this genuinely saved me £90 and a cold nights sleep - im a 25 year old woman who has never lived away from her parents so i was so scared and out of my depth lol! the relief i felt after spending over 5 hours this evening trying to fix my radiator, only to finally stumble across the video that helped is unmatched!! i am so, so grateful. thank you thank you thank you!!!!!!!
That's brilliant! Well done, just be careful messing with the system, I dont want to scare you off from diy as I think people should know more, I just wouldn't want you to give yourself an air lock or anything. You won't do that messing with the lock shield and therm valves so they are fine, just be careful with the boiler itself or taking things apart on the rads. Other than that, I wish more people would overcome their fear. Most things are designed to be fool proof, so whilst you could cause an issue due to inexperience, it is unlikely and its better to learn and understand these things.
Being in the building services industry for over 20 years this is the best explanation of a basic radiator system. Fantastic and enjoyed the whole video. Thank you 👏👏
So having had two "professional" plumbers out to sort my heating and having been told there must be a blockage in the pipes I did some digging. Ended u0 replacing two radiators and still no solution. Then I stumbled on to this video and it all made sense. Had a go at balancing today and already its so much better. Going to spend a little more time soon and I'm.sure all will be sorted. Thank you so much.
I've lived in my house for 8 years, a 3 floor town house and have spent a lot of effort trying to get the bottom floor lounge warm. After watching this i now match my room temperature with the middle floor thermostsat. Now that ive done it it seems obvious. Thanks for the presentation that changed things for me. Much appreciated
I don’t know what I’d do without Roger 🙌🏽… I’m renovating a 19thC house and learning on the job. I’m a sculptor so not totally clueless with materials, but suffice to say, with each new process I take onboard, Roger is the calm, real voice of experience I can rely on. THANKYOU 🙏🏽
Thank you Roger! When I were a lad, I was taught the importance of bleeding radiators. Always checking them before the weather started turning cool for autumn. My step-dad did a great job of teaching my siblings and me to independent enough to not need to call in the trades-people for general work (but to also recognise when it was a good idea to call in the professionals). So over the years I am pleased to be able to say my skills have expanded a lot. This is a huge new piece of information that I never had previously. My current central heating system was installed a little over 5 years ago (replacing an archaic back-boiler and gas heater system). I was extremely pleased with the work done, and it has served me well. This weekend, I am going to check (and if necessary adjust) the balance. I didn't even know this was a thing! The system does have cold water storage and a cylinder with an immersion heater element. So hearing you mention more info to follow about such a system, I will be waiting with bated breath to see what more I can do to improve its efficiency. I've learned a lot from the Skill Builder channel, and am very grateful for the time you and your associates put into creating the content. So I'm off to invest in thermostatic valves to replace the basic 0-5 valves on the system (been meaning to do that for 5 years). And then to repair what I think is a sticky valve, which is causing my system to refuse to provide heat to the radiators unless the water cylinder also needs it's contents heating. 👍
Honestly, I’ve watched so many videos to fully understand the lock shield valve’s purpose fully and what happens when you close/open this valve. This is best video and the only one for me that explained it so clearly. What worked for me is when you said ‘water is lazy’ 😂. Amazing. I watched this video last year and watched it again now just now to remind myself about the lock shield valve. Thanks 🙏
Been trying to get a plumber out to sort out some of these issues on my heating system for 4 months now and just about given up. This video has just saved me a fair few quid! Many thanks.
Thanks for the tutorial. So after 25 years of DIY I finally know that a lockshield valve is not just for preventing air bubbles in your pipes when refilling a radiator (which I believed when I was told by a plumber about 25 years ago haha).
If I had you near me me I'd buy you a pint. I have had 2 plumbers look at my system and it was still dodgy. Watched this and set about setting the lockshields as you said to. It is now perfect, all rads nice n warm and the boiler, an old Riello, is running at minimum setting. Thanks a milllion, keep up the good work.
Many thanks, a complete eye opener. I'd never come across radiator balancing before, but it all makes sense the way you explained it. A task to complete before the onset of winter.
Very knowledgeable person, was able to explain so any central heating Dumb can understand. I learnt a lot today. Thank you sincerely. By the way, I am 88 years old
Very knowledgeable, hence able to simplify the instructions Been doing enduser training for 30+ years, I've found the K.I.S.S system of training works best, KISS stands for Keep It Simple Stupid. and is very adaptable and works in any environment
Thanks for this - just managed to 'fix' my central heating system using just touch assessment of radiator warmth, a spanner, screwdriver and pliers. Total cost - zero.
Just done this and the difference is amazing ! Every radiator in the house is now piping hot where before I had 3 that just were not performing . Thanks for the vid , not worried about a cold winter now 😎👍
Great video for explains the rudiments of a heating system. Be aware that when selecting raidiators the outputs manufacturers give are based on a differential temperature of 60 Celsius that is the difference between the radiator water temperature and the room that means the boiler needs to run at 80 Celsius . For every 6 Celsius we reduce the boiler water temperature the radiator selected size needs to be 10% bigger eg if we need a heat output of 1kw then a radiator of 1.1kW is needed. To run the system with a boiler temperature of 50 Celsius radiators need to be selected with a heat output of 200% so as to get a 1kW heat output the radiator needs to be selected with a 2.0 kW output. Unfortunately very few radiator manufacturers provide this information on their literature. Hope this helps folks.
