HOW-TO HOW-TO DRAIN YOUR CENTRAL HEATING SYSTEM

There are several reasons for draining a central heating system: leaking radiators, sludge causing a blockage
worn out or failed valves. None of these problems is difficult to rectify. This How-To guide shows you how
to easily, logically and safely drain and refill open wet system installations and systems run by a multi-point
or combination boiler.

MATERIALS
• Drain tap or drain cock washers
• Central heating cleaning fluid
• Corrosion inhibitor
• Leak sealer

TOOLS
• Radiator bleed valve key
• Square socket drain tap key
• 2 adjustable spanners, 250mm
• 1 adjustable spanner, 100mm
• 2 flat blade screwdrivers, 1 x 8mm and 1 x 5mm
• Pozidrive No.2 screwdriver
• Square nose pliers
• Hose pipe, long enough to stretch from drain tap
to outside drain
• Butterfly jubilee hose clip to fit hose pipe
• Timber, 50mm x 50mm x 760mm
• Nylon or polypropylene rope, 6mm diameter
• Deep tray and bucket
• Old towels
• Torch or wander-light
• Crawling boards, if loft is not floored

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BEFORE YOU START

It is important to read How-To: Understand Your Central Heating System. This not only explains the layout and
terminology of different heating systems, but also illustrates the different types of valves you are likely to encounter.
Black sludge forms continuously in systems without an inhibitor (see ‘Cleaning the System’). In some cases, it
produces enough sediment to block the system. Black oxide sludge can also turn into pipe blocking scale.
If you have to drain your system and there is no emergency, such as a leaking radiator, it is worth waiting a few
days while you carry out this simple test to see if the system is chemically protected against corrosion.
1 Fill a small jar with water taken from a radiator vent. Put a towel on the floor and undo the vent with a radiator
key until water flows freely into the jar (F1). Don’t undo the vent too far, as you could lose the screw and have
a minor flood.
2 Put several steel nails (not galvanized) and a small piece of copper wire (to simulate copper pipe) into the jar.
Close the jar tight and leave for three days.
If the nails rust and the water turns orange, you can be certain corrosion is taking place in the system. This will be
worse in soft water areas. If the nails remain clean and bright, the system is properly protected.

CLEANING THE SYSTEM

There are two methods of introducing cleaners and inhibitors into heating systems. The first is via the header or
expansion tank, usually found in the roof space, after draining down. The second system uses a frame gun to
inject a chemical into the system via a radiator bleed valve. This is done before draining down. See Before
Refilling the System on page 5 and F9 on page 6
Some cleaners are not recommended for use on systems over twelve years old, as they are likely to have existing
leaks plugged with scale. Check the manufacturer’s instructions.

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F3 F5

DRAINING AN OPEN-VENTED WET SYSTEM

1 Turn all room thermostats to zero.
2 Turn off electricity supply to boiler. Turn off the programmer and remove the plug or the fuse in the fuse spur.
3 Turn off gas to boiler, either at the tap on or near the boiler or at the meter. Make sure solid fuel boilers are
out. There is no need to turn off the fuel supply to an oil-fired boiler.
4 Shut off the water supply to the feed and expansion tank. If there is no stop valve next to the tank, place a
piece of timber 50mm x 50mm across the tank and tie up the ball valve (F2). Allow the system to cool.
5 If you have a motorised diverter or zoning valves, they will have automatically closed. Most have a lever
enabling you to manually open them, so do this (F3).
If there is no lever, remove the motor box from the valve body; it will be held on by either two or four screws.
Use a pair of pliers to turn the valve to open (F4).
6 Open the manual control radiator valves fully.
7 Remove the caps from the lockshield valves and fully open these with a spanner (F5). Note how many turns
each one takes to open. When refilling, you will need to close them by the same amount.
8 Find the drain tap or taps. There may be more than one, if the system is split (F6). Attach a hose to the lowest
one using a butterfly jubilee clip. Lead the hose to an outside drain at a lower level than the drain tap.

HINT
In cold weather, a plastic hose may be difficult to push onto the drain tap spigot. Dip the end of the hose in hot
water to soften it.

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9 Use a square socket drain tap key or 100mm adjustable spanner to open the tap. Water should start running
out of the hose.
10 Starting at the highest and furthest radiator from the boiler, gently loosen the bleed valve. If water comes out,
close it and wait for the header tank to drain. Open the bleed valve until you hear hissing as air is sucked into
the system. Repeat on all the other radiators, moving down and towards the boiler. Check air vents on the pri
mary circuit near the hot water cylinder.
11 When all the water has drained out, close the vents in case the water is accidentally turned on.

STICKING DRAIN VALVE WASHERS

A common problem with drain valves in old systems is the washer jamming in the valve.
1 Close all vents.
2 Close the drain tap.
3 Remove the hose, but keep it to hand.
4 Place old towels under the tap with a large, flat dish to catch the water. Have a bucket handy.
5 Release the drain tap.
6 Stick a piece of bent wire up the spigot and jiggle it about until the washer is pulled out, usually in small
pieces (F7), followed by a gush of water.
7 Control water with your thumb whilst replacing hose.
8 Continue as for open-vented wet systems, following points 9 to 11.

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BEFORE REFILLING THE SYSTEM
1 Carry out any maintenance such as refurbishing or replacing leaking valves or radiators.
2 Check the system for old leaks, especially round all valves and compression joints. Leaks will be apparent by
dribbles of green-white scale on the pipe-work. If the pipes are painted, this scale may be orange in colour.
3 Remove or replace any affected parts.

