How to start the towel rail after the hot water is turned off
No matter how the water towel dryer was connected: from the side, from the bottom or diagonally, in the riser, between the conclusions for connection, should be made narrowing and it should be 1 diameter less than the riser pipe is the basis!
The connection diagrams show how to connect and narrowing on the riser, but it is not shown that for natural circulation of hot water, the pipes to the towel dryer must be laid with a slope, if you can not do so, then you will have to bleed air from the system more often.
If there is no squeeze between the outlets, the water, without experiencing obstacles goes in a straight line and the towel radiator will be slightly warm. (SNIP water supply and sanitation paragraph 5.7.) Shut-off cocks should be installed on branches from the riser, and in any case not on the riser itself for this you can skalopodat a penalty from the management company.
If you are only planning to install a towel radiator, it is better to watch the video below!
The towel dryer is not heating? Figuring out the causes
All domestic bathrooms are equipped with a towel dryer. After all, it has such a role to play! Going into almost any bathroom of our countrymen, you can see how it dried clothes after a little “laundry”, hanging children’s mittens after a winter walk and a lot more. But the main function of this device is to heat the room and maintain a dry climate in a humid environment. And its failure is not only the loss of space for drying, but the emergence of dampness in the bathroom and the accompanying trouble: fungus and mold. These factors lead to damage to the finish and make staying in the bathroom uncomfortable. If the dryer is made of steel, as in most cases, then with the time of being in a cooled state corrosive processes begin. This already leads to pipe depressurization and flooding of the dwelling. What to do if the towel dryer has stopped heating? How to cope with this problem? What factors lead to the loss of equipment performance? Consider further.
Types of water supply in houses
Consider ways to supply water to the house:
- Circulating (looped). Installed in almost all apartments in apartment buildings. The water flows in through the drain and out through the return. This principle does not allow the hot water to cool. Towel rails should be connected to the return system, because they will be very hot.
- Dead-end. The principle of operation is based on the direct flow of hot water to the consumer. From the disadvantages of this method it should be noted that if the water is not used for a long time, in order to run the towel dryer, it has to be drained.
How to start?
Now let’s try to figure out how we can eliminate the above-mentioned problems and bring the towel radiator into working condition. Let’s start with the situation when the air lock is formed in the system. Venting can help here.
It is easiest to do this in a private home, where the owner knows the mechanism of the water supply and where there is a tap, when opening which you can deflate. If the house is multi-storey, then there is a high probability that it will be necessary to bleed the whole riser. The algorithm of action will depend on the type of building, because the device riser everywhere is different:
- In 5-storey apartments built during Soviet times, the HTW riser goes to the last floor, then goes down again. Congestion is usually on the top floor at the highest point. And the downpipe should be done here as well. Usually in apartments on higher floors, there is a special hose on the top of the riser tap. When you turn the valve from the hose comes the water until the air cushion disappears.
- In 9-story panel buildings, all communications usually end in the attic, for which reason all problems will be eliminated there. Given that access is not always there, you will need to call a plumber from the organization that services the house. If there is access, then you can do everything yourself. The procedure here would be the same as in the case of 5-storey buildings.
- In other types of buildings you should not engage in self-law and you need to call a plumber, who will make all the necessary actions.
If we talk about air removal directly from the towel dryer, then there are 2 options. If the equipment is old, then the algorithm of actions will be.
- You should put a container under the equipment, where the water will be drained. This will prevent flooding of the room.
- You need to unscrew the nut that connects the dryer to the hot water pipe with a adjustable wrench. It is necessary to be extremely careful not to damage the thread. This is especially important if the equipment is really old.
- Wait until the hissing stops and no water starts to run into the container.
- Carefully tighten the nut.
If the model of the towel dryer is relatively new, then everything will be much easier, because it is equipped with a special air bleeder, which is called a Maevsky faucet. In essence, it is a plug in the form of a narrow cone-shaped cylinder. Its components are a screw shut-off type, as well as inlet and outlet holes, which have small dimensions.