Why would one radiator have cold water in it plenty of pressure plenty of water passing through it no air whatsoever but no warm water at all I had the system running while bleeding it through and the water dosent even get luke warm the valves are ok at either side I changed the thermostatic one
I’ve had radiators on and off the wall as part of the renovation as well as putting new ones in. Balancing is on my list of things to do, so this is great
Let's have a whip-round to buy some new marker pens for Roger. The ink is a solvent that evaporates over time and you get weak colours. Thanks for a clear and concise video.
Been trying to understand what balancing was and been trying to suss out how you balance an underflow heating system with the flow meters, you have just made me an expert after your wonderful illustrations and explanation in balance and flow of water thank you very much Sir.
So glad I found this video we've just lost my dad and he did all the radiators. My mum has a rad that is not putting out heat in the hall and this video has been so helpful I've actually learnt loads and found it interesting how it all fits together round the house. Thanks for the helpful video.
Thank you for this. Your information is invaluable. We've just moved into our first home with a conventional system and I couldn't get the last radiator to work. Will be be trying this tomorrow.
Our rads were put in 20 years ago and luckily they were oversized as we're running the combi at 48C flow. Setback temp of 16C then 18 all day until teatime where we set the temp to 19C until 10 ish. The lower the flow temp the lower temp difference you need at the rad, we're on 11C difference. We have also invested in a PIV, we don't even have the heater switched on on it. It circulates the heat lovely too. The low radiator temp gives off a lovely consistent heat and none of the clanking with not having red hot rads (which can be dangerous anyway).
Great teaching for an electrician who loves plumbing stuff ( frustrated plumber) . Didn’t think about balancing the radiators but I can now see why you would. Very interesting. Don’t forget the automatic /bypass valve for systems with TVR’s on all radiators .
Yet another excellent explanation in simple language. Even if not planning to carry out the work, these are so good as general interest and educational resources for a home owner and DIY enthusiast. Thank you.
Every now and again, I’m glad our devices listen to our conversations..! My friend and I were talking about the heating today; I switch on the iPad and RUclips and there is your video as a ‘suggestion’!!! 21 years I’ve lived in my house and the living room rad has never felt more than warm... Now having turned the ‘exit’ valves on the preceding rads to almost off, the living room is too hot! Thanks. :-)
Your way ahead of explaining than other vids I watched. Better explanation of the way the cold valve works, and what happens when you adjust it. Thank you.
Very, very well explained Roger, I was trying to explain this to a couple of mates last night after a program they'd watched on Channel 5 (30 ways to save money) advised (very briefly) to turn the flow temperature down for better economy, I'll just send them a link to this video now, job done
Thank you Roger and the team for producing this video. That's me away to give it a go. Please keep up the good work as I am learning all the time. I am glad that I am not the only one who needs this explaining.
Thanks for posting this video I followed your instructions and other RUclips videos just like this one it has done the job, my fat is a lot warmer and my central heating is not always trying to heat the flat. Keep up the good work the videos are very useful.
Entertaining watch ... look for plumbing video .. this is gently entertaining... it's what you need when you have been struggling to get the radiators to heat up evenly.
What a beautiful video, so well explained and with the new gas prices. IV always struggled in winter down stairs always cooler than upstairs, which I prefer the other way round as I only need main bed room rad on low, rest of upstairs gets most of heat from downstairs rooms. Thank you.
Cheers! Absolutely superb video. It had been power flushed and have radiators on a separate run that wouldn't heat up. Balanced them all and it's working! Thanks Roger!
Such an excellent explanation ... after 15 years I understand now why my front room radiators are not so hot and specially since I had the new efficient boiler 2 years ago. Thank you
Nice one Roger ,I have just sorted a problem I had for ages , set up all balanced now and main lounge nice n warm ,many thanks for the video....don’t ya just love the Internet
Fantastic video. Got up in the middle of the night and cane across this video. Very well explained and entertaining as well. Now I must get back to bed to keep the lady of the house warm.
amazing, I now know flow and return terminology, and the valve differences on a radiator. I absolutely love the skill Builder series. big thumbs up mate. please continue the series.
Very good explanation Roger. Other guides say the upstairs rads tend to be greedier and need fewer turns than downstairs. I suppose it needs that bit of patience to get it right. I eventually got my own dialled in after replacing all the downstairs for new. 👍
I never cease to be amazed by how many experienced plumbers think that you don't need, (or can't be bothered) to balance radiators if thermostatic valves are fitted. They just leave the lockshields fully open.
Thanks Rodger explained so the novice can understand how it works and how to sort out any problems I’ve been looking for a video to show me exactly what you’ve been on about for a while now so thanks a million
Great info and very timely. I’ve never had a plumber who’s balanced the radiators beyond getting them hot :-). My thought had always been they should come back a few weeks after the system has been running and tweak it? On the running at lower temperature bit, a plumber 20 years ago said a system should be able to heat your house with radiators that were always on just warm enough to hold your hand on comfortably otherwise the boiler would be working too hard!
