noisy whistling radiator

my radiator is making a whistling noise, I desperately want to stop the radiator making the noise, even at the cost of having no heating in my room.

I had a plumber come in, and he said that he had shut the radiator off, and there's nothing more he can do if the noise is coming from the pipes.

If I had the radiator removed completely would that fix it?

The plumber implied that shutting it off wouldn't help if the noise is coming from the pipes. Well, the noise sure as hell sounds like it's coming from the radiator.

The noise is sounds far worse now than it was before he 'shut it off'. (That coudl be in my mind though, but i really think the noise is louder and nmore frequent)

I think teh whole pipes talk is a red herring, what pipes? the noise doesn't sound like it's coming frmo under the floor.

I thank your helpful souls in advance!

Reply to
jameshanley39
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when I turn te central heating of the noise stops. So, would removing the whole radiator remove the noise?

the plumber told me he had shut the radiator off from the system, so I would've thought it'd act as if the central heating was off.

Reply to
jameshanley39

Play detective. The noise will be the loudest at the point where it is generated in the heating system. Go listen for the noise at every radiator in the system. If it can only be heard at your radiator then put in a new control valve in your radiator.

Reply to
nobody

every radiator in the house makes a noise. The only one that bothers me is the one in my room though 'cos it's in my room. So, if I have the radiator removed, that should work shouldn't it? It's interesting that even after my radiator was allegedly 'shut off' it still makes loud noises.

Reply to
jameshanley39

Every radiator in the house makes the same whistling noise at the same intensity?

Reply to
nobody

Are your radiators fed by hot water, two pipe steam, or one pipe steam?

MM

Reply to
Mark Monson

Couldn't the plumber who just looked at the radiator tell you on the phone if he thought it was removable? The answer depends on exactly what kind of system you have.

If the radiator has two pipes, one on each side, removing it may disable other rooms. If it has one pipe, removing it may work but you will be sorry in the winter. (I mean if it is cold enough in August to use heat, what is it like in Feb). You could always buy an electric baseboard heater. (Who pays the electricity?)

If you can locate the source of the whistling noise (probably metal valve like thing on the side not otherwise connected to any pipes) and cover it with a sock, it may muffle the most annoying parts of the sound. You might also find a way to pipe the escaping steam outside the room where the noise won't bother you.

Creaking, banging and boiling noises are normal from pipes but a hiss indicates escaping steam or air which is normal and necessary for a steam fired system to work. If a hiss is coming from a concealed pipe, you have a leak.

Whenever I am looking for a hard to find hiss or buzz (usually electrical in my case) I use a cardboard tube (from a paper towel roll) and place one end against my ear and use the other end to scan the area. It makes the sound more directional so you can locate it to a smaller area. You should be able to feel escaping air or steam with your hand or a cold mirror (look for condensation).

Reply to
PipeDown

I put on one of the collars the vet gives my dog to keep him away from his stitches. I just hunch over a little and the sound just funnels in as I scan the job site. It used to hurt my back so now I just put my knee pads on and crawl around job-site. boy am I happy for this alternative.

ever try one of the electronic leak detectors?

Reply to
Ned Flanders

LOL I can picture that.

Reply to
PipeDown

no idea. thanks for all your help.

i'm just gonna get a plumber to remove the radiator and see what happens. if that doesn't fix it then i'll write back and call some more plumbers!

Reply to
jameshanley39

how about you hire pro to find cause of noise instead of trying to tell him what to do to fix it.

Reply to
Ned Flanders

I did that twice. no use. Hence I posted here. The second guy said that all he can do is disconnect the radiator from the system so it's effectively off. So he did that. But there is still noise.

So i'm gonna hire a pro to remove the radiator. Then i'll see if there's still noise.

noise is subjective. So you can't rely on somebody else to tell you your radiator is quiet.

and with radiators it's worse 'cos it's temperamental. so it may be quiet for a few hours, then noisy for a few hours. So even if I were a professional plumber specialising in radiators, I would not be able to tell within a short timeframe if it were quiet.

So. rather than keep calling the plumber back and telling him it's noisy. I'll get the radiator removed completely. It's an extremely effective way to diagnose the problem

Reply to
jameshanley39

"noise is subjective. So you can't rely on somebody else to tell you your radiator is quiet."

I don't agree, noise is noise.

You have ignored the obvious soloutions in order to keep your problem going.

You are not actually trying to find the actual cause, you are just here to gather "ammo" to fire at your plumber.

I think your plumbers were doing just fine and that the real "problem" is you.

I am starting to smell a stupid lib, as this is the typical mo.

Reply to
Ned Flanders

noise is subjective. it's not your fault or the person's You just misunderstood each other as to what constitutes noise. The only way to see if the job is done is to ask the person if the problem persists. Of course it means there's no fixed price. you try one treatment. then antoher...

Believe me. To a person to whome noise is a problem, there is no bigger pain in the ass than noise. I am having my radiator removed. rather than rely on a plumber to keep trying treatments saying "oh, it'll be quiet now".

Reply to
jameshanley39

Yeah, he has what is called a ' Nuisance ' complaint. Under code this means the Plummer did all he can and can do no more. Under law he still pays the Plummer !

I had people do the same with me on copper pipe. I used the proper type, used the proper hanger and set at the proper intervals. They still complain of pipe noise. Sorry the inspector looks and says I did all I can do. You must pay for the work, you can't get out of it ! Some people are just a pain in the ass.

Reply to
Red Jacket

you seem to have experience with this.

If I had you as a plumber i'd let you change the pipes as you described. As long as I knew beforehand that that is all you can do / all that can be done, and there are no guarantees. If that didn't work, then i'd have the radiator remoevd. Unfortaunately, The plumber said all he could do was turn the radiator off or somehow disconnected it from the system. But now it still makes noise moreso than before.

I'm going to have the radiator removed. (the average plumber can do that). Since my first priority is silence. If that works, then i'll look into getting a coppor pipe or silent radiator put back in some tiome in the future.

many thanks for your response. it might also provide some guidlines for a decent plumber to follow!

Reply to
jameshanley39

"many thanks for your response. it might also provide some guidlines for a decent plumber to follow!"

Cram it

Reply to
Ned Flanders

You've already had the radiator disconnected. Removing it will give you more space but it will not stop the noise, its just a hunk of metal now. How hard can it be to localize a source of noise.

Reply to
PipeDown

Sounds like he has a velocity problem. Water is moving too fast through the system because some of the radiators are turned down or off. The pump is trying to circulate water but has more resistance because of fewer radiators. Plus, he said the noise got worse when he shut off the closest radiator. That would be consistent with too much pressure drop. If this is the case he should open up more radiators or put in a bypass or put in a smaller pump.

MM

Reply to
Mark Monson

it's a noisy hunk of metal. I have localised the noise. It's coming from within the radiator.

All radiators make noise. but my concern is the one in my room. Actually, there is a large radiator downstairs that perhaps doesn't make noise. And a small one in the bathroom that rusn piping hot and makes a hell of a noise - though not a whistling.

So maybe this confirms what that helpful poster was saying that it's pressure and if a smaller pump were fitted it'd cure the problem.

Still, i'll have my radiator removed. (the noise that bothers me is localised to my radiator) Then if there's still noise, i'll look into telling a plumber to fit a smaller pump.

how many hours would it take to fit a smaller pump (i'm just trying to figure out costs, so i don't get ripped off) There is a gerat shortage of decent plumbers. I wouldn't even trust that the plumber woul get the right size if I just said "smaller".

Reply to
jameshanley39

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