then if I had it on timed?
I couldn't find "plumbing and central heating" I did look for it.

 

[foxhole]

So does that mean when I think I have turned it up it is really much lower?

It could be off completely if valve sticks, with it at highest setting and heating on test to see if rad warms , if not a sharp tap of the metal valve body can often free it .

 

[Mottie]

Even if the TRV is fully open, if it’s not balanced properly, you might not get enough flow through the rad.

 

[Papillon2]

It could be off completely if valve sticks, with it at highest setting and heating on test to see if rad warms , if not a sharp tap of the metal valve body can often free it .

We have that particular rad on 5 the highest setting all the time and yes it does come on. The problem is if we have the woodburner a light all the other rooms are cold. If we move the thermastat into one of these rooms the sitting and dining rooms get much too hot unless we think to turn the rads off. The blank valve is on the sitting room rad.

 

[Papillon2]

Even if the TRV is fully open, if it’s not balanced properly, you might not get enough flow through the rad.

I am not sure but I think the valves we have are manuel not TVRs?