How to easily put inhibitor into a radiator on a Combi heating system 

Fantastic, so clear and easy to follow. I’m a small small female - 4”11 who recently lost their partner to cancer and also have a shoulder that likes to pop out when under pressure (dislocation), which means thinks aren’t so easy for me and your guides are great. Sorted my radiators out in no time with no problems

Sorting out presure dropping, checking leaks and such like, so may have to add stuff to system. This was really clear and so helpful, made me feel more like tackling the job. Thank you.

i don't often comment on video but thank you for this. very helpful. not so scared of doing this myself now!

I feel I could do that actually. I’m actually obsessed with all the plumbing videos and never thought I would love plumbing. I feel I had the potential to be a good plumber if I did study it full time . Having said that I wish I had enough money to just pay off a plumber and have less stress in life . Thank you AL for helping me to learn something new .

Brilliant, you just saved me £200, thank you!

Hi mate, great video, helped me 'inhibit' my new heating system today, quickly and painlessly, many thanks

Made what seemed like a tricky process look easy ! Cheers for the video. Keep up the great advice.

Brilliant, simple clear information - I feel confident that I can do this myself, thank you!

keep up the good work, on your videos,well explained.

Great video and such a great help as always , you have a great way of teaching stuff , many thanks

Good video, nice tip , well explained. Thanks for the video.

Excellent video 👍🏻 this really helped me understand my combi system and what I need to do. Thank you 👍🏻👍🏻

Hi, I am in the construction Industry and what I do like about you is that you are very down to Earth and you explain it very well for the general public to understand, not like some videos on here. Also I like your apprentice Camera woman, who I presume is your Mrs, so well done to her and also for asking the questions, good camera work. What I do like about you is your attitude, you take me as you see me, cap and slippers as well. You should get paid off the deodorant firms, Brut and Lynx etc for the free advertisement for them, 🤣🙂 Good one Mate 👍

gifted gentleman. a rare quality these days. many thanks!

Such a good teacher

Really well explained, Thank you so much.

Hi Alan nice to see you still in the trade passing on your knowledge, nice camera work by the wife lol. Best wishes Paul

Thanks for all your videos, very helpful and have saved me lots of money as i'm now able to do these plumbing jobs myself. Cheers

thanks, i will try it.

Great piece of kit

Thanks, good explanation.

Brilliant videos. Very helpful

Helpful as always Thanks

Hi, After watching your videos, we have tried cleaning our heating system. So far, no problem with it. Thanks for your wonderful explanations and guidance on this.

Just made my own equivalent of the Eeztfill from an old rad valve and short piece of 15mm pipe; I had a funnel lying around in the garage, and that fits into the pipe nicely. Just screw the tail into the radiator, attach the valve and pipe (keep it separate from the tail, so the tail screws in to the rad without the pipe catching on the wall!), pop in the funnel and pour. Saved £15 by just using bits of scrap plumbing.

Thank you for not being American. Great video I'm going to tackle this myself now I've seen you informative video. Thanks a lot.

Handy thing to have, could do with putting inhibitor in mine, as I have had to empty the bathroom radiator a few times.

Nice guy, explained well, thankyou.

thanks for the video it has helped me out.

Fantastic as usual thanks allot fella

My radiators don’t have a wide opening like yours, I do envy you! I have to pour cleaner / inhibitor into the system via the tiny bleeding valve opening (I have a combi boiler) which is a pain as none of the “easy” devices work without majorly leaking. So I made a little device myself with various tubing sizes to fit at one end into the bleeding valve opening and at the other onto a screw lid that fits onto the solution container. Need some good sealing tape to keep the tube firmly and leak-proof in place at the radiator opening. Takes me all day for draining system, adding solution and filling system up again. And if I’m lucky, like today, none of the bleeding valves and draining valves are leaking when all is done.

Thank you so much for this excellent video! I was looking for a video on how to get leak sealer into my system but RU-vid is full of Americans fixing car radiators. Saw your video and not only do I now know how to get the sealer in I've learnt why some of my radiators aren't as warm as others. My Mum will be thrilled if I can get her bedroom one hot! Thank you!

handy little device thanks for the video

Nicely explained. Simple!

