How to bleed your radiators like a pro!
Bleeding your radiators of air in the system is a great way of making sure your heating system is efficient and keeps your home nice and warm!
Bleeding your radiators of air in the system is a great way of making sure your heating system is efficient and keeps your home nice and warm.
You'll know if your system needs bleeding because the tops of the radiators will not be as hot as the rest. This happens over time as the system may not be 100% air tight. Don't worry too much if it happens every so often but if you have to bleed your radiators regularly or lose a lot of pressure in the system there could be a leak.
It's not as obvious as you may think, so here are some tips to do it like a pro.
Turn your heating off
Make sure your heating system is off and your radiators are cool and turned fully on
Start downstairs
If your home has 2 floors you should begin bleeding the downstairs radiators first. It's also advisable to start with the radiator which is furthest away from the boiler
Move upstairs
Once you've bled all the downstairs radiators you move on to the upstairs, again beginning with the radiator which is furthest from the boiler
Get a cloth
Get yourself a cloth to catch the liquid that may come from the air vent
Get your radiator key
Locate your radiator key or allen key to open the valve (usually the top right side)
Open the valve
Gently turn the key - you may hear air escaping, this is what you need to hear, it will start to bubble once they get full. Once liquid starts to come out of the radiator, tighten the valve back shut again and move to the next one
Check the system pressure gauge
Once you have bled all of your radiators, check the system pressure gauge, which is located on the boiler front, to make sure it's in the correct range
If your system needs a top up or is showing high pressure, follow your boiler's user manual to do so and voila! Your heating system is now bled and working optimally.
If you have bled your radiators and they keep losing heat or your pressure decreases, you may have a leak somewhere in your system. Why not drop us a call and have one of our skilled heating engineers come and take a look to get things working properly again.
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