How a Central Heating System Is Power Flushed
If you are thinking about having a central heating power flush then you need to understand 
the problems and benefits before you go ahead with the process. You may need to think about getting your boiler power flushed if you are experiencing cold radiators, if your house is never warm and if your hot water is lukewarm as well. The best thing about doing a DIY central heating power flush however is that it is very affordable and you won’t need to worry about paying out more than you need to for central heating power flush prices either. If you want to know how to prepare for a central heating power flush or if you want to know more about rust and corrosion, take a look below.
Cleaning Your System
Cleaning your system is vitally important if you want to keep your boiler in top condition. A power flush delivers a rapid and comprehensive clean every time and there are certainly many benefits to getting one done. It doesn’t matter whether you have dirty water, cold spots or anything else, you can be sure to reap the benefits.
- Better Heat Distribution
- Energy Savings
- Lower Bills
- Reliability
- Extended Boiler Life
How Do I Know If I Need A Power Flush?
So now you know what the main problems are, you may be wondering, do I actually need a power flush? The problem with radiators is that there isn’t a set criteria when it comes to power flushing. You may not have any cold spots on your radiators but that doesn’t mean that they don’t need cleaning. Take a look below to see if your system needs power flushing:
- Some Rooms Colder Than Others
- System Takes A Long Time To Warm Up
- Radiators Colder At The Bottom
- Bleeding Radiators
- Noisy Boiler System
Questions and Answers about Power Flushing
Many people don’t know how long a power flush actually takes. The truth is, the process can take several hours and if your system is particularly messy, it can take much longer. You also need to make sure that you use the appropriate cleaning chemical as well, but there are some other things that you should know before you start your flush. According to the UK building regulation, your system needs to be cleaned and flushed before corrosion chemicals are added. This is especially the case if you are replacing an old boiler with a newer one. So how do you power flush a central heating system? Take a look below to find out more:
What You’ll Need For A DIY Power Flush
Before you start your power flush, you’ll need to make sure that you have all the right equipment on-hand. You will need a quality power flushing machine and a cleaning chemical as well.
Before The Flush
Before the flush is started, you will need to go around and make some observations. You need to check the temperature of the radiators before you start the flush, and make sure that you note down which heaters have cold spots and which ones don’t. If you don’t do this, you will never know whether or not your flush was effective, so it certainly helps to do this at the start. You may also want to take a sample of the water as well, so you can do a quality comparison after. When you are looking over your system, make sure that you note whether it is opened or sealed and turn off any electrical systems that are connected to the boiler as well. You will also need to make sure that the system is fully isolated and that the cold water supply is completely turned off. After this has been done, take a look at the air vents and turn them all off by-hand. If you notice that you have an open vented system, don’t worry, all you need to do is join together the cold feed and open vent on a temporary basis until the flush has been completed.
Other Tips before You Start
Another thing you might want to do before you start is to mark the position of the lockshield valve. You would then remove any TRV heads while setting the valve zones to an open position. After this has been done, connect the machine to the system by following the instructions on the machine and double check over everything to make sure that it is all in order.
Connecting Your Machine
When connecting your machine, it is always useful to connect it in reaching distance of your cold water feed. In some cases, your leads may be very short, but either way, it needs to connect to a drain point as well. When doing this, make sure that you are being considerate of your neighbours. Many units can be ordered so that they come with a spill containment casing, but if you don’t have one of these, a plastic sheet will work just the same.
The Flush
When you are doing the flush, you first need to fill up the unit with water. After this has been done, simply switch on the pump and let the water go around the system for a couple of minutes. After this stage has been completed, you will then want to add your choice of cleaning chemical to the mix. Circulate for another 20 minutes but make sure that you do a reverse flow every 5 minutes or so to make sure that the initial clean is being performed to its full potential. When you’ve done all of this and after you’ve waited 20 minutes, you should then perform a hot water circuit and isolate all but one radiator. If you remember which radiators had a cold spot at the beginning, start your assessment here to make sure that the clean is going to plan. Circulate the water around the first radiator and again, make sure that you reverse it. If you suspect that there is some debris in your radiator, make sure that you bang it once or twice with a rubber mallet. This will help to dislodge any possible debris that might be present and it also helps the system to function properly as well. If you think all is well, move onto the next radiator and repeat this, one at a time.
Second Flush
When the radiator is open, dump out all of the dirty water and keep on reversing the flow until the waste pipe is flushing out clean water only. Keep going around to make sure that each radiator is pumping out the same colour of water and then re-open all of the valves. Continue to flush water until the drain is clear and test the water to make sure that everything is in working order.
Turbidity Tube- If you are testing using this method, make sure that you have a reading of 100ppm or under.
Conductivity Meter. If you are using this method, keep flushing until it is within the 10% region.
With other testing methods, just make sure that you follow the instructions to make sure that everything is operating as it should be.