If you had a plumber saying that 20 years ago he was ahead of the game because condensing boilers were just coming in. The lower temperatures were not that adventageous on old style boilers but they get the best out of condensing boilers.
Skill Builder He may well have been. It was an early domestic installation of a Weismann Condensing boiler and unvented hot water cylinder system it was between 18 & 20 years ago. Mind you my then wife (hence why I know the date) used to run the house at 28 degrees so I’m not sure we got the efficiency benefit!!
We have a condensing boiler in a newish house (10years). We have one rad that never ever gets even warm....and another that gets warm when only the hot water is on not the heating.....what is going on?
Great videos, it’s all depends on the installation of pipe work and number of radiators and the distance, a good heating engineer don’t cut corners and being tight on pipe work, so the balancing easy. If balancing doesn’t work, then clean your system and change the pump, because the pump can be weak. Excellent video about temperature differential mentioned there.
Really well explained, thanks for that. I had to get a new boiler 2 years ago, was told these condenser boilers are more efficient so it's interesting to understand what the difference is. And I'd agree it's usually the lady of the house that wants the temperature up, however in our case it's the other way around, he's shivering and I'm sweltering 😄
Thanks great vid! Never understood what balancing the system meant until I just watched this, well I'm a sparky aren't I? ! Thought my gaffe was getting a bit cold in some rooms, just watched this, and it completely explains why! All my return V/Vs on every rad were wide open :) So, i've closed the ones nearest the boiler a couple of turns, and it's made quite a difference already. It's too late right now to do the 11 degC check, I'll have another go tomorrow. I also bled the system tonight too, there was loads of air in one rad!
Amazes me how many plumbers I have worked with or met that don’t know how to balance a system! Plumbers fitting secondary or larger pumps when there is no need!
Thanks so much for this video I found it really helpful. Your way of explaining things gave me confidence to tackle balancing my radiators, great video!
I don't know why I have thermostatic valves on the radiators, the wife has them all turned up full honk, all year round, she uses the main thermostat as her "master" temperature control, so no need for controls on the boiler either! Good job I've doctored the bugger so it can't exceed 20°C, Ha Ha!👍 Good video, thanks!
Hi Stephen. That is great, I am really glad if it helps. I wrote a couple of DIY plumbing and heating books back in the day and I was really surprised when I learned that some apprentices were using them. Sometimes the really technical books are a bit hard to digest.
Really useful and clear explanation Roger. One question: what’s the best size pipe to run from the boiler? 20mm from the boiler and t off 15mm to the rads, or just keep it to 15mm throughout?
@@jamesmcgill8645 it's a low pressure system, so 22 at the very least, maybe even 1 size up (1.5" equiv.) for the first run if you are branching it for groups of radiators (use 22 for those branches), just try to keep the size suggested by the boiler connections for the first length (to the first T) at least. Try to add a T to the bigger pipe diameter in vicinity (you can reduce the branch if there's no direct T for the 2 sizes).
OMG! Such an informative video! There are so many videos showing/telling you how to balance your system but this ACTUALLY explains how and why to do it! I understand it all so much more now. Thank you - brilliant tutorial 😊
Sir Rodger.... He's getting paid for it... But he deffo wants to help ua all out at the same time .. Well done.. I'm just in the middle of sorting this out havin replaced a rad.. Great stuff 👏👍
This is first house I’ve had with thermostatic valves, which allow still-hot water to return to the boiler. You’ve opened my eyes to why I’ve been having problems at the end of the rad run. I’m hopeful I can now fix it by adjusting the lockshield valves. Thanks very much, great video!
BTW TRVs don't allow hot water to reopen to the boiler - that's caused by fully open Lockshield valves, i.e. The water's getting through the radiator too fast - it's not had time to lose its heat to the room.
I tried to balance my heating system but for the love of money I couldn't do it, that's until I watched your video I was literally trying to balance them.
Good basics and very clear! You may wish to explain that many systems with thermostatic rad valves will often have a bypass radiator that has to have flow all the time, usually in the bathroom, and should not be flow inhibited to avoid pump damage.
The area where the thermostat/controller is located (usually hallway) should run 'wild' to prevent 'hunting'. Didn't think pump damage was an issue with inverter driven pumps
A truly awesome video thank you. We're replacing an old loi boiler with a combi gas one and wifi vales on teh radiators. This video really helped us understand how it all works and how to balance teh system. Well done!
Excellent video. Keeping technical explanations and diagrams simple, helps to absorb the information, and aids in taking on the task. Brilliant! Thanks.
We use a different system. Each zone is a loop. That is to say, one pipe runs from the zone valve to all the radiators on that zone then to the return manifold. Each rad is connected to the supply line twice, the first "T" is a venturi T (aka bypass valve or bypass T) which feeds the rad thru the thermostatic valve. The return is fed from the rad to the back side of the hot supply then to the next rad. This is done to keep the pipes hot in severe cold weather. The down side to this is a slight loss of heat when the cool water in the rad mixes with the hot water in the supply line, but all the radiators do heat up evenly and we avoid using more materials than are necessary.