To open the Mayevsky cocks by turning the screw of the stopper type. Considering that the holes have a small diameter, when you open it, the pressure will not be strong.
To bleed air with such a device will need:
- Place a container under the above-mentioned tap where the water will be drained;
- Using a screwdriver or wrench type carefully turn the special screw (here it is important not to overdo it, so that there will be no problems with reinstallation of this element);
- Wait until the hissing sound disappears from the hole and the water flows from there without air particles in the form of bubbles;
- carefully close the faucet.
As a rule, after these steps, everything starts to work correctly, regardless of whether the connection is lower or upper.
If it is determined that the reason for the breakage is that the towel rail is clogged, you will need to clean it. For this purpose it is necessary to remove it for a while. The flushing process itself is carried out as follows.
- Close the hot water faucet so that the water will not spill onto the floor afterwards. To reinsure, we mount the plugs on the pipes.
- After that we loose the nuts which fix the device. A special pipe wrench can be used for this. Dismantling the towel radiator.
- Using a soft wire rope, which is equipped with a brush tip, we clean the towel. To dislodge salt deposits from the inner surface, which have already hardened, you will need to tap the device.
- Now we perform flushing by means of a strong water pressure. The best way to do this is to put a hose on the faucet, and its other end to put it inside the towel dryer.
- If it became clear that the water comes out of the towel radiator perfectly, it can be installed in place.
Here we should add that work of this nature requires a certain amount of preparation. If there is no skill, it will be better to turn to professionals.
If the problem is in the hot water shutdown, and the towel radiator is installed in the heating pipe, then the solution here will only be the transfer of it from this pipe to the hot water pipe. But there is nothing you can do on your own, and you will need to involve experts from heating networks and plumbers.

If there is simply no circulation of the coolant, you can still try to drain the hot water in the most basic way. You just have to open all the taps in your home. in the kitchen and bathroom. The method is hard to call cheap, but sometimes it helps.
Solving problems
If the device does not function or heats badly, the reasons may be the following:
Before you complain, you should use the Maevsky valve. It helps to remove the air lock. Most models have a manual or automatic defrosting system, and after defrosting, the device will start working again, as before.
If there is contamination, the device is removed and cleaned with a rope or soft wire with a small brush. After that, in order to eliminate salt deposits in the pipes, they should be slightly punctured, and then washed with a hose with a good head of water.

This is interesting! How to get rid of moisture in the apartment: the causes of dampness and how to eliminate it
Why the heated towel rail is cold? As you know, there are two types of models. electric and water. And if the lack of heat in the first case could be due to a lack of power or equipment failure, in the second case everything is much more interesting.
Why is the towel radiator cold, but the water is hot?? Water options can stop heating for a number of reasons. And below we will talk about it in more detail.
The device does not heat up
The towel radiator does not work after the hot water is turned off quite often. It gets there only when the faucet is open. In such situations, it is unlikely to fix the failure, and the best option is to replace the water device on the electric model.
Hot water is running, but the towel radiator does not heat
Why the towel dryer does not heat up? The reason in most cases is the presence of plugs and blockages. Most consumers have installed towel dryers long enough, and therefore they are unlikely to guess that this device should be cleaned on a regular basis.
Why the towel rail in the bathroom is cold? When a malfunction occurs, it will not be enough to deflate. It will be necessary to close the water supply tap, remove the device, clean it with a wire with a mop on the end, and then flush the system.
Important! If the towel rail is not heated, you will need to use a solution of hydrochloric acid, not the usual tap water. It is poured into the system for a certain amount of time, and then drained afterwards. Acid softens the remaining sediment, and after draining it will be easy to remove.
After the mentioned procedures the towel dryer is installed and connected to the system, and then the tap of the water supply is opened, and the device should begin to heat.
There is no circulation
The reasons for a cold towel rail in the bathroom can be different. Sometimes the devices stop giving off heat due to improper connection to the common line. This most often happens when connecting to old heating systems, where everyone changes the principle of connection to the riser, guided by the reason “It’s convenient for me”. In such cases, you need to contact the housing and communal services, t. к. You will hardly be able to fix it on your own.
