old combi boiler - hot water not very hot!

claireb

Hi we have an old comi boiler that is about 15yrs old, and since we moved in last february the hot water has played up. Usually to get hot water upstairs I have to turn it on full blast to get the boiler to kick in. This is so fast that its too fast and the boiler can't cope, so only heats the water up tepidly. Thats was ok because I would just turn the flow rate down (even I don't like a shower THAT powerful!) and the temperature would rise. This was a bit of a guessing game, the termostat on the shower is always on full and I just slowly decreased the rate of flow until it was a the right temperature. If it was turned down too much it would 'click' off and come through cold. I could cope with this, but recently the water is struggling to get above 'only just warm enough' kind of temperature and the boiler seems to be switching itself off at a much higher flow rate than it used to. Sometimes to get the hot water to click in upstairs I have to turn the kitchen tap on!

I was thinking of signing up to British Gas Homecare 100/200, but I am curious to know what people think before I cough up the cash.

Many thanks.

BobProperty

It does sound like something is wrong with the boiler, but I'd be wary that BG will cover you only after you've let them fix the boiler (for which they might charge you).

claireb

Thanks Bobproperty, does anyone have any experience with BG in situations??:think:

illmonkey

yes!

i wont post it ALL again, but go here: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=356567

If the is a fault, its a 1 off £160 charge to fix 1 fault. If you get a monthly plan, its usally £12 a month, but if its faulty to begin with its £20.

Eddi_2

Last year we had an engineer out to our boiler as the central heating timer had packed up. While the engineer was in the house I quizzed him about a couple of other problems - one that the radiators were only hot at the top and also that the water out of the taps didn't get as hot as it used to even with the boiler on it's winter setting.

He had the heating element out and had to drain out some of the water from the boiler which came out looking especially murky :sad:
He said that if you've not had your central heating system flushed through for a long time, the silt in the water can not only sit at the bottom of your radiators causing them to be cold at the bottom, but also it builds up inside the heating element and stops it conducting the heat as efficiently as the water passes through it.

I'm not a central heating engineer so I don't know how accurate that is but it seems to make sense? Not sure if that's at all related to your not very hot water issues.... Our boiler is insured with Domestic & General for £26 a quarter. They've always been very good.

claireb

Mmmm... what if I just take out the £12 per month deal, then call them out the following week (its not an emergency)?

BobProperty

claireb wrote:

Mmmm... what if I just take out the £12 per month deal, then call them out the following week (its not an emergency)?

I'd be concerned that the small print would allow them to swap you to the £20 pcm tariff since the boiler wasn't obviously OK when you signed up. They are well aware of people signing up then calling them out within a few days.

mbamick

I've just renewed my buildings & contents insurance and, having followed the advice on the Insurance pages, I took out a policy via the Post Office. Not only did I pick up the £50 cashback, but I also managed to get another £22.50 by following the QUIDCO link to the Post Office. But that's a side issue.

I mention simply because my Post Office policy included Home Emergency cover for an extra £7.45 on the annual premium. The policy clearly states that 24-hour cover is provided for all heating & plumbing problems up to a maximum of £250 for labour & parts.

Yep, your problem may cost more than £250 to rectify; but it might be a more cost-effective way to get it sorted.

The £50 cashback & £22.50 Quidco benefit may also provide an incentve to review your policy - regardless of whether it needs renewing this month or not.

Good Luck.
Mick