Merry Christmas!! On the diagram the flow t’s immediately from the boiler for each floor. Presumably that means that downstairs (assuming that’s where your boiler is) will take priority over upstairs if you have the return valve open on all of those. Our downstairs radiators heat up almost immediately but upstairs takes ages
Very useful video. I actually have a Baxi condenser combi and I've set it to 80 C and it's costing quite a bit to heat this old Victorian house. I tried setting the boilder to 55 C yesterday after watching the video and the house is still warm as before, so I'm hopeful that the bills might come down as a result. Also, I've never even heard of balancing the radiators - not even our plumber does it, so thanks for the tip!
What folk should be aware of is that lockshield valves (any valves) are usually only effective over tha last turn or maybe two. A few of my valves are open only maybe 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 or 1 turn. I make a note of each rad's settings. In the old days when water was hotter in systems, my mate quoted the "1, 2, 3, ouch!"" Test. You touched the radiator top and counted to 3. Any longer the rad was too cold, less, too hot! Now you can get cheap digital thermometers with probes for a couple of quid from ebay or a laser temp gun for a tenner or less!
Boss man, you just saved me over £700 as useless British Gas wanted to charge me over £700 for power flushing the whole system as one my rads wasn't heating up!! I learnt from you, and it was balancing that was needed. Will now go back to them and try get back my excess of £60 as I called them out under their Home Services insurance. The guy came and just changed the valves, didn't work, so said the 2000X600 rad was knackered!!
Very nicely put together. I haven't touched the temperature setting set to max by the heating technician; but now I can see that setting it lower will hopefully make my system more efficient while putting less strain on it so that it's heated up more slowly.
There'll be no strain on your system by it being run hotter. The system will be more efficient if it runs slightly cooler because the water returning to the boiler will be below the temperature required to make the gas fumes condense this releasing more heat.
We have a 60's house with huge rads but now cavity wall and full loft insulation. A condensing boiler with a low hysterisis smart stat means we can run the boiler at the minimum return temperature, about 41°,its almost like underfloor heating. We use economy 7 for hot water as the boiler would be no good at that temp. I also ramp up the temperature during the day with a 3.5° difference between morning and evening. Even with energy price increases its now cheaper to run combined electric and gas than in the last 10 years. Make sure as the days cool to let the c/h run as normal and open the windows a bit to reduce the humidity, chilly breezy morning with 10 min of ventilation does wonders. I don't need to balance at that rad temp and don't even bother with the trv's, all wide open.
this genuinely saved me £90 and a cold nights sleep - im a 25 year old woman who has never lived away from her parents so i was so scared and out of my depth lol! the relief i felt after spending over 5 hours this evening trying to fix my radiator, only to finally stumble across the video that helped is unmatched!! i am so, so grateful. thank you thank you thank you!!!!!!!
That's brilliant! Well done, just be careful messing with the system, I dont want to scare you off from diy as I think people should know more, I just wouldn't want you to give yourself an air lock or anything. You won't do that messing with the lock shield and therm valves so they are fine, just be careful with the boiler itself or taking things apart on the rads. Other than that, I wish more people would overcome their fear. Most things are designed to be fool proof, so whilst you could cause an issue due to inexperience, it is unlikely and its better to learn and understand these things.
Being in the building services industry for over 20 years this is the best explanation of a basic radiator system. Fantastic and enjoyed the whole video. Thank you 👏👏
same! thanks for the video !
exactly
So having had two "professional" plumbers out to sort my heating and having been told there must be a blockage in the pipes I did some digging. Ended u0 replacing two radiators and still no solution. Then I stumbled on to this video and it all made sense. Had a go at balancing today and already its so much better. Going to spend a little more time soon and I'm.sure all will be sorted. Thank you so much.
I had exactly the same, plumbers me a%^%
I've lived in my house for 8 years, a 3 floor town house and have spent a lot of effort trying to get the bottom floor lounge warm. After watching this i now match my room temperature with the middle floor thermostsat. Now that ive done it it seems obvious. Thanks for the presentation that changed things for me. Much appreciated
Funnily enough I'm exactly the same! Our master bedroom is quite cold and I think it might be at the end of the chain. I'm going to give this a try!
Hi what do you match match room with middle floor temperature? I live in the same set up but the top floor is always cold
Downstairs is 20 (where the thermostat is) 1st floor 17.5 and top floor 16!
I don’t know what I’d do without Roger 🙌🏽… I’m renovating a 19thC house and learning on the job. I’m a sculptor so not totally clueless with materials, but suffice to say, with each new process I take onboard, Roger is the calm, real voice of experience I can rely on. THANKYOU 🙏🏽
Roger is like the dad you always wanted (to learn from.....:)
Your info is magic , ive solved two problems already, fixed my troublesome motorised zone valve, and air in radiator , thank you .
Thank you Roger!
When I were a lad, I was taught the importance of bleeding radiators. Always checking them before the weather started turning cool for autumn. My step-dad did a great job of teaching my siblings and me to independent enough to not need to call in the trades-people for general work (but to also recognise when it was a good idea to call in the professionals). So over the years I am pleased to be able to say my skills have expanded a lot.
This is a huge new piece of information that I never had previously. My current central heating system was installed a little over 5 years ago (replacing an archaic back-boiler and gas heater system). I was extremely pleased with the work done, and it has served me well. This weekend, I am going to check (and if necessary adjust) the balance. I didn't even know this was a thing!
