Common Central Heating Problems – Causes And Solutions

Central heating systems, regardless of their technical nature, is the shortest way to comfort, especially in those communities outside urban areas, lacking city central heating solutions. But comfort can sometimes trip on small malfunctions of the device and some of them are reversed only after the expert is called in. So here is a list with the common central heating problems, seen via Readersdigest.co.uk, with no claim to have exhausted the topic.

One of the common problems is loss of central heating or hot water. In these cases, check that the central heating programmer is set to “on” or check that the thermostats are turned up to the correct level. Also, make sure that the electricity supply is switched on and that the central heating fuse has not blown. If a motorized valve is fitted, in order to control the flow of hot water from the boiler, slide the manual lever to open it. If there is resistance, the valve is not opening properly and this could indicate a burnt-out motor so you may need to call a technical expert.

Another cause may be the pump which is not working and which you can try to start manually or, if this doesn’t work, replace it. If the pump is running, but the boiler does not light, check that the pilot light is on and that the gas supply is turned on at the meter. Also, if a combination boiler will not light, check on the pressure gauge that the water pressure is at least 0.5 bar. Finally, another cause may lie in the mains pressure dropping significantly, which is a problem for the water supply company to deal with.

If the central heating is working but there is no hot water, make sure that the thermostat on the hot-water cylinder is set to 60°C. Also, check that the motorized valve (if fitted) to the cylinder is open and, finally, bleed the air-release valve beside the hot-water cylinder (if there is one). The valve is usually located on the pipe that enters the heating coil.

You also notice that the upstairs radiators are hot, but those downstairs are cold. In this case, the cause may be found in a jammed pump. If it’s the other way around, downstairs hot and upstairs cold, try to bleed the air from the system or check if the ball valve is jammed by seeing whether there is water in the feed and expansion cistern.