For more detailed information on pipes, see How-To: Work With Small Bore Copper and Plastic Pipes.

FILLING THE SYSTEM

1 Fit the drain tap with a new washer and shut off the tap.
2 Check all air vents are closed.
3 If you are flushing the system, pour system cleanser into the header tank.
4 Fill the system with water. The ball valve on the header tank should shut off just after the ball starts to float.
5 If the water is too high, shut off the water, let some water out of the system and adjust the ball valve to get the
correct level of water.
6 Open the radiator air vent nearest to the boiler. Hold it open until water starts to flow. Don’t forget to bleed the
pump. Then carry out venting on upper floors until the system is air free.
7 Check the system for leaks.
8 Close any motorised valves.
9 Re-set lockshield valves to their original position.
10 Turn on gas, electricity and programmer, then set the thermostat.
11 Light boiler according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
12 Once the running temperature is reached, re-vent the system. You may have to do this several times over the
next two days.
13 If cleansing the system, run it for the prescribed time, then shut it down and drain off the water. You may have
to do this several times.
14 Before filling the system for the first time, pour sludge and corrosion inhibitor into the header tank. Usually this
is 1 litre of inhibitor to 100 litres of water. As a rough guide, allow 11.25 litres of water per radiator. For fan
assisted radiators, allow 3 litres for long ones and 2 litres for small ones.

DRAINING A CENTRAL HEATING SYSTEM RUN FROM A MULTIPOINT OR

COMBINATION BOILER
These boilers run on a sealed system and have an expansion vessel, circulating pump and automatic vents built
into them.
1 Turn off the room thermostat.
2 Turn off the boiler on the front control panel.
3 Turn off the power supply. Either remove the plug from the socket or withdraw the fuse from the fuse spur.
4 Find the drain tap. If the boiler is wall mounted, this will be adjacent to the lowest radiator, furthest from the
boiler. It may be let into pipe-work beneath a floor trap. If the boiler is floor mounted, the tap may be adjacent
to the boiler. There may be more than one drain tap on the heating circuit.
5 Attach a hose to the tap with a butterfly jubilee clip and run the hose to an outside drain.
6 Fully open the manual control and lockshield valves controlling the radiators.
7 Turn on the drain tap to allow water to run.
8 After a few minutes, operate the bleed valve on the radiator highest and furthest from the boiler.
9 As water runs away, open all other radiator bleed valves working from upper floors downwards.
10 Once water ceases to flow, shut the bleed valves.

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F9

Before refilling the system, carry out any maintenance, such as replacing valves or radiators. See ‘Draining
an Open-Vented Wet System on page 3. If you need to clean the system, see Before You Start on page 2.

1 Turn off the system – see points 1-4 on page 5.

2 On one radiator, tighten down the manual control valve until it is well seated.
3 Remove the cap from the lockshield valve and tighten down the spindle. Note how many turns this takes; later
you will need to open it by the same amount (F5).
4 Roll back any carpet and place old towels around the pipe and a small bowl under the valve.
5 Loosen the bleed valve with a radiator key, then unscrew the cap nut that holds the valve onto the radiator
(F8). Be prepared to tighten it when the bowl fills. Have a bucket handy into which you can empty the bowl.
6 Drain off 1 litre of water.
7 Tighten the cap nut.
8 Remove the bleed valve – don’t lose it. Inject cleansing agent into the system via the radiator bleed valve
(F9). Close the valve.
9 Turn the system on (the reverse of points 1-3 on page 5). Start the boiler and run the system for the
prescribed time – from 2 hours to 4 days for a heavily blocked system.
10 Drain the system as above. Refill the system with water and drain down. Repeat until the water is clear.

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F11

REFILLING THE SYSTEM

You will require a filling loop for this (F10). One end of this is attached to a screw valve on the mains water
supply to the boiler. The other end attaches to a non-return filling valve on the boiler. These valves may be below,
above or to one side of the boiler.
1 As the system is filled, the needle on a pressure gauge on the boiler control panel will rise. As it reaches its
filling pressure, usually 1.5 bar (22lb/m2), turn off the water. The correct filling and running pressures will be
found in the boiler installation instructions.
2 With the filling loop connected and the radiator bleed valves and drain tap shut, gently turn on the screw valve
feeding the loop.
3 When the pressure gauge shows the correct pressure, turn off the water.
4 Start bleeding the radiators, beginning with the one nearest to the boiler.
5 Have someone keep the water pressure constant as you do this or top up the pressure after every couple
of radiators. If you inadvertently overfill the system, let water out of the system via the drain tap (there may be
one on the boiler for that purpose). To avoid getting debris on the valve seat, do not use the safety pressure
relief valve for this (F11).
6 Once all the radiators are bled and the water is at the correct filling pressure, connect the electricity and start
the boiler according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Turn up the room thermostat.
7 Check for leaks.
8 If after a while the pressure drops, re-vent the radiators and top up the water pressure.
9 Remove the filling loop and keep it in a safe place.

Other sealed pressurized systems are described in How-To: Understand Your Heating System.

Emptying the system is as for an open wet system, while filling the system is as for a combination boiler.
Remember to check that the top-up bottle is full and also to remove the filling cap when emptying the system.

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