Why Is my Dryer Hot but Clothes are Damp ?
The shelf at the water ladder towel rail is not heated
To make the towel radiator of a staircase type heat up, it is necessary to release air from the Maevsky tap and start the device once again.
If this manipulation does not help, pay attention to the installation of the structure. Here it is important to consider the ratio of diameters of the bypass and the bypass to the riser.
The diameter of the bypass should be half the diameter of the riser. And also make sure that the branches were not too long and curved. Otherwise the hot water just won’t make it to the last shelf.
Also, pay attention to the location of inlets and outlets. They should not be located far from the first and the last shelf of the towel radiator. Otherwise there will not be enough pressure to circulate air to the final shelves.
There’s cold water in the towel rail
We have a cherished hot pipe in the bathroom. You can hang small linens on it or leave a towel to dry. In fact, this pipe got its name because of this property. Let’s talk about the towel dryer.
This device is quite handy and useful. It can be used to heat the bathroom and dry the clothes. To understand the cause of the failure of the towel dryer, let’s tell a little about its device and the principle of operation.
The water supply in our houses is divided into two types:
- circulation (looped). Almost all apartment buildings is this type of water supply. Water flows in the DHW system through the flowing riser, and flows out through the return one (circulation). Thanks to this delivery principle, the water does not cool down. Towel warmers are connected exactly to the return riser, otherwise they would be very hot;
- dead end. The basic principle of operation is based on the direct flow of hot water to the consumer. The disadvantage of this system is that if you don’t use it for a long time (for example, at night), the water in the pipes gets cold and you have to drain it to get hot water again.
How to fix your towel rail when it stops heating
If there is no hot water supply in the house or it is dead-end, then the towel radiator is installed in the heating system by looped type. In this case, it will work only during the heating season, in summer it will remain cold.
And now we’ll talk about where to complain if you have a cold towel rail not only in the summer, but also at other times of the year.
Where to complain?
Therefore, if you have a circulating hot water in the house, the device for drying clothes must be hot all year round. And if it suddenly became cold, courageously address in a housing maintenance company and ask to eliminate a malfunction. It is clearly stipulated in the SanPiN that the towel dryer should always stay hot.
If the employees of the management company do not respond to your appeal. go to the State Housing Inspectorate. This is a state organization that controls the provision of quality services to the population. Remember, every citizen of the Russian Federation has the right to appeal to the public service, such a provision is prescribed in the Constitution.
Next, we will tell you how to write a complaint about the cold towel rail.
But before we do, we advise you to watch the following video message from a lawyer about what to do if your towel radiator is constantly cold:
How to write a complaint?
The rest is simple. We write the statement-complaint on a cold towel dryer to the official from your department of housing inspection. It is executed as follows:
- Your initials, place of residence and contact information. all this we write in the right top corner;
- Further the text of a header. Statement of committing an administrative offense under article 7.22 of the CAO;
- Next, write the text of the complaint itself with an exact indication of the address in which the substandard utility service was provided;
- We point out in the text that the towel radiator is connected to the hot water riser, so it is subject to the rules of hot water supply. Namely, the water temperature must be at least 60 degrees Celsius and no more than 75;
- ask to arrange an inspection and issue an order to eliminate and order to punish the perpetrators;
- Below put the date and your signature.
You can see a sample application below or download it here.
A sample cold-towel application
Sample application for a cold towel rail. 1The sample application for a cold towel rail. 2The sample application for a cold towel rail. 3
The order of action
- Write a complaint to the State Housing Inspectorate;
- Give it personally to the official or send by registered mail;
- There is a thirty-day waiting period for a decision (according to the law);
- After that employees of housing and communal services have 45 days to fix the problem;
If your towel rail is still cold. go to court, you will win it.
If with the statement to housing inspection address not only you, but also your neighbors, it will appreciably accelerate actions of utility workers.
No less of a problem will be the case when the heating is turned on, but all the radiators are still cold. But we will tell you what to do!
