Good Radiators Make Effective Central Heating Systems
If you use the motor car as a metaphor for your domestic central heating system, the engine of the car would be the boiler. The wheels and tyres would be the radiators as the conduit that transfers the energy to your home, ensuring the system delivers on its potential and using the input energy (gas or oil) effectively. Beside the boilers, which normally attract a lot of attention, a well designed and positioned set of radiators can have a major impact on the output and efficiency of a typical domestic central heating system.
You may find this as a surprise in our modern day that those stainless steel racks and sleek radiators now offered by leading UK suppliers actually date back to the 19th century. Patented by a German engineer in 1855, the radiator has largely remained unchanged in its basic concept. If you ignore the external fashionable designs, all radiators are basically a flat metal hollow case, shaped as a box (sometimes with fins to improve the heat emissions) and attached to the wall in order to radiate heat into the room.
Most UK made radiators are constructed from sheet metal with brazed fins (normally internal within an outer casing). Using a simple pump (normally located in the boiler or by the hot water cylinder), hot water is circulated through the central heating loop. The hot water is pumped into the radiator and gradually loses its heat to the surrounding atmosphere. As the water cools off it drops and eventually is pumped out via the return valve (normally at the bottom of the radiator). The air surrounding the radiator absorbs the heat from the water within the radiator and rises to the top of the room. Consequently, cooler air is drawn towards the radiator to get heated up. This convection effect is a simple physical phenomenon that keeps our homes warm in the winter.
Like many closed loop systems with a heat transfer liquid within them, the radiators and the pipes develop air pockets. Over time air bubbles are seeping through tiny cracks in the system causing air pockets. By using a professional plumber you would reduce the risk of such air pockets as they are likely to use good quality compression fittings that minimize the risk of such cracks.
An alternative explanation for the bubbles within the circulation loop is that they are the result of a chemical reaction that occurs when copper piping and other metals are in continuous contact with very hot water. Such reactions lead to tiny bubbles of hydrogen that float within the system and find their way to the upper most point of the closed loop heating system. This explains why it is often the top of the radiator that remains cold (as it is filled with gas rather than hot water). Is such cases it is recommended to bleed the radiator from the bleeding valve at the top of the radiator, using a special bleeding key. Such keys can be found in all major DIY stores in the UK.
A different problem that can reduce the performance of your radiators is debris and sludge build up within the radiator and the central heating closed loop. This sludge, which can come from a reaction between the hot water and the metal components, clogs up the pipes and can make large parts of the system in-effective.
Most boiler manufacturers these days require the heating engineer installing the central heating system to power flush the central heating loop prior to commissioning. This ensures the system is clean from any debris that might have accumulated during the years (for example inner corrosion in older systems). Furthermore, most engineers recommend adding a corrosion inhibitor chemical into the closed loop circulating water, to inhibit production of corrosive gases and deposits.
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