The system does have cold water storage and a cylinder with an immersion heater element. So hearing you mention more info to follow about such a system, I will be waiting with bated breath to see what more I can do to improve its efficiency.
I've learned a lot from the Skill Builder channel, and am very grateful for the time you and your associates put into creating the content.
So I'm off to invest in thermostatic valves to replace the basic 0-5 valves on the system (been meaning to do that for 5 years). And then to repair what I think is a sticky valve, which is causing my system to refuse to provide heat to the radiators unless the water cylinder also needs it's contents heating.
👍
3 Plumbers in four years haven’t solved this exact problem. 2 Zone valve too. Thank you.
Honestly, I’ve watched so many videos to fully understand the lock shield valve’s purpose fully and what happens when you close/open this valve. This is best video and the only one for me that explained it so clearly. What worked for me is when you said ‘water is lazy’ 😂. Amazing. I watched this video last year and watched it again now just now to remind myself about the lock shield valve. Thanks 🙏
Been trying to get a plumber out to sort out some of these issues on my heating system for 4 months now and just about given up. This video has just saved me a fair few quid! Many thanks.
Isn't it a nightmare trying to get help. I had to fix my own as well.
Thanks a lot going to try this tomorrow solid fuel stove only 3 rads hot out of 6 in a bungalow hope it works.
Thanks for the tutorial. So after 25 years of DIY I finally know that a lockshield valve is not just for preventing air bubbles in your pipes when refilling a radiator (which I believed when I was told by a plumber about 25 years ago haha).
If I had you near me me I'd buy you a pint. I have had 2 plumbers look at my system and it was still dodgy. Watched this and set about setting the lockshields as you said to. It is now perfect, all rads nice n warm and the boiler, an old Riello, is running at minimum setting. Thanks a milllion, keep up the good work.
Many thanks, a complete eye opener. I'd never come across radiator balancing before, but it all makes sense the way you explained it. A task to complete before the onset of winter.
Very knowledgeable person, was able to explain so any central heating Dumb can understand. I learnt a lot today.
Thank you sincerely. By the way, I am 88 years old
Very knowledgeable, hence able to simplify the instructions
Been doing enduser training for 30+ years, I've found the K.I.S.S system of training works best, KISS stands for Keep It Simple Stupid. and is very adaptable and works in any environment
Thanks for this - just managed to 'fix' my central heating system using just touch assessment of radiator warmth, a spanner, screwdriver and pliers. Total cost - zero.
This guy is an excellent presenter / teacher. Very clearly and simply explained. If you watch this you WILL understand balancing!
Just done this and the difference is amazing ! Every radiator in the house is now piping hot where before I had 3 that just were not performing . Thanks for the vid , not worried about a cold winter now 😎👍
Wow! I just went from knowing nothing at all about central heating to having a basic knowledge about how it works in a few minutes. Great video! 👍
Yes, exactly!
The question is:- how do you know which is the flow and return on a rad ?
@@alanb1935 return is colder
@@alanb1935 Feel the pipes. The hottest one is the feed !
Took the words right out of my mouth 👍 thanks Roger
Great video for explains the rudiments of a heating system. Be aware that when selecting raidiators the outputs manufacturers give are based on a differential temperature of 60 Celsius that is the difference between the radiator water temperature and the room that means the boiler needs to run at 80 Celsius . For every 6 Celsius we reduce the boiler water temperature the radiator selected size needs to be 10% bigger eg if we need a heat output of 1kw then a radiator of 1.1kW is needed. To run the system with a boiler temperature of 50 Celsius radiators need to be selected with a heat output of 200% so as to get a 1kW heat output the radiator needs to be selected with a 2.0 kW output. Unfortunately very few radiator manufacturers provide this information on their literature. Hope this helps folks.
thank you for the information it has helped me a lot i just wish manufacturers would tell the truth why make it hard when you can make it simple
That's why people complain there is no heat when cowboys fit the new heat pumps without a completely new set of radiators and pipes.
Not sure what you mean be increaseing the Rad size by 200% for reduction of Boiler Temp of 30°C should it not be 150% ?
Why would one radiator have cold water in it plenty of pressure plenty of water passing through it no air whatsoever but no warm water at all I had the system running while bleeding it through and the water dosent even get luke warm the valves are ok at either side I changed the thermostatic one
@@seanrichards2962 maybe an air lock or a stuck valve.
SORRY FORGOT TO SAY THANKYOU FOR THE UP LOAD I WILL NOW DO IT MYSELF ........
I’ve had radiators on and off the wall as part of the renovation as well as putting new ones in. Balancing is on my list of things to do, so this is great
Let's have a whip-round to buy some new marker pens for Roger. The ink is a solvent that evaporates over time and you get weak colours. Thanks for a clear and concise video.
Been trying to understand what balancing was and been trying to suss out how you balance an underflow heating system with the flow meters, you have just made me an expert after your wonderful illustrations and explanation in balance and flow of water thank you very much Sir.
Best explanation/video on system balancing I have seen, now I understand what I was doing wrong. Thank you so much !!