We find out why the heating is not warm
The towel dryer becomes cold for several objective reasons. To solve the problem on your own, you either need to have a specialized education with experience in regular practice of its installation, or it is enough to follow these instructions precisely. This will allow you to identify all the existing shortcomings, to correct the situation in the shortest possible time.
Designs of the heating device
In order not to get a cold towel dryer during operation, although there is hot water in the system, even at the stage of purchase of the heating device, you should pay attention to its design.
U-shaped or M-shaped
The simplest variant of a towel radiator (hereinafter referred to as a “U”) are:
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single loop. is U-shaped in plan, bent from a single pipe or welded from two bends and two or three pieces of pipe;
In terms of thermal engineering and building hydraulics, U-joints of these modifications have ideal shape and performance properties:
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Can be built into the riser with a pair of bends;
- If the U-shaped or M-shaped loop is cut into the riser without a bypass, the use of shut-off valves is prohibited;
- In parallel installation, the valve is not allowed to cut into the bypass, but taps can be mounted at the bottom and top immediately after the tees.
Narrowing and shifting the bypass relative to the riser axis is not required. Due to the effect of differential pressure and temperature at the inlet / outlet of the towel radiator, the effect of the hydraulic pump. Due to which the hot water will be drawn into the side circuit with a probability of 100%.
Getting a cold towel rail here is possible in two cases:
Unfortunately, U-shaped and M-shaped devices have low decorative properties in the interior.
The ladder and its varieties
The towel rail in the form of an attached tubular ladder has the following performance characteristics:

- Branches and branching inside;
- increased hydraulic losses;
At the bottom connection the towel dryer in risers with the bottom water supply (upward flow) with 95. 100% probability does not work. Therefore recommended diagonal or lateral installation.
When connecting the “staircase” to the riser with a downward flow of the coolant inside the heater the following processes occur:
- hot water enters the vertical part of the PS from above;
- then the boiling water flows into the horizontal pipes of the heater;
- at the same time the heating medium begins to cool;
- According to the laws of physics, cold (in fact, less warm in comparison with the rest of the flow) water tends downwards;
- which coincides with the direction of the liquid in the riser pipe, into which it is finally evacuated.
That is, there is no countercurrent, the normal circulation remains, even when mounted on the riser of the water intake.
How is Your Towel Rail Hot When the Heating Is Off?
If the supply is carried out laterally or diagonally, and the flow in the riser moves from bottom to top, the coolant circulates inside the circuit in question will be bad:
- Boiling water flows from the bottom;
- the water tends upwards at first, but cools down in the radiator, which is in fact a “ladder”;
- so there is a countercurrent, tending to the bottom of the heater.
In this case, the speed of circulation will depend on the pressure in the riser, the value of hydraulic losses. For example, when using tapered fittings, or a long distance from the riser pipe, there may come a time when the flow will not be able to push the cold water tending down, that is, at the point of connection of the heat device.
The ownership of the riser on which the PS is mounted
Some apartment buildings physically do not have DHW lines. Instead, flow-through and less often storage water heaters (popularly, “columns” and “boilers”, respectively) are installed in apartments for hot water supply to users.
According to existing building and sanitary standards, it is prohibited to connect a PS to the water heaters. Therefore, in the bathroom can be a riser to connect the towel rail, which belongs to both the heating system and the DHW line.
Heating System
According to the norm SNIP centralized heating system in an apartment building must comply:
- the line with the coolant temperature of 150 ° C and the pressure of 6. 10 bars approaches the building;
- in the basement or technical cellar is an elevator unit in which the pressure decreases to 3. 6 bar, and the temperature to 95 ° C by mixing conditionally cold water from the return flow;
Therefore the flow pattern of the coolant in all apartments will always be from top to bottom (downward flow). At the bottom, the risers are again combined into a common line, which is cut into the return, again, before the elevator.
Attention: The heat carrier will be heated in the boiler room only in winter, during the heating season, which lasts in Russia 6-8 months (depending on the region). With the onset of summer heating is turned off, respectively PS will be cold.
In this case an electric towel dryer is the only option to make it work all year round.
