Homecare 200

cherry76

I took homecare 200 recently with BG. I have moved in a new house three months. I had to call the engineer as I had some leaks on the radiators. He told me in future if I call them with radiator leaks, I will be charged. He recommended a powerflush which I cannot afford now. He said the system if sull of sludge including the boiler. I am a bit concerned about my boiler, it is only 4 yrs old and if I call him and he finds the problem is due to sludge I will be charged. I just want to know in future if I need to call the engineer and I have to pay, I can tell him not to proceed with the job as they are not cheap. I am also considering cancelling the contract when it expires. I also wonder whether it is possible to ask for a second opinion or for another engineer? I seem to get the same chap and I have nicknamed him Mr Grumpy, he is so miserable. Every time I phone BG, they try to sell me something etc. Thanks

andrew-b

Sounds much the same as the thread here from the other day. Judging by that thread you'll get the same whatever BG service engineer comes to your house. Likely to be extremely overpriced for the powerflush so i would avoid at all costs. Your better off getting a local independent heating guy in if it does need a powerflush.
As mentioned in that thread a powerflush isn't the only answer. Beyond fixing existing leaks or replacing corroded rads, other options are a chemical flush (could be done yourself if you have the time and are willing for under £30) or even hire the equipment for a DIY powerflush. However if there have been leaks already i don't think i would consider doing a powerflush yourself unless you have the skills to fix the leaks quickly as they spring up as the powerflushing process may cause more!
I'd ditch BG totally and not pay them another penny..they are nothing but one giant sales machine these days as you've found out. Definitely not the company they once were and shouldn't be allowed to use the word "british" in their title IMHO!
If you put aside the money you would have paid each month to BG you should likely have enough to self-insure against future problems.

keystone

A four year old boiler should NOT be "full of sludge" if the system was properly cleaned when the boiler was put in as it should have been. BTW a "power flush" is the standard cure all according to BG and their guys are on commission anyway - so beware.

If you do have a system full of sludge then the only real way to get it all out is stick in some X400 and allow that to circulate for a minimum of four weeks. Don't leave it beyond six weeks before draining and flushing though. Next close off all the rad valves to isolate, drain and flush the system pipework a few times. Whilst the rads are isolated drain each rad individually, take it off the wall and out into the garden and clean it out with a hose using mains pressure. Then rehang. Next fit a Magnaclean or Boiler Buddy. Finally refill system, add inhibitor and rebalance the system.

Cheers

cherry76

Thanks, is there a way to tell whether the system is full of sludge? The engineer did scare me being a newbie to all of this,and said if I do not do it, it will cause all sort of problems, like bursting pipe under the floor boards etc. Central heating seems to be working fine. The quote is nearly £800, I cannot afford this now. The reason I took homecare 200 as I thought it would take care of my boiler and heating problems.

keystone

cherry76 wrote: »

Thanks, is there a way to tell whether the system is full of sludge? The engineer did scare me being a newbie to all of this,and said if I do not do it, it will cause all sort of problems, like bursting pipe under the floor boards etc. Central heating seems to be working fine. The quote is nearly £800, I cannot afford this now. The reason I took homecare 200 as I thought it would take care of my boiler and heating problems.

I am afraid you get a lot of scaremongering from the engineers you see from the big boys. They are mostly on commission and instructed by management to "sell-up" like "oh dear you need a replacement boiler" or "a powerflush will cure it" on the basis of very flimsy evidence indeed. Sometimes you get the impression of clutching at staws!

In my experience (unless it is done well and properly) a powerflush is a total waste of time. If you do have lots of sludge (and I do mean a lot) then a powerflush on its own is unlikely to get rid of it all.

If the bottoms of your radiators are cold then thats a pretty good indication that they have quite a lot of sludge in them. If your boiler is noisy then that also indicates sludge inside the HE.

You can get a popwerflush done by an independent for somewhere around 50% of BGs inflated price but make sure he spends at least 4 - 5 hours doing it (dependent on the size of the system) or you will have wasted your money.

Cheers