On Sat, 04 Dec 2004 06:04:33 -0800, Colin wrote:

Dear all,

I am having problems with all of the trv s on all my radiators. I have
only recently moved in to this house, and i have no knowledge of how long
they have been fitted, nor do i have the destructions.

I have been unable to test them when the house has been above 16 / 17
degrees (ish) i understood from my parents house that if you have them
screwed right in, they will turn a radiator off at about 10 degress c. Is
this generally the case?

They will have some minimum temperature that they *can* be set down to.
Don't know if it follows any sort of standard or not (unlikely). Should be
way below 16C and above 0C

Would heating them up with a hair dryer or
similar work?.....see if that would turn them off??

Yes - that's a good way. Will be hard to say exactly what temperature they
triggered at, but it will show if they are working.

Or any other ideas?

Borrow a couple of 2/3 kW electric heaters? Presumably your CH isn't a
happy bunny at all if you can't get the place warm???

As most designs allow the TRV head to be removed from the valve body
without touching the plumbed connections (and don't come running to me if
you flood your house - have a look at them, it should be fairly clear how
to remove the head, if it's desgned to come off dry, in service).

For a start, removing the head should allow the valve to open - so you can
see if you have any stuck valves.

Then with the head removed, depending on the design, you could dunk it in
a bowl of warm water with a thermometer and see how it's behaving - but it
sounds like your problems are more general that that?


Also, how do they work! Anyone know?!

The ones I've seen (Drayton) have a metal head containing fluid of
some sort which expands and pushes down on a pin in the valve part of the
assembly, closing the valve.


Timbo