Can an individual loop on a manifold be isolated?

[Nick1c]

With immaculate timing a screw has been put through a pipe in the screed of the house my 90 year old in-laws are in. I have ordered parts to repair it which should be here on Tuesday. In the meanwhile, if I can identify which loop has been punctured, would closing the flow regulator right down & setting the stat which controls that loop as low as possible to close the other end give a good enough seal to the loop to allow the remainder of the system to be used without filling the screed with glycol?

[TonyT]

Maybe the screw can be kept in until a repair is carried out

 

i carry these

https://www.kiboshpiperepair.com/?v=79cba1185463

 

just as a precaution so that it buys time for the plumber to get to site!!

good luck 

[Russell griffiths]

Get the hammer and bolster out and chop it out now, go and grab some of that super pipe leak tape at screw-fix and tape it up

 

unless you live on the moon you should be able to buy some repair parts today.  Standard 16mm joiners are available at most plumbers merchants. 

If it’s a funny size pipe you have 

Even a bit of copper and two jubilee clips will hold it. 

[Nick1c]

Thank you.
I have left the screw in & turned the entire system off, but if possible would like to get some heat into the house to improve their comfort levels. At the moment there are a number of electric heaters in there which I suppose is better than nothing. 
The pipe is 14mm (an old Nu-heat system). I’ll check out the tape.

Things are complicated by the fact that this happened during the installation of a stairlift. A total of 5 screws were put in the floor in 2 locations. 2 are for a handrail, 3 for the bottom of the stairlift. The stairlift company are getting another way of making the bottom of the track secure, hopefully in the next few days, until this is here I can’t do anything with it. The handrail is doable as soon as I can seal any potential leak, it also projects further into the corridor so may be more likely to be the culprit ?

[ProDave]

My suggestion would be turn off that zone, screw the flow meter down to minimum setting which may or may not shut it off completely. Reduce the system pressure as low as you can before the boiler or whatever heat source complains and then try running it to see if it leaks.

[Nick1c]

Thanks @ProDave  

my current plan is to take the screws out of the handrail fixing, if the leak is there chop out the pipe, put a dab of this on it : https://www.screwfix.com/p/flomasta-external-leak-sealer-50g/8487j#product_additional_details_container

then put a jubilee clip over it so that it doesn’t blow off & see if it holds. 
It looks like if I use the self-amalgamating tape it might make a ‘proper’ repair harder. 

[PeterW]

Sorry but this is the stairlift company’s issue to resolve not yours ..! If they didn’t take due care to survey the site then it’s their problem. Get an emergency plumber out and get the stairlift company (or their insurer) to pick up the bill. 

[Nick1c]

@PeterW I know, but my in-laws moved in yesterday & I would rather they don’t freeze to death! Wrangling over who pays & how much will happen later.....

[ProDave]

3 minutes ago, Nick1c said:

@PeterW I know, but my in-laws moved in yesterday & I would rather they don’t freeze to death! Wrangling over who pays & how much will happen later.....

So try my suggestion a few posts up, that was not intended as a fix, but a possible way to get the heating un until it is fixed properly.

[PeterW]

45 minutes ago, Nick1c said:

@PeterW I know, but my in-laws moved in yesterday & I would rather they don’t freeze to death! Wrangling over who pays & how much will happen later.....

Ok - good to hear ..! 
 

LSX won’t seal it but that tape will. 
 

Other option is turn the flow reg right down and take the actuator off as that “should” from memory shut the circuit off 

[ProDave]

3 minutes ago, PeterW said:

Other option is turn the flow reg right down and take the actuator off as that “should” from memory shut the circuit off 

Are you sure?

 

I thought yo needed an inactive actuator screwed on to push the pin in to stop the flow?  Removing an actuator for me has always turned the flow on.

 

I have some manual knobs you can screw on if you want full manual control.

[PeterW]

Depends on the actuator. The wax ones on the NuHeat manifolds I think are spring loaded and close if you take the head off. That’s why you can’t use the Salus self balancing actuators with them. 

[john0wingnut]

On 19/12/2020 at 12:56, PeterW said:

Depends on the actuator. The wax ones on the NuHeat manifolds I think are spring loaded and close if you take the head off. That’s why you can’t use the Salus self balancing actuators with them. 

My standard Nuheat actuators are made by Salus - https://salus-controls.com/uk/product/t30nc230/, but just banded with Nuheat Logo. They are of the Normally Closed variety.

 

The Salus auto balancing are also normally closed, https://salus-controls.com/uk/product/thb23030/, so you should be able to replace like for like, even if they of the sprung loaded NC type.

[PeterW]

1 hour ago, john0wingnut said:

My standard Nuheat actuators are made by Salus - https://salus-controls.com/uk/product/t30nc230/, but just banded with Nuheat Logo. They are of the Normally Closed variety.

 

The Salus auto balancing are also normally closed, https://salus-controls.com/uk/product/thb23030/, so you should be able to replace like for like, even if they of the sprung loaded NC type.

 

Ok my point was you need to check - NuHeat have changed their designs over the years so it’s not as simple as saying “they fit” as they have changed voltages and mechanisms over the years. Easiest way to check is take off the actuator and then trigger the stat and see what the actuator does.