Proper disconnection of radiators. Should I shut off heating radiators before flushing and for the summer? How to properly shut off a radiator

Repair work, heat in the apartment, replacement of the radiator - all this requires disconnecting the batteries. In this article we will tell you how to properly shut off a radiator.

If you need to shut off the radiator without removing it

If you need to shut off the heating radiator for the summer or turn it off because of the heat, this is easy to do if there are shut-off valves on the heating radiator - ball valves. Fully turn the handle of the valves on the inlet and outlet pipes. This will block the flow of coolant.

In the photo the taps are open. When closed, the valves of the taps are located perpendicular to the pipe.

Often there is a special adjustment valve on the incoming pipe. It can also be used to block a pipe. However, its main function is to maintain a certain temperature in the room.

Shutting off the radiator without dismantling it is carried out in the following cases:

• The battery needs to be painted (during the heating season).
• The battery needs to be flushed.
• Gaskets and nipples need to be replaced.
• It is necessary to turn off the heating battery for the summer.

If you need to shut off and remove the radiator

It is best to carry out work related to radiator removal after the end of the heating season. If work needs to be carried out during the heating season, you need to take into account a number of nuances. If you have a single-pipe heating system and vertical wiring, you can remove the battery only if there is a bypass.

Such a system can be identified by pipes, one of which comes from the ceiling and connects to the radiator, and the other comes out of the radiator and disappears into the floor. A bypass is a jumper connecting the incoming and outgoing pipes. This is a pipe of approximately the same or slightly smaller diameter than the main pipes. The principle of the bypass is as follows: if the radiator is turned off, water begins to flow through the riser, passing through the bypass, without passing through the battery. In this case, the riser works, the heating in neighboring apartments does not turn off.

If the system is two-pipe, if there are taps, it is enough to close them, after which you can remove the battery.

Remember that the battery is always filled with water

The battery is filled with liquid throughout the year. Water is drained only for a short time during centralized repair work. Therefore, if you plan to replace the battery, simply disconnecting it is not enough - you need to drain the water. Why is the system constantly filled with coolant? It is highly undesirable for oxygen to enter the heating system. When the water drains, air and water vapor take its place. This leads to active oxidation - that is, the appearance of rust on the surface of steel and bimetallic batteries. Oxygen dissolved in the coolant does not destroy the metal, i.e. does not lead to corrosion. Therefore, in order for the heating system to last a long time, it is always filled.

How to adjust the temperature in the apartment?

• If the apartment is often hot to such an extent that there is a desire to turn off the radiators, consider installing temperature regulators on the radiators. If the battery has a bypass, you can install a thermostat at the entrance to the battery, which will regulate the temperature in the room.
• If there is no bypass, it is prohibited to install control devices, since if such devices are present, you will set the temperature not only in your apartment, but also for all your neighbors in the riser. In this case, you can replace the heating battery and install a bypass.

Every year we are faced with the problem of turning off the heating system, which occurs at the end of the season. So, let's figure out how to shut off the battery in an apartment correctly. To do this, you need to know some important features of such systems. Thus, each heating network is filled with coolant, which remains in it throughout the year. The role of the coolant is usually played by water. In winter, the heating system is filled with hot water, and in summer - with cold water.

Why is the water not drained at the end of the heating season?

1. Water is constantly inside the heating system and does not allow metal to come into contact with air. Corrosion occurs when a metal comes into contact with dissolved oxygen in water;
2. Due to the isolation of the heating system from the outside world, the water is quickly deprived of dissolved oxygen. Then the oxidation process, which is usually a catalyst for corrosion processes, is completely eliminated.
3. As a result of all this, the heating network does not rust at all from the inside, which cannot be said about the cold and hot water pipeline system. However, if water is removed from the system, moist air with a high oxygen content will remain. This is precisely why pipes and radiators rust from the inside in the absence of coolant.

Before turning off the radiator, you need to study the other side. According to established standards, the heating network must always contain water. At the same time, some management organizations often neglect this requirement in order to save money. Thus, during repairs, it is necessary to drain water from the system, and then refill the network with it, wasting time. If batteries are replaced and repaired in several apartments over the course of one summer, the management company will have to drain and refill the system each time. Therefore, in some cases, pipes are left without water at all during the summer. Due to the closed system, the pipes will not be able to dry from the inside, and moisture will trigger corrosion processes.

Let's start shutting off the heating battery

In order to properly shut off the battery, let’s pay attention to the features of its design. Modern models are equipped with two taps, and if necessary, we can turn off the tap on the battery. You can use one tap, two, or not touch them at all. Let's consider each of these options separately.

