heating problem

noodletop

ok so over the last week or so the blowout valve on my heating system has burst 3 times, by burst i mean the fitting cracked in half in one case sending water all over the yard.

i got the heating system put in last year, with the intention of using it as a dual system. the oil has not been connected as of yet bec the stove in the sitting room has been more than enough to heat the house but since the spell of cold weather i've noticed that the rads are no longer gettin hot, after some investigation i noticed that the hot water is being sent outside to the boiler in the yard and by the time it comes back in to the house has cooled down .

as the boiler is not in use is it possible just to disconnect it from the heating system to stop the water going outside??

couple of other things
1 there is no blowout(safety valve) inside the house
2 there is a pump in the hotpress for the heating
3 neither the pump or boiler outside are wired up
4 the piping is 3/4 qualpex running to the outside but it is not lagged or even covered and from the house to the boiler is at least 40 ft roughly.

any ideas for a solution guys?

items

If you list out what you have, whats heating where etc might help you more.

Sounds like you have a combination of different heat sources, they might be mixing, crossing over etc.

noodletop

basically ive got 7 rads in the house and the hot water to heat which the stove seems very capable of doing until now.

basically i dont want the water going out to the boiler in the yard as i dont need it and by the time it gets to the boiler and back it has gone cold bec of the weather.
is it possible to just loop the flow and return from the hotpress and not send it outside ?

as for the valve bursting , its the safety valve on the boiler outside which keeps bursting presumably caused by the cold weather as the heating has run fine till now

items

When combining different heat sources NRV's (non return valve's) should be fitted. NRV will stop water going in wrong direction. NRV will only allow water to travel in one direction.

Have you any of those fitted? If not who did the work?

As for looping, cant see that working, if possible you could install some lever action valves on boiler pipe work temporally to cut off the boiler from the stove.

Having 3/4 pipe runs outside with basic insulation is not good, you'll have a lot of heat loss.

Special pipe is available now, little to no heat loss, its called calpex pipe. Last time I bought some it was 30 euro per meter plus VAT, that was just twin pipe. Having something like that for outside flows and returns is the only way to go, you'll make up the costs of pipe by saving in heatloss.

Something is going wrong with boiler safety, sounds odd to blow out, crack etc due to ice or cold. Hard to say from here, is water hot in oil boiler after safety blows?

noodletop

yeah the water is hot in the boiler when the valve blows. as for the plumber i've contacted him and he has basically said to get someone else to sort it out.

i have no intention of using the oil ever if i can help it just looking for some advice as to the best way of sorting the problem without having to get someone in to do the entire heating system again.

as for the one way valves cant see any in or around any pipes behind the stove or in the hotpress

ccsolar

Hi Noodle
I have the same system as you but have the boiler connected.
It works great and saves on oil when the solid fuel is burning.
You can try and fit a gate valve on the piping leading to the oil boiler.
They cost a few € but it might be a quick fix, it depends on the heating loop as you might end up shutting off some of the rads.
Your valve is blowing due to the frost at night and if you are installing non return valves make sure you get a plumber who knows what he is doing.


CC

Scudges Da

Before fitting isolating valves to the oil burner outside you must ensure that the stove is fitted with a pressure release valve(safety valve).

Each heat source should be fitted with is own,as to isolate the outside boiler without fitting one would be highly dangerous.

Get someone qualified to look at the system and advise you.

ccsolar

Yes ,this is correct .
Unless your heating system is vented in your attic.

CC

items

Scudges Da wrote: »

Before fitting isolating valves to the oil burner outside you must ensure that the stove is fitted with a pressure release valve(safety valve).

Each heat source should be fitted with is own,as to isolate the outside boiler without fitting one would be highly dangerous.

Get someone qualified to look at the system and advise you.

Boiler is 40ft away, even if stove had no safety, boiler safety is still to far away. Well said though.

Scudges Da

Sorry CC I have to disagree

Virtually all solid fuel systems are open vented, it is still a requirement that they are fitted with a safety valve at each heat source.

If the pipes in the attic freeze there is still the chance of a pressure build up that can be dangerous

SD

owlite700

Ideally there should be a system link for the two heat sources in the hot press. This stops the problem of hot water from your stove circulating out to the oil boiler. This is a steel box with 6 or 8 connections into it.
Get a good plumber to install a blow off at the stove ,and check the system , It will be worth it in the long run.
Dont take any chances with high preassure problems like this.
A neighbour of mine installed a stove with no vent. It blew up demolishing the chimney ,its used as an example to all round here.

noodletop

thanks for the advice guys, think im going to get a good plumber in asap to sort it out for me.
had a look this morning and there is no safety valve near the stove and i dont see any expansion tank in the attic either so i think maybe the plumber who did it arrived on a horse (f***in cowboy)hence he has no interest in calling to sort it.

thanks again for all the advice:D