Brilliant brilliant helpful video good man

Wonderful video! I actually know how to do this, but if I didn't your explanation would really help. Thankyou for sharing! Take care you and your wife! Xxx

Hello and thanks for the vid. I was wondering as I'm cleaning the whole system I'm guessing I can do all the rads in one go, but should I use a half litre of cleaner per rad?ThanksJames

Nice one mate.

Hi Al....pressure ok at 1.5.....boiler refuses to stay on for more than 25 seconds.....this problem has been occurring for several weeks...today I drained down and refilled due to a rad leak which was the actual rad too...any other ideas please Al.

Great video, that filler gadget is a good tool to have.

Great tip, I really love the eezyfill. Also if you turn on the mains water supply and put a bucket under the eezyfill you can use it to clean out the radiators without taking them off the wall.

Hello Dereton and thank you for your very useful videos. I am going to have to install a new boiler in my old 20year old system which had Fernox F1 put in about 5 years ago. Do I need to flash each radiator one by one before having the new boiler install or just add inhibitor and have the new boiler installed? There is a company I rang and they wanted to do a power flush (extra 500 pounds on top on the boiler and installation price) I will really appreciate your advice and thank again for all your good work here.

a other great vid as always

Handy bit of kit pays for its self, (not loosening fluid all the time).

Thanks for your lovely helpful videos , I've just got 2 questions , 1, after putting in the system cleaner and filing the rads up should you turn on the heating and for how long. And my 2nd question is , after 48 hours you drain the system and the refill and put in the inhibitor and should you switch on the heating for it to go around the system, and once again thanks for your time

I use the towel rail if the customer has one. Rad valves off (if they're not the type that will start leaking as soon as you touch them !) Unscrew the bleed nipple a bit, if the water stops unscrew the bleed nipple plug, get your U Gauge tube & Syphon out enough system water for the chemicals, pour in the chemicals, screw rad plug back in. Open rad valves, bleed towel rail. All sorted.

Once again thanks for your lovely job done..... great help

Great vid, i always come to you for plumbing questions 😊... I have sludge in my downstairs radiators will this help or will it need professional power flushing?

Excellent

Great job.

Hi, brilliant video! To the point and very clear. Learn a lot. Only one question: is there no need to refill/replace the water that was drained from the radiator? will the combi boiler system automatically replace drained water or it will require topping up? If so, how? Thanks.

Great video

I drained one radiator but I live in a condo complex I have no idea where these pressure valve is now the radiator is empty,help!

Nice

Hi Alan, My radiators are old and clogged up with ALOT of sludge. I cleaned one of them and decided they're not worth keeping. I'm going to change them all to new modern rads. I still want to clean all the sludge out of the pipes though. Do I put the new rads on first and then add cleaner and drain after a few days or do I clean the system first with the old rads on, drain and then install the new rads?

Thank you!!!

Hi, really useful video, thank you. How do I know if I need to add inhibitor? We had the system drained down a couple of months ago, but I don't know if any was put in when the system was repressurised. Thanks.

you are really good. thanks for the video. p

hi, great vids, a question please, I have a combi boiler, they have fitted drain valves on all 5 radiators, I don't know which one is the best to drain down, what do you advise please, thank you

This tool is excellent for reducing the water in the header tank ,just screw a 3/4x1/2 inch onto the overflow fitting and attach tool and empty water I’ve tried battery pump but they don’t last 5 minutes

Excellent film; would it be exactly the same process for adding a 'radleak' solution to a back-boiler sysytem? A heat exchanger is showing very early signs of leaking (a small slightly damp area on the join) and I'm trying to prolong the life for as long as possible. There is no secondary header tank. Thanks.

If you have a pressurised system, is it 100% necessary to get it down to zero pressure like some people say ? that will take hours for me. I was planning to just drain 1 litre out of the rad fill up, and then top up the water if necessary. Thanks, and great video. Bought the same filling system.