Another option is to turn off both taps. Is it possible to shut off the battery in this way? Of course not. To explain this answer, let’s remember our school physics course. After turning off the hot water and turning off both taps, it will begin to cool. In this regard, its volume in the battery will decrease, which will lead to the formation of a vacuum. This is a very dangerous situation!

Just remember what will happen to a plastic bottle if you remove the air from it. It becomes very deformed due to increased pressure. You can imagine what pressure will be exerted on the heating system battery if a vacuum arises in it. It may become deformed or even crack, which is unacceptable. Therefore, under no circumstances close both taps at the end of the heating season.

How to behave when turning on the heating in the fall

In fact, even in the fall it is important to properly turn off the radiator. After you find out about the heating switch-on date, you need to take some actions. You remember that when you turn on the heating, only rust will pass through the pipes. That is why in this case it is recommended to close both taps at the same time, which will eliminate the possibility of clogging the battery.

It is enough to leave both taps closed for one day. And don’t worry if a sharp cold snap is predicted the next day: the water will not cool down so much that a vacuum begins to form in the battery. Then you can open both taps and leave it like that until the end of the heating season, when you need to turn off the radiator in the apartment again.

Replacing the battery in winter

What else you should know

If you are wondering how to turn off the battery if there is no tap, then there is a solution here too. True, the option of blocking the riser is inevitable here. In this case, not only the individual battery will be blocked, but also part of the heating system. In small cities, the practice of turning off the heating independently is often used, just by shutting off the riser. It is turned off using a valve in the basement. At that point he approaches the sun lounger. Water valves are usually within sight.

You can find out which fittings are suitable for shutting off the heating in the technical documentation. Additionally, this should be known to an experienced plumber who is familiar with local utilities. In most cases, the heating system is shut off using a brass valve or a valve.

In the event that the window sill blocks the battery, there is no single solution. It all depends on the degree of overlap. So, for example, if the window sill completely blocked the battery, then this is considered unacceptable. This is explained by the concept of convection, in which warm air rises. There it replaces cold air, which goes down, after which it is heated by the battery. Thus, the room is heated. If the window sill completely blocks the radiator, then the convection process is hampered and the room does not warm up well. But there will definitely be a way out of this situation. You can make several rectangular holes in the window sill and cover them with decorative grilles.

Let's summarize

• So, shutting off the batteries in an apartment is possible and, in some cases, even necessary. This can be most conveniently accomplished with special taps.
• After the end of the heating season, it is recommended to close one of them and leave the second open.
• On the day of heating, we close both taps for 1-2 days so that rusty water flows and eliminates the possibility of blockages.
• If there is no tap, then you will have to shut off the riser using a special valve or valve, which are most often located in the basement of the building, and usually in a visible place.

The main thing is to do everything thoughtfully and strictly in accordance with all standards and requirements. Do not close both taps at the end of the heating season, this may cause deformation and cracks in them. Do not forget about the basic rules that will help you shut off the battery in your apartment safely and correctly.

Almost all work with elements of the heating system requires turning off the radiators, and sometimes even dismantling them. Even such a relatively simple operation as is performed on a cold surface. It is easier to do it after removing the radiator, this ensures full access from all sides. If more complex operations are required, such as replacing or repairing a radiator, then you need to know how to shut off the radiator.

The task of turning off the radiator is complicated by the fact that there is coolant inside it all year round. Draining water from the heating system is carried out only in case of repair, since leaving the radiator without coolant for a long period of time leads to corrosion.

The fluids inside the radiator contain small amounts of dissolved oxygen. After a certain period, all the oxygen contained in the water reacts with the metal elements of the heating system and corrosion stops. After the coolant is drained, air enters the system and, in combination with water vapor, especially hot water, corrosion intensifies. Therefore, it is correct to drain the coolant only in exceptional cases.

Automatic battery shutdown

It is much easier to shut off the battery if shut-off valves in the form are installed on the pipes. Outside the heating season, it is enough to turn the tap handles and the coolant will not flow into the radiator.

The presence of a tap or hole for draining water also simplifies the work.

It is more difficult to dismantle the battery during the heating season. To do this without negative consequences for the functioning of a single-pipe heating system, which is installed in multi-storey buildings, a bypass is necessary. It is a jumper located in front of the radiator. The bypass is connected in parallel to the battery. It is correct to choose a bypass diameter equal to or one step smaller than the diameter of the supply pipes.

