Glow-worm showing F.22 in Tipton? The heating system is low on water. How to read the gauge, top it up safely, and spot the signs of a leak.
F.22 on a Glow-worm is a dry fire warning. The boiler has found too little water pressure in the heating circuit. It will not run until pressure is restored.
Most Tipton homes with a combi have a gauge on the front or underneath. With the heating cold, the needle should normally sit at roughly one bar.
Topping up is a job most owners can do from the manual. Having to do it every few weeks means the water is going somewhere. In Tipton, that is often a joint buried in a solid floor.
No. The boiler has protected itself and nothing is burning. The emergency is a gas smell. Get out, touch no switches, and phone 0800 111 999.
Water only leaves a sealed system through a leak or a relief valve. Finding which one early saves a ceiling or a floor.
Yes, and too much pressure makes the relief valve drip outside. Fill to the figure in the manual and no higher.
Where the water is escaping. A weeping valve is quick. A buried joint takes longer because the floor may need opening. You are told which it is before anything is touched.
Read the gauge when the system is cold. A figure well under one bar confirms the code. The label in the boiler gives the exact target for your model.
Glow-worm combis have a filling link or a built-in key under the boiler. Follow the manual. Add water slowly, stop at the target, close it off fully and reset.
Bleeding lets water out as well as air. A drop in pressure afterwards is normal. One top-up fixes it.
Look for damp under radiator valves and drips from the copper pipe on the outside wall. A failing expansion vessel also causes repeated loss and needs an engineer.
The engineer notes the pressure, checks the vessel charge, then inspects the valves and joints. If the system still loses water, the boiler is isolated for a short test to show which side is leaking.
A photo of the gauge and one of the boiler underneath. Tell us how often you top up and whether there is any damp on a wall or ceiling.
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