Hi great video! Perfect for what I need. I'm replacing a radiator and need to add inhibitor, i was gonna add a 1 litre bottle? Us that too much, would 500ml be better? Can you add too much? How much is too much? Thanks 😊

Very good video. Does it matter what radiator you add inhibitor to with regards to distance of the water heater tank or would any radiator in the house be suitable to use? I ask as I’d like to do this myself although we have an open, gravity fed F+E System, paired with an upstairs heating tank yet downstairs bathroom married to an outside boiler (in the shed) where we recently had a new circulation pump fitted.. somewhat backwards I know. I am aware of adding inhibitor to the tank in the loft although this is generally not recommended but I would also like to remove any worry of leaks. Downstairs is tiled so much more forgiving.

A plumber is a problem solver, making one of these with a couple of plumbing parts and every day items surely would be quicker and at no cost as you will probably have everything you need. I'm thinking of a fizzy drinks bottle cut open at the base, turned upside down, maybe into a wall plate elbow, to copper then into male 1/2 inch or something similar. On an alternative subject what about a powerflush magnets. Length of soil stack, screw on top, blank on bottom, tank connectors in/out, bleed valve, official powerflush 12 inch magnet through top screw and for £70 Powerflush magnet, just as good as the 300£ ones.

Seen x100 and x400 on ebay and wondering if the cleaner has to circulated in the system for a month before draining the system before adding x400 which is left in forever?Nice tip on the tool.

Hi, How long do you leave the cleaner (Fernox F5) in the system before you drain it out and put in the system protector (Fernox F1)?

Very helpful advice. Thankyou!

If you have a Magnaclean filter, or similar sized filter installed, it is much easier to simply drain the filter, fill the inhibitor into the filter, and then open up the valves again, bleed the air from the filter and the job is done.

Thank you. I wish I felt more confident doing these things myself. So do you put the cleaner in and then inhibitor at a later date?

You're so nice. You remind me of Alfred.

I put all new radiators upstairs in 2 years ago then additional ones in 1 year ago so the system was flushed many times. I am putting my inhibitor fluid in a chrome towel radiator as the valves are on the top so i can just pour in with a jug

Just found this video, ive got a static caravan which has antifreeze in the combi boiler system, can i also mix in inhibitor with the antifreeze?

Your videos are very clear and easy to understand! you're a natural teacher.. Keep up the good work 👍

Great Hi very informative vid as usual I hope you can help me with this one I have a magnaclense flush and I’m fine with a combi setup but I have a problem with the instructions for vented system , it says to confirm 3 port valve is in manual which I presume is locking the leaver ? If no 3 port then install an isolation valve to the flow or return on the cylinder then drain down can you tell me why I need to isolate the cylinder Any help would be greatly appreciated many thx mark

Hi mate, another informative video so thanks. Had a quick question, when i add inhibitor, is there a particular radiator that i should add it into such as a radiator downstairs in the lounge or one upstairs in a bedroom etc? Thanks again

The cartridge guns are good for this job and much simpler to use, buut they are more pricey.

I live in a house 1 year old. How often would you suggest running cleaner through and how often to add inhibitor? Also can you mix inhibitors together?

The only thing I would add is open the bleed valve when adding the product and it will go in quicker by allowing the air it is replacing to get out by another route.

My heating system was emptied many months ago, but no inhibitor was added when refilled. The system will be replaced in a few months. I can add some very easily via a bathroom towel radiator. Is there any point adding it now ?

hi, Mate. landlord is being really tight and won't powerflush the heating system. any other way to clean the system cheaply. my gas bill is rediculously high. Luton Bedfordshire

Hi Derenton. When doing this would it be worth putting some anti-leak fluid in at the same time? I have a leak on one of my joints which I'll be changing out on weekend so emptying the system... I don't know the condition of all the other underfloor joints etc so want to be safe with some leak stop. Will it be ok to put the inhibitor and the leak seal in together at the same time?

A up, I have made 1 filler out of 28mm down to 22 mm then to 15mm compression nuts double endered

Hi..we have a Main 30 he....boiling stays on for 25 seconds then cuts out for approx 3 minutes then comes on for 25 seconds and repeat after repeat....rads upstairs are warmish but downstairs all cold..hot water ok....no flashing neons..any ideas please.

