DIY Doctor UK DIY Forums

Hello! Hopefully someone can help

My CH and water has been off for about four weeks while some renovations have been done. This included replacing four radiators so required a drain and refill of the system. The CH is back up and running and all rads are piping hot however I get no water (either hot or cold) from the hot water taps.

The cylinder in the airing cupboard on the landing is hot - there's a couple of bleed valves close by which I've done - I just get water, no air. I've pumped mains cold back through the system using the cold-hot washing machine feeds 4 times for 30-45 seconds each time. This eventually fills the water tank in the loft and runs out of the overflow.

I've cycled the pump between high and low and cracked the top union nut on the cylinder (just get water)

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated :o)

Regular copper cylinder
Small F&E tank
Baxi Solo 2 50 PF
Danfoss FP715Si timer
Grundfos pump
2 x Honeywell motorised valves

Gantry

You have not mentioned the large header tank which supplies the hot water. I presume this is full of water?

My first suggestion is the gate valve from the header tank is closed and preventing water flowing. If the head turns it has probably snapped off and in reality is still shut. Close and open the valve to prove it is functioning correctly.

Hi Plumbob - thanks for responding :)

Yes, there is a large tank in the loft and this is full - this is where the water that I push from the mains cold through the washing machine hot feed gets back into and then overflows. I drained it down (and the F&E tank) when I did the rads and replaced the bathroom - I didn't switch off any valves when I did this, I don't think there are any? I'll check for them when I get home later though.

It is difficult to see what else could be wrong other than something obstructing the feed from the tank. Apart from a closed valve, it could be debris such as loft insulation that has fallen into the tank.

When you force the back fill does the water flow up the feed pipe into the tank or does it spurt from the expansion pipe? If it comes out of the expansion, block it off and force it to flow up the feed pipe.

Hi

Solved!! Thanks for your persistence!!

I went back and hunted for a valve and there , towards the back of the airing cupboard was a stopcock I hadn't seen before - I assume it must have been in the 'nearly-off' position and when I'd put some towels on the shelf and pushed them back, it must have twisted it to 'full off'. I turned it on and sure enough, lots of gurgling and then water from the hot taps!!

Thanks again!!