Such a pleasure to watch someone with a true love for his craft , silky slick teaching skills too sir .. well done indeed
Love this guy’s vids. No BS, just factual and to the point
Fantastic video Roger! Balanced my radiators and blimey, what a difference it made! Massive thanks!
Excellent
So glad I found this video we've just lost my dad and he did all the radiators. My mum has a rad that is not putting out heat in the hall and this video has been so helpful I've actually learnt loads and found it interesting how it all fits together round the house. Thanks for the helpful video.
Thank you for this. Your information is invaluable. We've just moved into our first home with a conventional system and I couldn't get the last radiator to work. Will be be trying this tomorrow.
Our rads were put in 20 years ago and luckily they were oversized as we're running the combi at 48C flow. Setback temp of 16C then 18 all day until teatime where we set the temp to 19C until 10 ish. The lower the flow temp the lower temp difference you need at the rad, we're on 11C difference. We have also invested in a PIV, we don't even have the heater switched on on it. It circulates the heat lovely too. The low radiator temp gives off a lovely consistent heat and none of the clanking with not having red hot rads (which can be dangerous anyway).
After just watching another vid about this,and being non thr wiser,I watched this and all became clear.Thank you.
Great to see you back Sir Roger, hope you are keeping well.
Thanks mate. I am well I think but I am no doctor
Great teaching for an electrician who loves plumbing stuff ( frustrated plumber) . Didn’t think about balancing the radiators but I can now see why you would. Very interesting. Don’t forget the automatic /bypass valve for systems with TVR’s on all radiators .
Yet another excellent explanation in simple language. Even if not planning to carry out the work, these are so good as general interest and educational resources for a home owner and DIY enthusiast. Thank you.
Every now and again, I’m glad our devices listen to our conversations..! My friend and I were talking about the heating today; I switch on the iPad and RUclips and there is your video as a ‘suggestion’!!! 21 years I’ve lived in my house and the living room rad has never felt more than warm... Now having turned the ‘exit’ valves on the preceding rads to almost off, the living room is too hot! Thanks. :-)
Thank you, Roger, for such a clear and simple explanation. God bless! 🙏🏻
Thanks again - very helpful. I'm going to track all the pipework/rads to see the flow and balance the system.
Once again a mass of REAL info to help get things correct NICEONE FELLA😉👍
Your way ahead of explaining than other vids I watched. Better explanation of the way the cold valve works, and what happens when you adjust it. Thank you.
Thanks. I bled my rad dry yesterday trying to fix this.
Very, very well explained Roger, I was trying to explain this to a couple of mates last night after a program they'd watched on Channel 5 (30 ways to save money) advised (very briefly) to turn the flow temperature down for better economy, I'll just send them a link to this video now, job done
Now we can see why you are a plumber!
You plainly love the subject and are pretty passionate about pipes!!
Excellent presentation!
😁
Thank you. I hate plumbing I am just a good actor.
@@SkillBuilder I hope you’re not offended if I say I don’t believe you…! 😂😂
What a great bloke sharing his knowledge ..well done mate
Thank you Roger and the team for producing this video. That's me away to give it a go. Please keep up the good work as I am learning all the time. I am glad that I am not the only one who needs this explaining.
Best explanation of Radiator balancing I have seen :) Thanks
Thanks for a great explanation and giving me the understanding and confidence to have a look at a cold radiator ! Cheers !
Thanks for posting this video I followed your instructions and other RUclips videos just like this one it has done the job, my fat is a lot warmer and my central heating is not always trying to heat the flat. Keep up the good work the videos are very useful.
Entertaining watch ... look for plumbing video .. this is gently entertaining... it's what you need when you have been struggling to get the radiators to heat up evenly.
What a beautiful video, so well explained and with the new gas prices.
IV always struggled in winter down stairs always cooler than upstairs, which I prefer the other way round as I only need main bed room rad on low, rest of upstairs gets most of heat from downstairs rooms.
Thank you.
Best description I've watched so far... thank you
Cheers! Absolutely superb video. It had been power flushed and have radiators on a separate run that wouldn't heat up. Balanced them all and it's working! Thanks Roger!
Such an excellent explanation ... after 15 years I understand now why my front room radiators are not so hot and specially since I had the new efficient boiler 2 years ago.
Thank you
as my dad always said,water finds the route of least resistance.great work roger.
Nice one Roger ,I have just sorted a problem I had for ages , set up all balanced now and main lounge nice n warm ,many thanks for the video....don’t ya just love the Internet
Fantastic video. Got up in the middle of the night and cane across this video. Very well explained and entertaining as well. Now I must get back to bed to keep the lady of the house warm.
Wow, absolutely brilliant, so well explained, will be attempting to balance our rads tomorrow, thankyou
wow thanks for this info i have never hear of radiator balancing now my house radiators are running like a dream
amazing, I now know flow and return terminology, and the valve differences on a radiator. I absolutely love the skill Builder series. big thumbs up mate. please continue the series.
Glad you liked it!
Very good explanation Roger. Other guides say the upstairs rads tend to be greedier and need fewer turns than downstairs. I suppose it needs that bit of patience to get it right. I eventually got my own dialled in after replacing all the downstairs for new. 👍
Back in the day the upstairs always did better because of gravity circulation but now it is really a question of pipework resistance.
thanks for this, explained why the radiator in my living room was cooler, nice and warm now.
