Our front room is incredibly cold over the winter. I promised to do something this summer…..

Logburner was preferred option, but can’t do it as the roof is in too poor a state to allow anyone on to it. So I did the calculations and find we have about 80-90% of theoretical radiator requirement in the room. However, this does not allow for the fact that there is a cellar underneath it (couldn’t find any factors). Cellar roof / front room floor is uninsulated, but I am reluctant to go down that route initially as the upheaval it will cause ripping out the floor and relaying it etc.

So last night we tested the CH system. Really odd. Both radiators’ tops get hot but the bottoms stay cold!! (I checked for air, there was none). Then we turned all the other radiators off around the house, and the bottoms got hot! Bizarre! I don’t understand why that happens and can only assume that the system is possessed by a malevolent spirit.

Any ideas? Should we beef up the radiator size in there (not cheap) or try to work out why the bottoms don’t get hot when the other radiators are on (exorcism neeeded, I think)?

Thanks in advance. Only on here intermittently but will of course read.

balance the system?

Radiators sludged up – reverse flush them?

TJ – thanks. That’s a helpful article / site.

Balancing may well be part of the problem (not heard of it before).

I just found the site on google but the balancing could be worth looking at.

Could you not insulate under the cellar ceiling?

Thought of that Al, but it’s very low in there and already have to crouch to move around. Any more will make it too uncomfortable (it’s my man-shed!).

With regards the cellar is it letting drafts into the living room, its supprising how much cooler a room feels if it has drafts.

The radiators, if the cold area at the bottom is roughly triangular shape higher in the middle than by each end where the pipes enter then it sounds as if sludge may have built up. If this is the case then you have a few options.

1. Remove radiators and replace with new bigger items to also boost heat output.

2. Add a desludging liquid to the system and wait the required time (with the heating on) before flushing the system and adding an inhibitor. May also require that you remove each of the offending radiators and flush the sludge out manually.

3. Pay to have the whole system power flushed, not my prefered option.

Could just be the system is not balanced, check this first as their is no or very little cost involved.