sishyplops Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 hi all i have a problem with my central heating in that it wont switch on as follows turns on at timer to on and all lights up, gets power to the thermostat, and through the stat, switching on an off at set temperature Hot water works all fine The water heats up on W but the lever used to go to H when heating switched on. I can press a button on the 3 way diverter which is marked W M H and lock it in the M position and can get hot water and radiators work fine Things I know 1. Boiler works 2. Stat works 3. Pump works I think i have narrowed it down to the pump not getting power from the heating (although we know the pump works ok) or the diverter valve What triggers what is the question, does the 3 way diverter get the signal then move the lever to "H" (if so i have locked the lever in M but it still wont fire up without the water being on) or does the pump get the signal first then tell the valve to open We call this the house that Dave built as we bought it off a digger drive 8 odd years ago and it has a multitude of wiring and plumbing oddities, but it has worked fine all these years many thanks Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del T Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 Mid position valve motor or valve itself. The Valve is meant to move across to heating position and hit the microswitch which in turn fires pump and boiler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sishyplops Posted November 11, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 i am pretty sure its the motor as if i move the lever across really fast it just engages and the pump runs for a second or two then when it goes back to mid or W it goes off again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
station Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 I've replaced motorised valves before now and always at this time of year. The switch has sat there all year till the temp drops and we switch on the central heating. Hopefully just a seized valve and a £40 fix plus some time and effort. You could put a multi meter on the valve to see if it's getting current? ATB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HAYBURN Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 Mid position valve motor or valve itself. The Valve is meant to move across to heating position and hit the microswitch which in turn fires pump and boiler. +1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
figgy Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 Can you push it over and hook it into a slot to keep the heating on, manually overriding the motor. Figgy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del T Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 Try a motor then. Its a simple change if its a quality valve. (honeywell) Sometimes you can change the head only which saves draining down, but it can still not work if the paddle/ball or lever is stuck and the motor can't shift it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sishyplops Posted November 11, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 Can you push it over and hook it into a slot to keep the heating on, manually overriding the motor. Figgy Hi Yes i can move the arm on the left down and lock it in but only to the mid position which will give me water and heat and if i move the lever down really quickly all the way to heat the pump fire up but then stops after a second when it goes back to the mid position as it wont lock in the heat position, the whole thing is £76 from B&Q, i don't want to risk putting a motor on to a seized valve in case it wrecks the new motor , bite the bullet time i guess, just need a great big spanner. Thanks For all advice Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del T Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 Has it got two screws on each side to remove the head? If so remove the head to leave the body. You can then get a small spanner and move the shaft to check its free moving. Buy the sounds of it,the shaft/paddle/ball is ok as you can move it to get heating. I'd just change the head. If you do buy a new valve buy a decent one ie Honeywell ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aga man Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 sounds like the drayton/acl type head with either srews or the plastic clip you pull to release it. i too would just change the head but having said that for the price of the new valve if your handy with the spanners then change it all. just remember to lock the valve in mid position when draining down or refilling, make sure you fit it the right way round and use ptf tape on the olives on the pipes. use water pump pliers if you don't have a big enough spanner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sishyplops Posted November 11, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 sounds like the drayton/acl type head with either srews or the plastic clip you pull to release it. i too would just change the head but having said that for the price of the new valve if your handy with the spanners then change it all. just remember to lock the valve in mid position when draining down or refilling, make sure you fit it the right way round and use ptf tape on the olives on the pipes. use water pump pliers if you don't have a big enough spanner. Yes it's a Drayton unit, gonna swap it out on Wednesday , cheers guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Mongrel- Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 If the valve pushes over manually then the internals aren't seized...in which case save the hassle of draining down, refilling, clearing air locks etc...and just swap the powerhead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigben Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 sounds like the drayton/acl type head with either srews or the plastic clip you pull to release it. i too would just change the head but having said that for the price of the new valve if your handy with the spanners then change it all. just remember to lock the valve in mid position when draining down or refilling, make sure you fit it the right way round and use ptf tape on the olives on the pipes. use water pump pliers if you don't have a big enough spanner. Ptfe tape around the olives? My question is why? The olive is there to create the seal and if fitted correctly you will not need any extra help to seal it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aga man Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 Ptfe tape around the olives? My question is why? The olive is there to create the seal and if fitted correctly you will not need any extra help to seal it. why not? when doing diy plumbing job putting the tape around the olive is easy and could potentially save a leak. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigben Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 It can also cause the nut not to crush the olive correctly thus causing a bad leak, best left to a professional if the jobs can't be done correctly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aga man Posted November 11, 2013 Report Share Posted November 11, 2013 It can also cause the nut not to crush the olive correctly thus causing a bad leak, best left to a professional if the jobs can't be done correctly! ok then mate, whatever. i have earnt my living as a plumbing/heating engineer for the last 15 years. can't be bothered to argue though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigben Posted November 12, 2013 Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 I also fit heating systems for a living at an average of 150-200 a year so not just a nobody I'm giving advice on my experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sishyplops Posted November 12, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 I appreciate all your help and input chaps, many thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del T Posted November 12, 2013 Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 I also fit heating systems for a living at an average of 150-200 a year so not just a nobody I'm giving advice on my experience. Bloomin eck! One every two days nearly. That's some going! Round here to do a boiler swap and upgrade the system to the current standards takes 2 to 3 days with flushing and comissioning. Never mind fitting all new pipework and new rads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LondonLuke Posted November 12, 2013 Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 I also fit heating systems for a living at an average of 150-200 a year so not just a nobody I'm giving advice on my experience. How many of you are there? Must be quite a team to get through that many. That must be one for every working day? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigben Posted November 12, 2013 Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 I'm not talking full heating systems anything from boiler swaps to full systems. Usually a day for a boiler swap 2 day for boiler and upgrade or convert to combi that's for 1 man full system of about 6-7 rads is 2 days for 2 men its 3-4 boilers a week. Then overtime etc etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
figgy Posted November 12, 2013 Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 A few of my mates used to do full heating systems with boiler swap four days a week, Friday was for sorting out teething troubles or for bigger jobs that took more than a day. Two man teams, very hard work day in day out. Bad enough doing a bathroom and kitchen change every day. Figgy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mag357 Posted November 12, 2013 Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 Move house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del T Posted November 12, 2013 Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 I'm not talking full heating systems anything from boiler swaps to full systems. Usually a day for a boiler swap 2 day for boiler and upgrade or convert to combi that's for 1 man full system of about 6-7 rads is 2 days for 2 men its 3-4 boilers a week. Then overtime etc etc I must work harder then!! Lol. Some of the houses we work in it takes a day to shift all their **** out of the way to get the floorboards up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yellow Bear Posted November 12, 2013 Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 why not? when doing diy plumbing job putting the tape around the olive is easy and could potentially save a leak. and often creates one - if you check with the main manufacturers you will find they state dry - some use a little paste but this also causes problems at times as it lubricates and causes the olive not to grip. A few years ago I was involved in a major hospital build where the plumbers/fitters put on ptfe - had to strip out large parts of the install due to leaking compression joints. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.