I never cease to be amazed by how many experienced plumbers think that you don't need, (or can't be bothered) to balance radiators if thermostatic valves are fitted. They just leave the lockshields fully open.
It's less of a need if TRV are fitted and used correctly
But the vast majority dont use a TRV correctly and just bung it on max
Thanks Rodger explained so the novice can understand how it works and how to sort out any problems I’ve been looking for a video to show me exactly what you’ve been on about for a while now so thanks a million
I really appreciate you. Thank you so much. Clear and precise. Absolute ledgend. 💯 ❤
Brilliant explanation of the working of a system! So glad I watched this video before bleeding my radiators.
Many thanks.
Very well done ... even here in California, heating is an important issue, I have a small house with simple gas heaters ...
Great info and very timely. I’ve never had a plumber who’s balanced the radiators beyond getting them hot :-). My thought had always been they should come back a few weeks after the system has been running and tweak it? On the running at lower temperature bit, a plumber 20 years ago said a system should be able to heat your house with radiators that were always on just warm enough to hold your hand on comfortably otherwise the boiler would be working too hard!
If you had a plumber saying that 20 years ago he was ahead of the game because condensing boilers were just coming in. The lower temperatures were not that adventageous on old style boilers but they get the best out of condensing boilers.
Skill Builder He may well have been. It was an early domestic installation of a Weismann Condensing boiler and unvented hot water cylinder system it was between 18 & 20 years ago. Mind you my then wife (hence why I know the date) used to run the house at 28 degrees so I’m not sure we got the efficiency benefit!!
We have a condensing boiler in a newish house (10years). We have one rad that never ever gets even warm....and another that gets warm when only the hot water is on not the heating.....what is going on?
@@ravey1981 is the one that gets hot with the hot water cylinder in the bathroom by any chance?
Great videos, it’s all depends on the installation of pipe work and number of radiators and the distance, a good heating engineer don’t cut corners and being tight on pipe work, so the balancing easy.
If balancing doesn’t work, then clean your system and change the pump, because the pump can be weak.
Excellent video about temperature differential mentioned there.
Really well explained, thanks for that. I had to get a new boiler 2 years ago, was told these condenser boilers are more efficient so it's interesting to understand what the difference is. And I'd agree it's usually the lady of the house that wants the temperature up, however in our case it's the other way around, he's shivering and I'm sweltering 😄
Thanks great vid! Never understood what balancing the system meant until I just watched this, well I'm a sparky aren't I? ! Thought my gaffe was getting a bit cold in some rooms, just watched this, and it completely explains why! All my return V/Vs on every rad were wide open :) So, i've closed the ones nearest the boiler a couple of turns, and it's made quite a difference already. It's too late right now to do the 11 degC check, I'll have another go tomorrow. I also bled the system tonight too, there was loads of air in one rad!
Amazes me how many plumbers I have worked with or met that don’t know how to balance a system! Plumbers fitting secondary or larger pumps when there is no need!
Thanks so much for this video I found it really helpful. Your way of explaining things gave me confidence to tackle balancing my radiators, great video!
I don't know why I have thermostatic valves on the radiators, the wife has them all turned up full honk, all year round, she uses the main thermostat as her "master" temperature control, so no need for controls on the boiler either! Good job I've doctored the bugger so it can't exceed 20°C, Ha Ha!👍
Good video, thanks!
This comment has just made my day! Classic man v woman tussle on house temperature!! Love it!!
Absolutely brilliant video Roger, more videos like this please! Just starting my level 2 diploma in plumbing so very helpful for me!.Thanks!
Hi Stephen. That is great, I am really glad if it helps. I wrote a couple of DIY plumbing and heating books back in the day and I was really surprised when I learned that some apprentices were using them. Sometimes the really technical books are a bit hard to digest.
Really useful and clear explanation Roger. One question: what’s the best size pipe to run from the boiler? 20mm from the boiler and t off 15mm to the rads, or just keep it to 15mm throughout?
@@jamesmcgill8645 it's a low pressure system, so 22 at the very least, maybe even 1 size up (1.5" equiv.) for the first run if you are branching it for groups of radiators (use 22 for those branches), just try to keep the size suggested by the boiler connections for the first length (to the first T) at least. Try to add a T to the bigger pipe diameter in vicinity (you can reduce the branch if there's no direct T for the 2 sizes).
@@SkillBuilder Wife wants it hotter! no chance, go and put another cardigan on love!!!!
You’ve got no heart🥶🥲
Fantastic video, clear explanation of potential issues. Saved +£100 call out !
OMG! Such an informative video! There are so many videos showing/telling you how to balance your system but this ACTUALLY explains how and why to do it! I understand it all so much more now. Thank you - brilliant tutorial 😊
Bang for your bucks. Great content well done Roger. A huge help in spite of your wiggly lines
Great explanation of what the lock shield valve is actually doing to the flow of water! Now I get it!! Thank you!
