boiler help needed

bwatt00

I need some help im have been in my house for 12yrs and not sure how much longer my boiler has been in my house,well its had its problems over the year with parts replaced etc.
And for the past few months one of my radaitors has stopped heating up have tried bleeding it and turning the valves at side with no luck.
And now recently my boiler seems to be loosing water somewhere i have to if i have my heating on have to top it up near everyday,but if i only use the boiler and just for heating water and nothing else it last for a while until i need to top again.
Where would this water be going as its getting rather annoying having to do this all the time its alway been an issue but has gotten worse and now i have to keep filling it.
I think it maybe time to replace it and sort it out,i have heard that mr centralheating is real cheap anyone used them and are there boliers any good?
I need to know what boiler to get and which does not cost a fortune,but then not to cheap,it would need to go between my kitchen units and would have to be a combi boiler to heat my water and heating and also heat about 6 radaitors,i need to know what i am looking for i take it also this might have to be a good one as to work a shower etc as well?
Or does that not matter,i have no clues as to what i need or prices to pay and what is a good price and good model and also to install etc.
I see there is a lot of info about this subject already but would be greatfull on what help others could give me as what is required.
Would i best buy my boiler cheap mail order or something and try and find someone to install or have one purchased from local firm and have them install as well.
A friend of mine got one from british gas but they are so expensive.

bestyman

Hi,
Regarding the rad thats not working try this.
If it has a thermostatic rad valve unscrew the head and gently tap the pin, its probably stuck down. (hope it dosnt leak!)
Try turning off the other rads and see if this helps.

You must have a leak somewhere if your boiler needs topping up, (I assume you have a combi boiler) . But changing the boiler will not cure the leak and topping up problem if the leak is on a rad or pipework. It is important to find the leak and have it fixed but a new boiler is not neccesarily the answer. It could be something as simple as a loose rad valve so don`t buy a new boiler just yet.

Worcester bosch have a good reputation , Im sure others will advise on here.Output is measured in BTUs so the higher the better and also compare hot water flow rates. If you have 6 rads though don`t worry about this too much.

Mr central heating etc are cheap but IMO buying your own stuff is not a good idea:
1. You might buy the wrong stuff
2. Plumbers may not want to fit it and even if they do it may be goods they are unfamiliar with .
3. Most importantly, when it goes wrong the plumber blames the bits etc.

In a nutshell , establish if you need a new boiler / leak mending/ new rads etc. Post back here with more info. Get a few quotes for the required work and Im sure myself and other plumbers on here will advise you.

EDIT: just to give you an idea , in Leeds a complete combi and six rads fully fitted is around £2,000+. Boiler change only about £1,000 +. These are very rough figures. Depends on quality of parts , size of house etc.

bwatt00

But if i had a leak somewhere would i not find it and would the boiler not work?
I have had my problems over the years on this boiler and im pretty sure its time to upgrade as these guys that come and fix it are not that cheap and the amount of times i have had it fixed in the 12 years im sure i could have replaced it well tell a lie.

I have no clue where the water is going,its only when i use my heating and try and turn on boiler next day there is no water pressure but if i only use it for hot water then it can last for days well much longer so maybe its some of my radiators?

As for the boiler problems i can still see me replacing it sooner rather than later.

uncle_buck_3

If there are no apparent leaks it could be leaking out of the pressure relief pipe.

This pipe will be 15mm in size & will go out through the wall…if you look underneath your boiler the pipes should all be labelled…do this to find the pipe I’m talking about.
This pipe is a common cause of pressure drop on combi boilers. The pipe comes from the pressure relief valve inside the boiler…this is a safety device that opens to let pressure / water out of the central heating circuit should the pressure rise to 3 bar (3 on the combi pressure gauge) The valve can be manually opened & it normally has a red knob on it that can be turned…if you turn it, it only goes so far them the valve snaps back shut. It’s best not to use the valve to let water out of the system as disturbing the valve often causes a leak from it!

You will have to monitor the pressure relief pipe to see if this is where your leak is coming from.

HTH.

bestyman

Hi,
Its sometimes really difficult to find out where the water is going in a combi system. Half a bucket is enough to drop the pressure to zero. The water could be leaking from a rad valve and down the pipe to under the floor, the pressure relief on the boiler could be discharging outside.. there are a number of reasons for the pressure loss that you wouldnt see but like you say the boilers proving unreliable anyhow so it might be a good time for a change.

