House not reaching temp.

Alan(CaliforniaRadiant)Forbes

something is hindering flow. If the boiler is reaching the setpoint temperature, the convectors are not heating up, the flow control valves are OK and the circulators are working, I'd make sure the system has been properly purged of air.

Is the boiler below or above the baseboard convectors?

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Barry Smith

Boiler

I have a heating problem that's driving me crazy. The boiler seems to be operating correctly, set at 180'. But the house will not warm up past about 65'. This is a split level with 3 zones of fin tube baseboard. The furthest zone is the top floor where the temp of the copper pipe is aprox. 170' but the fins are cool to the touch. The circulators have been replaced. There are also flow control valves on the loops although there is no dom. coil. They have been tried open and closed with little difference noticed.The current temp is in the teens, but this has been a problem in milder weather also.Any ideas would be appreciated .

Barry Smith

It has been thoroughly purged numerous times. I even added several bleeders to make sure it was clear of air. The boiler is below, in the basement. The flow was one of my first thoughts but as far as I can tell it is moving. Perhaps too fast? Is that possible? The boiler is only about 4 years old. It was put in by a contractor (unknown) for the previous owners of the home.

Barry Smith

It has been thoroughly purged numerous times. I even added several bleeders to make sure it was clear of air. The boiler is below, in the basement. The flow was one of my first thoughts but as far as I can tell it is moving. Perhaps too fast? Is that possible? The boiler is only about 4 years old. It was put in by a contractor (unknown) for the previous owners of the home.

A.J.

verify flow

make sure you have your return water coming back to the boiler,if your pipes are 170 you should be felling warm elements.Maybe install a purge valve to be sure you have the air out.Once you get circulation you will be O.K. if you have enough baseboard

Kupet's Plb & Htg

A.J.

test for flow

let the heating circuit cool down for alittle while, then turn the stat up and wait for the hot water to make it's way back to the return side of the boiler.Just keep your hand on the single return pipe. You will know if it's circulating when you can not keep your hand on it any more.

S Milne

You say

The copper pipe is around 170, but the fins feel cool ?

If the copper pipe is around 170 ( I would be interested to know how you know this ? ) then the water is moving thru the system.

Does the boiler come up to temperature quickly then shut off ? You may not have enough baseboard. Have you had carpets installed, wall to wall ? Check that the installer's did'nt push the carpet under the fins and you have no air flow. This happens quite often. Anything else blocking the flow of air to the bottom of the baseboard ? Previous owners have pets, do the fins need to be vacuumed ?

Has any baseboard been removed ?

Do you have bad windows with lots of infiltration ?

Scott

Pat_11

Make sure the element in the baseboard is installed correctly. Sounds crazy but I've seen it installed with the fins restricting the air flow (installed 90 deg off). Are you getting any temperature drop across the zone?

Weezbo

Barry,there is something different about the information,

so if you have a camera and can a couple pictures to an attachment to a post , the suggestions would be alot more terse.and reflect alot better answers than guessing.

hr

Measure the temperature

going into the first baseboard and the temperature leaving the last board. This will indicate the flow and help determine how much heat is delivered to the space. You need a delta T to move heat

hot rod

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Weezbo

close all but one zone,verify flow ..do that sytematically.

the pic would help the most. if the zone doesnt open, open them mannualy.

J.C.A._3

if you've got flow,

Pat and Milne are on the right track. I've seen almost 3/4 of a condo development done with the baseboard installed at a 90 to the right orientation.(It's right down the street from Milne I'm surprised he didn't mention it)

Cleaning of the fintubes may also be in order. I've found them completely blocked with pet fur and dust bunnies more than a few times. Wall to wall installers are generally known to place their tackless strips an inch or so in front of the baseboards so they can create an air flow through it, but it might have been a new installer that hadn't learned that much yet.

Another thing to check is all/any storm windows. I've found the screens down and the storms up also more than a few times. Locked windows tend to be tighter than unlocked windows also.

Take notes ! Write down where the problems are and when they happen. The more information you can give the guy who you hire to come in and fix this problem, the better he'll be able to address the problems.

Just a few of the things I could think of. Good luck, and please let us know how you make out. We like to see the results. Chris