Sir Rodger.... He's getting paid for it... But he deffo wants to help ua all out at the same time .. Well done.. I'm just in the middle of sorting this out havin replaced a rad.. Great stuff 👏👍
This is first house I’ve had with thermostatic valves, which allow still-hot water to return to the boiler. You’ve opened my eyes to why I’ve been having problems at the end of the rad run. I’m hopeful I can now fix it by adjusting the lockshield valves. Thanks very much, great video!
BTW TRVs don't allow hot water to reopen to the boiler - that's caused by fully open Lockshield valves, i.e. The water's getting through the radiator too fast - it's not had time to lose its heat to the room.
Great video! Think I understand as a lay person/normal homeowner. Thanks!
Great explanation for diy guys by somebody who knows what he´s talking about. Thank you.
I tried to balance my heating system but for the love of money I couldn't do it, that's until I watched your video I was literally trying to balance them.
What a fantastic video I’m off to balance my system now I understand it better as I was wondering why some of my radiators are hotter than others 👍🏻
Good basics and very clear! You may wish to explain that many systems with thermostatic rad valves will often have a bypass radiator that has to have flow all the time, usually in the bathroom, and should not be flow inhibited to avoid pump damage.
The area where the thermostat/controller is located (usually hallway) should run 'wild' to prevent 'hunting'. Didn't think pump damage was an issue with inverter driven pumps
Yep mines in the hall where the wall thermostat is. It’s set to ‘ run wild’ as you say - great plumbing term I’ve just learned lol😅
A truly awesome video thank you. We're replacing an old loi boiler with a combi gas one and wifi vales on teh radiators. This video really helped us understand how it all works and how to balance teh system. Well done!
Excellent video. Keeping technical explanations and diagrams simple, helps to absorb the information, and aids in taking on the task. Brilliant! Thanks.
We use a different system. Each zone is a loop. That is to say, one pipe runs from the zone valve to all the radiators on that zone then to the return manifold. Each rad is connected to the supply line twice, the first "T" is a venturi T (aka bypass valve or bypass T) which feeds the rad thru the thermostatic valve. The return is fed from the rad to the back side of the hot supply then to the next rad. This is done to keep the pipes hot in severe cold weather. The down side to this is a slight loss of heat when the cool water in the rad mixes with the hot water in the supply line, but all the radiators do heat up evenly and we avoid using more materials than are necessary.
Merry Christmas!! On the diagram the flow t’s immediately from the boiler for each floor. Presumably that means that downstairs (assuming that’s where your boiler is) will take priority over upstairs if you have the return valve open on all of those. Our downstairs radiators heat up almost immediately but upstairs takes ages
Very useful video. I actually have a Baxi condenser combi and I've set it to 80 C and it's costing quite a bit to heat this old Victorian house. I tried setting the boilder to 55 C yesterday after watching the video and the house is still warm as before, so I'm hopeful that the bills might come down as a result. Also, I've never even heard of balancing the radiators - not even our plumber does it, so thanks for the tip!
Many thanks. You have enabled me to have a nice warm house. Mrs is happy. I’m a happy bunny.
What folk should be aware of is that lockshield valves (any valves) are usually only effective over tha last turn or maybe two. A few of my valves are open only maybe 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 or 1 turn. I make a note of each rad's settings. In the old days when water was hotter in systems, my mate quoted the "1, 2, 3, ouch!"" Test. You touched the radiator top and counted to 3. Any longer the rad was too cold, less, too hot! Now you can get cheap digital thermometers with probes for a couple of quid from ebay or a laser temp gun for a tenner or less!
Fantastic as always. Cheers Roger
Boss man, you just saved me over £700 as useless British Gas wanted to charge me over £700 for power flushing the whole system as one my rads wasn't heating up!! I learnt from you, and it was balancing that was needed. Will now go back to them and try get back my excess of £60 as I called them out under their Home Services insurance. The guy came and just changed the valves, didn't work, so said the 2000X600 rad was knackered!!
Very nicely put together. I haven't touched the temperature setting set to max by the heating technician; but now I can see that setting it lower will hopefully make my system more efficient while putting less strain on it so that it's heated up more slowly.
There'll be no strain on your system by it being run hotter.
The system will be more efficient if it runs slightly cooler because the water returning to the boiler will be below the temperature required to make the gas fumes condense this releasing more heat.
This video is a must watch. Iv just fixed a 2 year problem in 30 seconds.
We have a 60's house with huge rads but now cavity wall and full loft insulation. A condensing boiler with a low hysterisis smart stat means we can run the boiler at the minimum return temperature, about 41°,its almost like underfloor heating. We use economy 7 for hot water as the boiler would be no good at that temp. I also ramp up the temperature during the day with a 3.5° difference between morning and evening.
Even with energy price increases its now cheaper to run combined electric and gas than in the last 10 years. Make sure as the days cool to let the c/h run as normal and open the windows a bit to reduce the humidity, chilly breezy morning with 10 min of ventilation does wonders. I don't need to balance at that rad temp and don't even bother with the trv's, all wide open.
Clear, concise brilliant! Big thankyou.
such a useful video. Never realised such a low flow temp could do the job ! :)
Thanks. You draw lines how I cut wood, but a great, very clear explanation.
What a wonderfully educational channel ! Subscribed after the first video, now onto my 3rd clip...Thank you !