Plumber in Conniburrow
Tell Us About the Job in Conniburrow
Tell us about the job in two minutes and we’ll come back to you with a clear, fixed price.
If you live in Conniburrow and one radiator has never really worked, there is a decent chance the reason is the pipe feeding it rather than the radiator or the valve.
A lot of Milton Keynes housing from this era was plumbed in microbore, and it is worth understanding properly, because it explains a specific and very common complaint and it changes what is worth doing about it.
Based in Two Mile Ash, around fifteen minutes away. Gas Safe registered, registration number 981362.
- Gas Safe registered 981362
- Around fifteen minutes from Two Mile Ash
- Send a photo of the pipe at your radiator valve
- Booked work Monday to Saturday, 8am to 8pm
Last updated
What microbore actually is
Conventional heating pipework runs at 15mm or 22mm, branching around the house. Microbore instead uses small diameter pipe, typically 8mm or 10mm, running individually from a central manifold to each radiator.
It was popular in the 1970s and 1980s because it installs quickly, uses less material, and is easy to route. It works perfectly well when it is clean.
How to tell if you have it
- Look at the pipe where it enters a radiator valve. Microbore is noticeably thinner than a standard pipe, often flexible copper, and it looks slightly undersized to the eye. If you can, compare it against the pipe feeding a kitchen tap.
- Look for a manifold. Often in an airing cupboard, under floorboards or in a service void, with a cluster of small pipes leaving it.
- One radiator persistently cold while everything else is fine is the classic symptom, particularly if it is the radiator furthest from the manifold.
Why it silts up
An 8mm pipe has a much smaller bore than a 15mm one, so it takes far less magnetite to restrict it meaningfully. In a system fifty years old that has never been cleaned, the small bore legs block first, and they block progressively rather than suddenly.
That is why the complaint is usually “it has been getting worse for years” rather than “it stopped”.
What to do about it
- Clean the system, carefully. Power flushing microbore needs a considered approach rather than maximum pressure, since aggressive flushing can damage small bore pipe. We assess before rather than after. See power flushing.
- Sometimes replace the leg rather than clear it. A badly blocked microbore run is occasionally better replaced than fought with. We will say so if that is where we are heading rather than spending a day failing to clear it.
- Fit a magnetic filter and keep it clean. It catches circulating magnetite before it settles in the narrow legs, and it should be cleaned at every annual service. Ask what came out.
- Know the limit before upsizing a radiator. This is the one that catches people. A larger radiator on a microbore leg may not deliver what the specification says, because the pipe cannot supply the flow it needs. Worth checking the pipe size before ordering. See radiators.
The wider estate
Conniburrow is 1970s, close to the centre of the city, which puts it where most first-phase estates are now: third generation boilers, fifty years of accumulated sludge, and gravity hot water in many properties where converting to an unvented cylinder is the biggest single improvement available.
Hard water
Same Anglian Water supply as the rest of Milton Keynes, around 300 mg/l of calcium carbonate against a UK average of 207. See our hard water guide.
Getting to Conniburrow
Around fifteen minutes from Two Mile Ash. Fine for booked work and out of hours.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if I have microbore?
Look at the pipe entering a radiator valve. If it is noticeably thinner than a standard water pipe, typically 8mm or 10mm, that is microbore. There will usually be a manifold somewhere with a cluster of small pipes leaving it.
Is microbore a problem?
Not in itself. It silts more readily than larger pipe, and it limits how much output a radiator on that leg can deliver. Both are manageable once you know.
Can I fit a bigger radiator?
Check the pipe size first. On microbore, a larger radiator often will not deliver its rated output because the pipe cannot supply the flow.
Can microbore be power flushed?
Yes, with care. It needs a considered approach rather than maximum pressure, and occasionally a badly blocked leg is better replaced than cleared.
Do you cover Downs Barn and Neath Hill?
Yes, along with Pennyland, Great Linford, Bradwell Common and Campbell Park.
What we do in Conniburrow
Where we cover in Conniburrow
- Conniburrow
- Downs Barn
- Neath Hill
- Pennyland
- Great Linford
- Bradwell Common
- Campbell Park
Get in touch
Call 07514 312117 or send a WhatsApp with a photo of the pipe at your radiator valve. Gas Safe registered 981362, CIPHE member, fully insured.