Radiator Removal

No need to drain down. Turn off both valves fully clockwise, then drain radiator. Bear in mind that occasionally rad valves weep so be prepared for that. Also, TRV's can open if the temperature in the room drops to about 7 degrees. You can prevent that by taking off the trv head and using a decorators cap, which simply keeps the valve fully shut.

Be careful if you have carpets as you usually get a lot of black crud coming out when draining the rad.

 

Wise to fit a blanking cap on the trv & lock shield, especially you have little sprogs who like to meddle.

 

As above , I always fit these even as a temp. measure if removing a rad for decorating. Peace of mind - Simples

https://www.screwfix.com/p/15mm/55441

https://www.screwfix.com/p/22mm/80500

 

And lay down a tarpalin or thick plastic sheet,as that black crud can stain the carpet.

 

You’re on the right track yep !

Would just add that after shutting off both valves, open up bleed valve as that speeds up drain down

Plastic sheet as above and old cloths to catch any spills. I keep a couple of old 9” roller trays for this purpose as they butt up tight to skirting board and fit under valves and catch majority of water. Drain roller trays into a bucket to empty as walking any distance with a roller tray swishing around with murky black water doesn’t usually end well

No need to fully drain down and / or touch any other section of heating system

This is assuming that both rad valves actually work and shut off water. As with anything mechanical, they can and do fail in which case more work is needed to replace them but, let’s assume this won’t be an issue

 

Not quite:

- Close off lockshield valve
- Remove TRV and fit decorating cap
- Drain radiator
- Fit blanking caps on both valves

The reason you remove te TRV is that if the room becomes cold and te TRV open, you could get a build up of pressure behind the blanking cap and possibly a leak as you will not have tested it for water tightness. Normally, the cap can take the pressure, but this is to make doubly sure.

 

When rad has drained and before you take off wall, re-tighten the bleed screw, then with a helper, lift off the wall and carefully flip upside down. That way, you won't get the last bits of black crud dripping out on the carpet as you carry it through the house

 

Confirm they have actually closed off the flow of water by opening the radiator air vent.

If the 2 valves are closed,the initial squirt of water from the air vent will dwindle and stop.

stop is what your looking for.

 

One further wee tip - when you close off the lockshield valve (the one that isn't the TRV), then note down exactly how many turns and part-turns it took to shut off. Write that down on a piece of paper and attach it to the valve.

When you reinstate the rad, open that valve up the exact same amount.


(Also note the colour of the water in the rad - if it's noticeably brown or if there's black sludge when you finally tip over the rad to drain the last out of it, you may wish to let your LL know as this might cause longer-terms problems. Is the a magnetic filter fitted to the 22mm pipe going back to the boiler?)

 

I write it INSIDE the cover that goes over the lockshield - maybe with a location. That way it is always where it should be.

 

Good idea.