Boiler servicing

asp746

I've got a boiler that's 2yrs old and the hot water wasn't as hot as it should be even tho the thermostat was on max. It'd be a case of jump in the bath and then jump back out again as it lost its heat.

A bloke has just come to service it and he explained that with combi boilers its best not to open the bath tap too much as it means the water runs too fast and the boiler doesn't have chance to heat it.

Oh my goodness I was amazed i was expecting to be told it was a valve or something and be lumbered with a huge bill so i was made up and also it restored my faith in workmen. Oh and the bath water is now red hot:j

£70 to service the boiler and now i have hot water again. I just thought i'd share incase anyone else is having similar probs.

just one prob tho, with the bathroom sink, when i run the hot water slow it looks all chalky - anyone know why this is and if its ok??

i also enquired about having the whole system flushed and he said it's £100 for a basic one or £300 for a really powerful one that will take a whole day and he fills the system with fluids and stuff and has to use a machine that cost £1500?? Does anyone think this is a reasonable price??

Canucklehead

asp746 wrote: »

I've got a boiler that's 2yrs old and the hot water wasn't as hot as it should be even tho the thermostat was on max. It'd be a case of jump in the bath and then jump back out again as it lost its heat.

A bloke has just come to service it and he explained that with combi boilers its best not to open the bath tap too much as it means the water runs too fast and the boiler doesn't have chance to heat it.

Oh my goodness I was amazed i was expecting to be told it was a valve or something and be lumbered with a huge bill so i was made up and also it restored my faith in workmen. Oh and the bath water is now red hot:j

£70 to service the boiler and now i have hot water again. I just thought i'd share incase anyone else is having similar probs.

just one prob tho, with the bathroom sink, when i run the hot water slow it looks all chalky - anyone know why this is and if its ok??

i also enquired about having the whole system flushed and he said it's £100 for a basic one or £300 for a really powerful one that will take a whole day and he fills the system with fluids and stuff and has to use a machine that cost £1500?? Does anyone think this is a reasonable price??

Hi...why do you want the system flushed...if the boiler is only 2 years old, the CH system should have been flushed when the boiler was installed. My OH charges £300 to powerflush a 7 rad system here in the southeast.

What make and model combi do you have?

Canucklehead

asp746

it's a baxi 105 HE. one of our radiators keeps getting cold at the top - we've bled it several times and its ok for a bit but then gets cold again. i do recall water being drained from the system when this new boiler was installed but not sure if it was just a partial drain or what. I definitely know it wasn't cleaned with chemicals. I just mentioned this to the engineer has said as the system was installed about 15yrs ago it is probably got a bit of gunk in it and would benefit from a clean.

btw - he found about a dozen blue bottles in it which he said crawl in through the vent and then get singed. Yuk !!

Canucklehead

asp746 wrote: »

it's a baxi 105 HE. one of our radiators keeps getting cold at the top - we've bled it several times and its ok for a bit but then gets cold again. i do recall water being drained from the system when this new boiler was installed but not sure if it was just a partial drain or what. I definitely know it wasn't cleaned with chemicals. I just mentioned this to the engineer has said as the system was installed about 15yrs ago it is probably got a bit of gunk in it and would benefit from a clean.

btw - he found about a dozen blue bottles in it which he said crawl in through the vent and then get singed. Yuk !!

Hi... that boiler should be producing DHW @12.1 l/min . Check your benchmark log as installation/commissioning details would be recorded there but by the sounds of it, your installer was bodger...do you have a Building Regs. compliance certificate?

Canucklehead

asp746

sorry canuklehead but i'm lost - what's DHW @12.1 ? i have a cert to say it was installed by a corgi bloke but that's all. the servicing guy has just passed it and says everything's fine - the landlord cert says:

Op pressure in Mbar or heat input: 31kw. everything else passed or has yes as an answer.

i would've thought the servicer would've spotted anything untoward and mentioned it?

I'm a bit worried now as i'm paranoid about carbon monoxide poisoning - i'm very particular about electrics and gas and never cut corners.

thanks

plumb1_2

asp746 wrote: »

i also enquired about having the whole system flushed and he said it's £100 for a basic one or £300 for a really powerful one that will take a whole day and he fills the system with fluids and stuff and has to use a machine that cost £1500?? Does anyone think this is a reasonable price??

Dont go for the cheap £100 job.

plumb1_2

asp746 wrote: »

it's a baxi 105 HE. one of our radiators keeps getting cold at the top - we've bled it several times and its ok for a bit but then gets cold again. i do recall water being drained from the system when this new boiler was installed but not sure if it was just a partial drain or what. I definitely know it wasn't cleaned with chemicals. I just mentioned this to the engineer has said as the system was installed about 15yrs ago it is probably got a bit of gunk in it and would benefit from a clean.

Another engineer not installing correctly, without flushing the system imo.

Canucklehead

asp746 wrote: »

sorry canuklehead but i'm lost - what's DHW @12.1 ? i have a cert to say it was installed by a corgi bloke but that's all. the servicing guy has just passed it and says everything's fine - the landlord cert says:

Op pressure in Mbar or heat input: 31kw. everything else passed or has yes as an answer.

i would've thought the servicer would've spotted anything untoward and mentioned it?

I'm a bit worried now as i'm paranoid about carbon monoxide poisoning - i'm very particular about electrics and gas and never cut corners.

thanks

The domestic hot water flow rate for that boiler is 12.1 liters per minute so the boiler should be able to provide sufficient hot water with a fully open tap even during cold weather. Are you a tenant or the landlord? I take it you are referring to info from a CP12 aka a Landlord Gas Safety Certificate...this has nothing to do with a Benchmark Log or a Building Regulations Compliance Certificate If you're worried about CO poisoning then buy a CO alarm.

Bottom line... the boiler in the property is not operating properly and this is unacceptable in a 2 year old installation i.e poor hot water performance, air in rads etc...bleeding the rads isn't a solution as you are depleting the inhibitor in the system (prevents corrosion and other nasties).

If you're a tenant, then it is the landlord's responsibility to sort it out and if you're the landlord then you would already know your obligations in this situation

HTH

Canuckehead