There should be taps on the bypass and in front of the heating device to direct the flow of coolant. In the normal state, the bypass is closed, and the coolant moves along a long path - through the radiator. If necessary, the taps on the battery are closed, and the tap on the bypass is opened, after which the hot water flows along a short path.

If the apartment is hot, then most of the coolant will follow a short path, until the battery is completely turned off. The presence of a bypass allows you to change the temperature without affecting the heating intensity of your neighbors.

If there are no taps on the heating pipes, then you will have to shut off the entire riser, which is much more difficult. This cannot be done quickly; it will take several days.

Covering the heating riser

The heating riser is a common property of the house, and work with it can only be carried out by a service organization - housing office, housing department, fire department, etc. To do this, you need to come to the organization and write an application. It indicates the time for which the valve will be closed. The service for disconnecting the riser will cost about a thousand rubles, the exact amount varies in different organizations and cities.

It is not recommended to manipulate the riser yourself without the knowledge of the management company. Even if you manage to reach an agreement with your neighbors, these actions will be illegal. If the fact of unauthorized access becomes known to the company, it can go to court to collect a significant fine. In addition, finding the required valve in the basement can be problematic.

Covering radiators in summer

Utility management companies claim that coolant is not drained from the heating system during the summer. However, this occurs periodically when equipment is repaired or replaced. As mentioned above, idle radiators without coolant leads to accelerated corrosion. This is typical for batteries made of non-ferrous metal alloys and do not suffer from corrosion. Therefore, for protection, some owners turn off the radiators with taps during the summer, which is not entirely correct.

The danger of overlapping batteries in an apartment is that chemical processes continue to occur inside them, releasing gases. When the battery is closed, the gases have no way to escape. The accumulation of gases creates increased pressure, which leads to battery rupture. The operating conditions of heating devices indicate that it is prohibited to perform these actions without an air exhaust device.

Almost any work related to heating requires disconnecting the heating battery, and sometimes the riser. If you need to drain the system, you need to remember that the system is filled with coolant all year round. If it drains temporarily, it is only for repair work. At least that's how it should be.

This is due to the fact that a certain volume of coolant (water with additives or antifreeze) circulates through the heating pipes.

During normal operation, “fresh” oxygen does not enter it: the systems are now made closed so that it is not “added”. Therefore, after a certain period of time, oxygen, which was dissolved in the coolant, reacts with the elements of the system. This means that metals no longer break down (corrode).

If the water is drained, there will be a large amount of it in the air that fills the system. There will also be water vapor there. An ideal atmosphere for active oxidation (rusting). Therefore, to extend the service life, the system is constantly filled with water.

How to shut off the battery

To perform some work, you only need to turn off the radiator:

• repair;
• replacing the radiator with the same center distance and normal condition of the pipes.

Is it possible to turn off the radiator in the summer?

All operating organizations state that they do not drain the system in the summer, but “drive” cold coolant. In reality, the system is drained: for repairs, replacement of pipes or equipment, etc. And although all radiator manufacturers say that it can stand without water for two weeks (or a week) a year, no one guarantees that the system will be filled in two weeks. This situation is not critical for copper - it doesn’t matter whether copper has oxygen or not - it practically does not react to its presence in any way (after an oxide film has formed on the surface).

To avoid damage to radiators, many people close the radiators with ball valves after the end of the season. But you can’t do this: the battery can simply rupture.

The fact is that in the presence of water in the radiator, chemical processes occur, which are accompanied by the release of gases. When the taps are closed, the possibility of their exit is cut off. Gases accumulate more and more inside, creating excess pressure. Once it exceeds its tensile strength, the battery will burst. And this will not be a warranty case: the operating conditions have been violated.

This problem is relevant for cast iron, bimetallic and. That is, for everyone. But what to do? It’s both bad and bad. And the solution is this: shut off the battery, but at the same time open the air vent.

Today, every modern radiator has this device. Most often - the Mayevsky crane. This is a small washer with a hole, with the help of which it is necessary to bleed air after starting the system and during the heating season. In manual models, you need to use a wrench or a screwdriver to turn the screw counterclockwise. In automatic ones, bleeding occurs as air appears. But even here there is a screw cap that blocks the exit of gases. So here it is. If you decide to shut off the battery for the summer, make sure that they are open and the air is released (not clogged). It also doesn’t hurt to make sure at least once a month that the air vent is still open, otherwise you never know: the children were playing, or someone absent-mindedly twisted it...

Results

Now you know how to properly disconnect the battery and heating riser. And you even know how to do it correctly in the summer.