DHW system
According to SanPiN 2.1.4.2496-09 water in the hot water supply lines of an apartment building must have a temperature of 60 ° C, the pressure of 5 bar. The main differences between DHW and heating are:
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The direction of movement of hot water in the riser pipes from bottom to top (upward flow) and in the opposite direction (two-pipe scheme);
The main causes of cold DC in this case are:
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Air plugs after the water is turned off in the house, but only in the heating devices of the “staircase” type;
Attention: It is forbidden to install circulation pumps in the circuits to connect the towel dryer.
In houses of 1. 3 floors dead-end risers are usually used, as the length of the pipeline is halved. Accordingly, with closed faucets there will be no circulation, the water in the system, and in the PC, in particular, will cool faster, stronger.
Looped networks of hot water have a scheme similar to the heating system. Boiling water is supplied up one riser, and from there diluted by several risers in apartments. In this case the system has an additional heater. boiler or heat exchanger from the heating system.
When the taps are closed in the apartments, for example, at night, when the coolant in the house is not used for a long time, the water in the pipes cools down, goes down the riser to the lower level. It then enters the heat exchanger, is heated, then rises again through the common supply riser. In this case, the heat exchanger always stays hot, the temperature does not depend on the flow of water in the building.
The presence of a bypass
In apartments, the model of the USSR were used self-made towel dryers, bent, less often welded from a pipe with a diameter of 40 mm. They cut directly into the riser break, that is, in fact, part of it. At present the MTP rules forbid the installation of a towel radiator without a bypass. There are three options for the design of the bypass. a bypass braid:
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This element becomes the part of the riser between the supply and return from the PS;
In the first case, tees are used, the hydraulic losses in the system are minimal. But some plumbers from the housing and utilities believe that the boiling water always takes the path of “least resistance”, and will not go into a branch towel dryer.
This would be true if not for the “hydraulic pump” effect. Due to the rapid cooling of the water in the PS, a flow is created, which draws the boiling water from the riser, and helps to leave the cooled water from the opposite end of the towel rail.
Use of a narrowed bypass when installing the Lesenka substation.
However, 70% of users continue to move the riser pipe inside or reduce its diameter by one size, so that the PS can normally work, for example, at a considerable distance from the riser pipe of a high-rise building.
Stop valves
The cause of the fact that the heated towel rail in the bathroom, can be stop valves. Inside it can fail shut-off unit (ball, needle) or the inner diameter is too narrow, because of the increased hydraulic losses worsened circulation.
The top parts of heating devices of the “ladder” model usually have the built-in Maevsky cocks, which are not stop valves, but regulating fixtures. They are used to bleed airlocks.
Connection diagram
M- or U-shaped towel rail is very difficult to install incorrectly. However, this is possible if the heater is located far from the riser. The general connection principle is as follows:
- The point at which the upper horizontal braid is cut into the riser pipe must be higher than the upper opening of the PS;
- it is better to place the bottom point of horizontal line in the riser pipe below the bottom hole of PS.
At the same time the horizontal mowing lines along the whole route must not have loops rising above the upper point of the heater. Otherwise, an air lock will be collected in these loops, and circulation will become poor or cease altogether.
To fix the problem you may need to remove the lining, drywall, if the pipe from the riser to the water outlet is laid concealed.
Mud plug
Very rarely, the PS will not be warm after connection due to a dirt plug. For example, this malfunction was encountered by the user in the video below:
For example, you bought an apartment in a new building, where the towel dryer has not yet been installed, and the bathroom has not been used for a long time, but the cutting into the riser has already been made. During the circulation of the coolant dirt is thrown in the mowing line, inside which there is no movement of water.
Gradually clogging the inner cross-section of the pipes. In this case, the user must “blow” the pipes with network pressure, even before installing the heater. This should be done one at a time, opening one faucet first or unscrewing the plug, then the second faucet.
Dirt plug will reduce, or make it impossible to circulate, if this is not done. Similarly, when buying a secondary property, where the previous owner of the PS has been completely dismantled.