I need to add Fernox F4 sealant as I may have a small leak. Would I do it in the same way? Drain system or radiator and add the same way. Thank you for your help.

thanks really helpful for an apprentice starter like me.cheers

Hi, I have a pressurised system(I.E. have got a tank in the loft). Do i use the same system you showed in the Video or there is something else you suggest. Your help would be appreciated.

Hi 😉 I have a new Ideal Logic C24 - I bought 3 new Vertical rads for downstairs - haven't fitted them yet - but the heating engineer who fitted the boiler, saw my new rads and said they might be too much, as vertical rads use more water. How do I tell? The Housing Association will love me if I blow their new boiler up! Lol! Upstairs there are 2 old single panel (convector?) both 600x1600, also 1 in box room, 600x1000. I bought a curved rad for bathroom also. Now I'm too scared to fit them. Vertical rads are - 3770 BTU - 2095 BTU - 2871 BTU. Thanks. 🤗

Where does all the rust and crud end up is there a filter on the boiler that traps it all like a fuel filter on a car and you Change it .? I know the radiators can hold the crud at the bottom thanks in advance .

Hi,how would you put inhibito into a system that only has single rads where the bleed valve is against the wall thx

I have a Worcestershire combi boiler and I have to fill it's up to 1 and half bar every couple of days.. I've checked for leaks and cannot see any . Any ideas

Thank you for this. One question - give me an idea about how long it takes to drain a radiator in the way that you did? Also, it strikes me that you only need to drain it to just below the bolt you took out to stick the funnel in.

Hi Alan - Is this method ok for a vented F&E system ? - Im thinking isolate valves on a towel rail , syphon out say 500ml water from bleed plug on the top of towel rail - then add 500ml of inhibitor. Replace bleed plug and turn valves back on and then re-check to see if bleeding is necessary ? Thanks in advance

Hi . I have 5 Raditiors in my house I want to put inhibitior in Radiator. Do I have to drain all five Radiator first then put inhibitior in five Radiators or just drain only one any Radiator and put inhibitior? My bolier is upstair in bed room. Can u please explain to me please.

Hi Al. I have a problem I'm hoping you can help with. I've fitted a new small (400 x 500 single panel) radiator in a downstairs lav. It has a TRV on the right as I look at it from the front, and a lock shield on the other end. The rad is coupled to those by telescopic tails both ends because I had to buy a smaller rad size to the previous one. I've connected the new rad up and turned on the heat but it's not getting hot. The pipe and tail at the TRV end are red hot but the rad itself not. At the lock shield end, there's not much heat at all in the pipe or the tail. I've gone through the usual . . . bled the rad, had the TRV head off, uncoupled the tails and checked the flow at both ends, bled all other rads etc, and all is ok. Every other rad in the house is red hot. I've changed many of these in the house before without this issue. Any idea what I can try next? Is it a case of balancing up? Any advice very gratefully received.

Dereton when changing a 3 port valve do you need to move the spring loaded arm to let the coil drain or will the coil drain without touching any controls. many thanks

Great device! I always end up spilling inhibitor too. Do you know what size the o-rings are in the release valve, and end cap? I have a radiator off at the moment, for decorating. The o-rings look as if they would benefit from being replaced. Is it safe to remove a radiator completely with water in the rest of the system? I trust the lock shield valve, but I'm suspicious of the temperature controlled valve. Especially since I need to remove the top to get proper access to the nut. I always drain the system down when I'm taking a radiator off. This means I've bought a fair number of bottles of inhibitor over the years!

Can you do this if you have gas heating thanks

Dereton i changed all my eubbish single rads to doubles in 2018 and 2019 so they are fairly new so i shouldn't need a cleaner should i as i drained the system many times. So is jyst a bottle of inhibitor enough as i only have 8 rads in the house.

Greetings,, if I put cleaner in the system,,, how long should I let it circulate for before adding corrosion inhibitor, Please