Kamco. This device fits into the
chuck of an SDS drill which has
been set to ‘hammer only’, and
is applied firmly to problem
areas of the radiator. The high
frequency vibration will loosen
debris that will not respond to other cleansing methods.
Q. I’ve tried everything with a severely choked radiator
- full flow, heated the water, vibrated with a
RadHammer and still there’s a cold area. What else can
I do?
A. Try this:- With the full pump flow on the problem
radiator, use a Kamco Systemsure IK6 chemical injector
to blast air into the top of the radiator using an IK6 air
bleed valve adaptor.
You’ll get a huge amount of turbulent agitation in the
radiator which will create the optimum condition for
mobilising debris. Then switch off your pump and
immediately inject more air into the radiator, to depress
the water level to about half way down the radiator.
Switch on your power flushing pump again. The air in the
top of the radiator will prevent any water from passing
along the top channel, and the full force of the water
will slam into the usual debris build up area along the
base of the radiator, giving you a much better chance of
removing it.
How can I check that I’ve thoroughly cleaned
the system?
Q. Is there a better way than a simple visual
inspection to ensure that the system water is
really clean?
A. Yes. A simple way to check that the water
is chemically as clean as mains tap water is to
take a sample both of tap water, and of the
water exiting from the dump hose, and to take
measurements with a Total Dissolved Solids
(TDS) electronic meter. The dump water reading should
be as close to the mains water reading as possible, and
ideally within 5-10% of the reading obtained for tap
water.
Another method is to use a turbidity tube to give
a reading of suspended particulate matter in the
dump water. The turbidity tube is a long clear tube,
with a marker on the base. Turbidity is determined
by the degree of obscuration of the marker when
looking along the length of the tube containing
system water.
What NOT to do
Q. Can the CLEARFLOW pump be set up and left
unattended whilst I carry out another job elsewhere?
A. No, it is unwise to leave any powered equipment
unsupervised in a domestic environment, with runs of
hose and power cable which could be in close proximity
to householders, children, and pets.
Should there be an electricity power cut, the Clearflow
would stop pumping, and water would drain down into
the tank through the return hose, causing it to overflow.
You will be using powerful flushing chemicals, and as
for all chemical products, they should be treated with
respect and kept away from children.
Q. Are there any possible problems when dumping
water into a toilet pan?
A. Yes, and the most likely one is the dump hose sliding
out of the toilet pan when you start dumping, and
flooding the bathroom, so trap it in place with the toilet
seat before you start work. Better still, use a piece
of cord to tie the dump hose to the seat hinge. Also,
consider whether the porcelain might be stained by the
discoloured dump water.
Saving time
Q. How can I reduce the time taken to power flush a
heating system?
A. In order to clean a system effectively you must carry
out the full procedure, including putting the full flow
through all radiators and sections of the heating system.
However, you can reduce the overall procedure time if
you use an inline magnetic power flushing filter, such as
the Kamco CombiMag filter.
Page 15
