In the apartments of the housing stock, created several decades ago, and many private houses are batteries made in the same years. For such a lifetime, their performance has deteriorated and full heat transfer should not be expected from them. If the appearance of the radiators is simple to update, then it can sometimes be impossible to restore normal operation. When planning a repair, it is worthwhile to understand whether the old heating batteries will continue to serve or whether it is better to replace them.
You can try to restore old heating batteries
Content
What old heaters were made of
The most "warm" household batteries are cast iron - they are also called accordions. Despite their great weight and difficulty in building sections, they are very popular today, because they are characterized by high heat transfer. Modern production even offers “antique” models - on legs, with decorative elements painted “bronze” or “silver”. In many houses they continue to be used and even sometimes quite successfully cope with their task. It’s easy to care for them, their case can be easily cleaned from dust and washed.
Steel models were produced in several variations - either panel type or plate type. In terms of heat transfer, they lose a lot to pig-iron, so the owners are trying to replace them with modern ones. In addition, getting rid of dust accumulating between the plates is a difficult task, since the gaps between them are small. Sometimes even a powerful vacuum cleaner is powerless.
Cast iron batteries give the best heat
Steel batteries are subject to rust, very quickly this process begins to occur inside the structure, since there is no protective layer.
Over time, both cast-iron and steel radiators become clogged with debris that is present in the coolant, and this leads to its uneven distribution inside the case. As a result, part of the battery warms, and part remains cold.
What can be done with old batteries
There are only two options - repair and restoration or replacement. To understand which way to go, you need to conduct a thorough and thorough inspection of the radiator. To do this, it is best to remove it from the mounts, having previously disconnected it from the pipes. If it is not possible to unscrew the nuts, you will have to cut them off with a grinder. To try to bring into working condition is really only the radiator that does not have cracks and dents, through foci of corrosion.
If the radiator heats up unevenly, you can try flushing it
If the battery warms up only in parts during the heating season, it makes sense to try to rinse it. To do this, you can apply:
- compressor;
- ordinary hose with water;
- rust cleaners.
The algorithm is as follows:
- A compressor hose or ordinary water hose is connected to the hole in the upper part and water is poured with the chemicals dissolved in it. You can use "Mole", caustic soda, in the absence of such - simple citric acid or acetic essence.
- After pouring the solution, you need to give it time to react with deposits inside the case.
- Dirty water is drained and the battery is rinsed several times with water until the escaping liquid is clean.
Rinse until water is clear.
It is best to carry out this procedure with the battery removed and on the street. If this is not possible, the radiator should be taken to the bathroom.
Important! Pour water into the battery after a chemical solution several times to completely wash it off. Otherwise, it will provoke the appearance of a new layer of rust.
Some experts recommend disassembling the cast-iron battery into sections, so that it is easier to remove dirt from it. But this procedure is not always possible due to several layers of paint and stuck fasteners. You can try to heat the structure with a blowtorch, on the stove burner or in any other way. Such actions lead to expansion of the metal, burnout burnout and then it will be easier to unscrew the nuts. But it is important to remember that by exerting excessive force or using a percussion instrument, you can damage the body, because cast iron is brittle. This also applies to tapping places of connection.
After a successful flush, you should consider putting in order the appearance of the heater. For painting, you can choose any type of composition - acrylic, alkyd, oil, in an ordinary can or in the form of an aerosol. It is best to choose odorless paint, especially for residential premises, the substance should also be heat-resistant.
By painting, you can give the old battery a modern look
A mandatory step is surface preparation. To do this, you need:
- remove the old decorative coating or at least thoroughly clean the places where the coating is cracked, swollen or absent altogether. There are several ways to remove old paint from heating radiators: you can use a grinding wheel, a hard metal brush or chemical solvents;
- clean the surface of dust, treat with a means of preventing corrosion;
- apply a primer to the metal (if necessary);
- start painting. You can apply the composition with a brush, roller or spray.
Note! Chemistry is not suitable for every battery. Some alloys may be damaged by it after the paint has dissolved.
It is not necessary to cover the radiator again in the same color as it was before. You can show your imagination and turn it into an exclusive piece of furniture. Cast iron constructions of an unusual shade will look especially advantageous.
After the paint has dried, you can start installing new Mayevsky taps on the radiators (screw them in place of the nut nuts on one side, if they were not provided). Such an element is necessary for bleeding air from sections of the battery. If this is not done, the air plugs inside will interfere with the even distribution of the coolant in the sections, as a result of which the battery will heat poorly, and empty areas will simply rust and accumulate garbage.
Mayevsky cranes are needed to vent air from the radiator and drain the coolant
After that, you can begin to install the radiator in place. It is good to seal all connection points, completely replace all gaskets so that there are no leaks when supplying liquid.
If you don’t want to bother with painting the battery, you can simply purchase a screen for it. Such a metal, wooden or plastic decorative element is quite simple to buy in a store or do it yourself.
Where to turn in the old battery
If washing does not give results, then the battery only needs to be replaced with a new one. You can try to assemble one worker from several disassembled radiators by removing sections that cannot be repaired. If you decide to change heating designs, then you should understand what the modern market offers:
- Copper radiators.
- Aluminum.
- Cast iron.
- Steel.
- Bimetallic.
Batteries that cannot be repaired should be scrapped.
Which option to choose depends on many factors, but most often for typical apartments with a standard heating system, bimetallic models are chosen.And it’s not so important what kind of owners they prefer, in any case they will be much more efficient in heating the room.
For the old-style batteries, you can earn a certain amount of money if you take them to the scrap metal collection point. For a cast-iron radiator, you can earn about 1000 rubles. depending on the number of sections in it and the total weight. Of course, you will have to use transport, since carrying a 12-cell cast iron battery in your hands is quite problematic. Some collection points offer pick-up on their cars.
Note! To donate an old battery for money, it is better to use the services of middle-class buyers, since large companies do not take such products individually, they buy tons of scrap metal.
Is battery repair worth it at all?
Repair of old heating radiators is justified when their technical specifications fully correspond to the area of the room and other parameters, and the problem with heat transfer is associated with the presence of deposits inside the case. Both washing and painting are quite labor-intensive work, especially if the device weighs a lot. At the same time, in case of successful restoration of the battery functions, you can significantly save on buying a new one, and if we are talking about several devices, the amount is significant.
Refurbished cast iron battery looks stylish and expensive
It makes sense to "fight" for cast-iron varieties, since they are one of the best in heat transfer and not all modern models can make them worthy of competition. Moreover, replacing them with an option from the same material will cost more than bimetal or aluminum.
In any case, it is worth calculating the cost of repairs and correlating them with the prices of new models in order to understand whether it is profitable or not.
Note! Modern batteries (especially the original design) may require the use of additional adapters to connect to used pipes, and this must be taken into account in the planning of work.
Not always the old battery is one and the same as the old one. In many cases, this design can be put in order by using the simplest means. Of course, you will have to spend time and effort, but in order to save this is worth doing. And you can throw away or turn over the old-type radiator for scrap at any time, having prepared a worthy replacement.
