Do I need to replace the radiators & get a Powerflush done - advice please

[MOLITTLE]

My central heating system is 23+ years old. British Gas service it each year and although they say that boiler parts may be unobtainable in the future they always remark that they don't have to do anything with the boiler as 0.01 emmissions very good he said.

About 5 years ago the bedroom radiator leaked and was replaced. Recently the living room radiator sprung a leak and had to be replaced. As this is the second radiator I am very concerned about the bedroom,hall & kitchen radiators doing the same.

My questions are:

Should I replace the remaining 3 radiators & could you give me an idea of the cost

Kitchen 44" x 23"
Hall radiator is 29" x 25"
Bedroom 44" x 23"
Also approx cost of fitting 3 radiators.

Should I have a Powerflush done as I don't recall having anything like that ever done in the past 23 years as I did not know it was required.

Would really appreciate your advice and appox costings if possible.

[johnk]

It would be a good idea to replace the radiators. Not sure about the powerflush or cost of it all.

[carrot99]

as a matter of interest - what do you do when a radiator springs a leak?

I know how to put water into my system (two taps connected by a short piece of flexible pipe) so would I open the tap to the system and let the water out into a bucket?

[The Builder]

Mo .......... people often ask for costs on here. It's the most difficult if not impossible thing to estimate from a distance. There are too many variables. I would say that after your recent experience, it would be a good idea to replace the other three. You do need a good local plumber to look at it for you. Powerflush possibly .............. especially if the pipework is microbore. There'll be some fiddling around with the rad connections as well to take new metric sized rads.

[chas2008]

unless as previously said its microbore ie 8mm or 10mm ,i wouldnt lose any sleep over the powerflush thing, its another British Gas upsell.....As and when you require a new boiler i would leave it until then unless you have some serious problems with rads heating up.

[buildersmate]

Radiators rust through at different rates, Sprinter - you have probably looked after your system and maintained the corrosion inhibitor more correctly than many people.
23 years isn't bad for a radiator - 34 years is exceptional. The earlier ones were made of thicker gauge steel, so will last longer - all other things being equal.

[BertiWooster]

Excuse my ignorance - but what do you mean by microbore ?

[buildersmate]

Very small diameter copper pipes, Berti, around 10mm diameter. The tube is easy to bend and was often inserted in chases (channels) to avoid the pipes showing.
Unfortunately the small diameter makes blockage with sludge more likely.

[AlBags]

8mm or 10mm.

Forget powerflush anything .. they are the latest money-making scam.
Problem is, traditionally, they have to be connected to a manifold .. and this can create it's own problems when bleeding, etc.
Best to stay away from microbore and use 15/22mm copper wherever possible. Small is actually goog, as is low volume, as circulation/heating effect is quicker.
You should replace any other rads. If you do not have any complaints regarding heat outputs from present, use a similar size. Slimmest will be the single panel with convector. Available in different heights.
I would think average between £80-120 per radiator depending on location, fixing methods, etc. There is drain, flush with a cleaner, and sentinel inhibitor to protect afterwards. That could add up to £120-50 ish, I would have thought.

[BertiWooster]

I see buildersmate .

I'm sitting here looking at a radiator .
The pipe coming out of the floorboard going into the valve mechanism , is copper in colour and looks small in circumference .

Does that sound like microbore pipework is what i have ?

[AlBags]

22mm dia copper .. large systems and main circuits .. central heating and hot/cold supplies.
15mm dia copper .. mains supply, cold and hot systems, radiators
10mm dia .. microbore heating and oil/gas applications.
8mm dia .. microbore heating and oil/gas applications.

Microbore will hand bend, and is available by roll.
Standard copper: 3M lengths.

[chas2008]

i have microbore 8mm, and when i had a new condensing boiler fitted a few months ago the system was powerflushed (not by British Gas but a local recomended plumber) my system has improved 100% well worth it. But i wouldnt get talked into it if i didnt think it wasnt neccessary,
Contrary to all the advice on here and by other plumbers,central heating engineers which included replacing all the rads / pipework and it will never work with microbore, it DOES...absolutely no problems whatsoever.

[MOLITTLE]

Many thanks for all your information and advise. I have contacted a plumber to arrange for the three radiators to be replaced.
Thank you all.