Central Heating Operation
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This article is about Central Heating systems using hot water as a heat-carrying medium. (Warm-air systems are sometimes found in the UK but their design and installation is not covered here. There is a discussion on updating existing warm-air systems here)
The article is about operating an existing, working central heating system.
There are separate articles about:
- Central Heating Design which may help understanding what sort of system you have.
- Central Heating Repair for help diagnosing and fixing a faulty system
This article is a skeleton: the main points to be covered are listed but some or all still need to be expanded
Setting time and temperature controls
- Programmer and room thermostat
- check there is a room stat
- check no other sources of heat or valves turned down in stat area
- better to keep system running or turn up and down?
- Programmable thermostat
- fully programmable or set-back
- optimum start (Honeywell issue)
- combis with pre-heat
Setting Thermostatic Radiator Valves (TRVs)
Setting manual radiator valves
Setting a system bypass
Balancing radiators
Bleeding a CH system
- why? check for corrosion v. air & cause
Topping up a sealed system
- why? check for how pressure being lost