Get some quotes for a new boiler but also have the rads and pipework checked as Im sure you would still be gutted if still having pressure loss after having paid for a new boiler.

moneysavingplumber

There's a slim possibility that the charge pressure may have dropped in the expansion vessel, or it may be faulty, which could cause the boiler to 'dump' its pressure periodically out of the PRV pipe. If the boiler is serviced regularly this pressure should be checked.

bwatt00

uncle_buck wrote:

If there are no apparent leaks it could be leaking out of the pressure relief pipe.

This pipe will be 15mm in size & will go out through the wall…if you look underneath your boiler the pipes should all be labelled…do this to find the pipe I’m talking about.
This pipe is a common cause of pressure drop on combi boilers. The pipe comes from the pressure relief valve inside the boiler…this is a safety device that opens to let pressure / water out of the central heating circuit should the pressure rise to 3 bar (3 on the combi pressure gauge) The valve can be manually opened & it normally has a red knob on it that can be turned…if you turn it, it only goes so far them the valve snaps back shut. It’s best not to use the valve to let water out of the system as disturbing the valve often causes a leak from it!

You will have to monitor the pressure relief pipe to see if this is where your leak is coming from.

HTH.

Well and update i had a plumber come round with another problem i had nothing to do with boiler and heating and at times i thought he knew what he was doing and other times i said can i trust this guy to install a new boiler if i go down that route.
Well i asked about my problems about losing pressure and he said it would be a leak somewhere in my pipes,well trying to find that could be hard,its not coming from any radiators,he said you get stuff that can go through the pieps etc that seals any leaks on pipes which sounds good as ripping all floor boards and carpets etc would be a joke so knowning you get stuff like that is cool,i just need to know an idea what does this kind of stuff cost?
Also he said try putting a bag around my outside pipe and see if any water in it when i switch off boiler,well i did and there was water,maybe there is a leak somewhere else as well but i think the problem is from there.

Now i asked him what can be done he said the value is probably stuck open,i asked can this be fixed,said probably needs a new value but as my boiler is so old might be a problem getting one,i keep getting local plumbers and anytime i asked about bits for my boiler they said same thing but i found an agent for my make of boiler some years ago and he never had any problem getting what was needed.
Now would this agent which is 40 miles away and is expensive and had to travel that far to do my job etc,would there no longer be any parts for my boiler and or are these local guys just not know what they are talking about as i have never had any problems getting fixed with the agent guy.
I pretty much have to top up my boiler everyday now and so i need to get this value sorted asap or buy a new boiler,i know which one i would go for as its far cheaper and i can live with my old one for now until its broken down and is major to sort.
The other thing is as my boiler is in kitchen which can be seen,they said there is a chance that the new one might be bigger meaning the hole it goes into may have to be bigger and also the pipes,wall and all other stuff around it could change a bit and means that kitchen could be a mess or needing a little work after new boiler is in,is this correct i thought is was maybe as easy as old out and new in,also a rough figure but what about average price of paying someone to install one i got a quote from him and unsure if overpriced or not and if its a big job or not.
I do plan on putting a new kitchen in but not for a while and was thinking maybe this is the best time to install a new boiler when new kitchen goes in does this make sense?
I know if i dont get this part which will stop the pressure droping i may have to get new boiler but would prefer to when i get a new kitchen.
Any advise would be great on the above and also as to parts my boiler is a saunier duval i have been in house for 13yrs and over this time i have had installed in boiler a pressure gauge which shows at front of boiler and also a pump thats about it.
Now that my pressure is going outside pipe the guys told me its a valve probably thats not closing again etc and i wanted to know if this would be the problem if its a big job and how much it would be to repair such item and if the above make of my boiler parts is easy r hard to get.

They are right in what they say if a new boiler was fitted then parts is more easy to get but one much older is not and as i have been in my house for 13yrs and it was probably in 7 yrs maybe before that,so it could be say 20yrs old,the guys said a baxi one is good and comes with 5 yr warranty but i was thinking of getting from mr central heating if i go down that road,would a local plumber get a better price than mr central heating?
And condensing and non condensing whats would be the one to go for.

Jay-Jay_4

My boiler is doing exactly the same thing and has been for the past couple of months. I have to fill it up nearly every day..... my whole system was installed less than two years ago


I noticed today that there's a copper pipe that goes outside is dripping, so is that my pressure release thingy?

...and if it is then what do I need to do?


HELP!!!!!