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Pressure testing radiators
- Thread starter MartinJB
- Start date
Aidan
Member
- Messages
- 164
- Location
- Essex/London
You could hire a pressure tester. Rothenberger and others make them They're a hand-operated pump which draws water from a tank. The principle is simple; you fit a pressure gauge and a couple of isolating valves, fill the radiator with water, get all the air out of one IV and connect the pump to the other. Shut the air vent valve, pump up to twice the working pressure; 3 bar, 45psi should be lots for a radiator. A very small operation of the pump lever will send the pressure rocketing if you've got all the air out, so be careful not to overpressurize it Isolate the valve, note the pressure reading and leave it. If the pressure drops, it leaks.
Some smart fellow will suggest pressurizing it with air; DO NOT. You use water. The idea is to see if it leaks, or if it will fail under pressure. A failure under water pressure is just a failure. A failure under air pressure is an explosion, of the metal-fragments-embedded-in-walls type.
You could probably get adequate pressure for this from the water mains. I'd use a pressure reducing valve to allow the pressure to be turned up gradually. Screwfix do a test kit, but you'd be better off assembling your own kit of plumbing parts.
I once pressure tested a compressed air system with a Halfords foot pump. The pump was immersed in a 4 gallon tank and rolled my trouser legs up to pump the water pressure up. It worked fine, but the pump rusted solid shortly afterwards.
Some smart fellow will suggest pressurizing it with air; DO NOT. You use water. The idea is to see if it leaks, or if it will fail under pressure. A failure under water pressure is just a failure. A failure under air pressure is an explosion, of the metal-fragments-embedded-in-walls type.
You could probably get adequate pressure for this from the water mains. I'd use a pressure reducing valve to allow the pressure to be turned up gradually. Screwfix do a test kit, but you'd be better off assembling your own kit of plumbing parts.
I once pressure tested a compressed air system with a Halfords foot pump. The pump was immersed in a 4 gallon tank and rolled my trouser legs up to pump the water pressure up. It worked fine, but the pump rusted solid shortly afterwards.
As aready suggested by Aidan, I woud simply fit both flow and return rad valves in position, attach a small length of copper pipe to one of the valves, using a jubilee clip attach the garden hosepipe to this and to the mains cold water tap.Turn the tap on, open the valves, bleed the air out and have a cup of tea.
As far as I am concerned that would be a good enough test.
As far as I am concerned that would be a good enough test.
Aidan
Member
- Messages
- 164
- Location
- Essex/London
MartinJB said:- is it the sort of thing I could get from a plumbers merchant?
Yes, but they tend to charge what they think they can get out of you.
Try http://www.bes.ltd.uk
Their item 12149 should do; a 0 -6 bar or 0-10 bar gauge. It's 1/4" BSP so you'd need to work ot what you want in the way of adaptors & connectors and prepare a list.
Use 1/4 turn ball valves for the isolating valves, they give an air-tight shut off, unlike gate valves. You could also use stop-cocks (globe valves).