Immersion heater only heating up couple minutes worth of how water?

Myser

It is most likely the one with the neon light.

P.S. Looks like the switch fascia could do with a clean too!

Lafleur_2

Aye, it does:o What would the blackening/charring imply if i found it near the terminals of the switch/immersion heater housing?

Myser

Blackening/charring would indicate a poor connection and therefore a high resistance. This causes excess heat at that point and the fitting around the metal connection begins to char/blacken.

keystone

Ahh - a Willis Immersion (A below). Know the theory but never seen one in the flesh. Where in the 6 Counties are you?



I'm wondering what work has recently done - shiny new bits of pipe and new pushfits are a bit of a giveaway. Cylinder been changed? It would be useful to see a pic of the pipework in the area above where I have marked it "B" and also around "C". What is going on behind the cylinder (pipeworkwise) on the left of the picture? How many tanks in your roofspace?

If the top of the Willis tube is redhot but the bottom is cool that means that the immersion is working but that gravity circulation isn't taking place as it should and that sort of rules out the immersion not functioning . Any chance the man who did the recent work has airlocked the outlet from the Willis? Do you rely soley on the immersion for your hot water?

That is an indirect cylinder and I have circled the two points where I would normally expect to see the primary source of heat for it connected. When your dad talks about the internal element I suspect its the heat exchanger coil inside that connects these two that he's talking about.

Do you have a gas (electric/oil??) boiler that provides heat for the Central Heating? If so how is it connected to those two points - it isn't clear at all. Over here I would expect to see a three port (as closed has illustrated) or a two port motorised valve in the region of the cylinder and a circulating pump somewhere but I don't. The cylinder doesn't appear to have its own thermostat either.

If the indirect coil is plumbed in it doesn't make sense that it isn't being used as intended which is to provide the primary sourtce of heat for your hot water with the immersion would be a back up.

Basically I'm asking you to describe your system in a lot more detail than you have done so far.

Cheers

keystone

Oh and BTW I am slightly at a loss to understand why a switch in the bathroom would be used to control the immersion.. Are you sure that it does?

Cheers

Lafleur_2

County Down. So us Northern Irish like our Willis immersions more than you guys? haha

keystone wrote: »

I'm wondering what work has recently done - shiny new bits of pipe and new pushfits are a bit of a giveaway. Cylinder been changed? It would be useful to see a pic of the pipework in the area above where I have marked it "B" and also around "C". What is going on behind the cylinder (pipeworkwise) on the left of the picture? How many tanks in your roofspace?

We got only the cylynder replaced a few years. Here are some more pics you might find helpful (Type imageshack.us and copy+paste each of these lines into different window address bars):
/photo/my-images/521/11557611.jpg/
/photo/my-images/21/32494294.jpg/
/photo/my-images/225/41621617.jpg/
/photo/my-images/534/71124731.jpg/
/photo/my-images/839/99730642.jpg/
/photo/my-images/100/43124654.jpg/ (thought i'd stick this up here, not quite sure what this cable is, would eb curious to know).

Behind the cylinder on the left is the cold feed connection according to an online manual that seems to fit the cylynder (Apparently its Albion). Theres just one water tank in uor roofspace

keystone wrote: »

If the top of the Willis tube is redhot but the bottom is cool that means that the immersion is working but that gravity circulation isn't taking place as it should and that sort of rules out the immersion not functioning . Any chance the man who did the recent work has airlocked the outlet from the Willis? Do you rely soley on the immersion for your hot water?

Yea when i turn the immersion system on the top of the Willies burns my hand but just before the base and black plastic bit it feels lukewarm. We've only encountered this probelm in the last few days when it suddenly started giving me tiny bits of roasting water and not much else.

We rely generally half on our immersion heater for hot water, the central heating system for the other half. [/QUOTE]

keystone wrote: »

That is an indirect cylinder and I have circled the two points where I would normally expect to see the primary source of heat for it connected. When your dad talks about the internal element I suspect its the heat exchanger coil inside that connects these two that he's talking about.

Yea it's most definatly an indirect system

keystone wrote: »

Do you have a gas (electric/oil??) boiler that provides heat for the Central Heating? If so how is it connected to those two points - it isn't clear at all. Over here I would expect to see a three port (as closed has illustrated) or a two port motorised valve in the region of the cylinder and a circulating pump somewhere but I don't. The cylinder doesn't appear to have its own thermostat either.

No, it doesn't have its own thermostat. We have an oil boiler which powers our central heating

keystone wrote: »

If the indirect coil is plumbed in it doesn't make sense that it isn't being used as intended which is to provide the primary sourtce of heat for your hot water with the immersion would be a back up.

Yea, if we leave the heating on for an hour we get jsut enough water for a quick hot shower and a bit left over for doing the dishes roughly. Te indiect coil doesn't provide us with burning water for say 2 quick showers like the willis immersion previously did if left on for an hour. So its not quite our primary heat source, we use the 2 together most of the time.[/QUOTE]

Basically I'm asking you to describe your system in a lot more detail than you have done so far.

I'm also positive that the switch in the bathroom control's the willis heater, not sure why this would be strange.

Really appreciate your help.

Canucklehead

Hi.

Have you considered scale as the problem?

As you probably know it's a complete replacement, but that might be the answer.

GSR.

Lafleur_2

I was thinking that but then wouldn't i have noticed a gradual decrease in performance over time rather than a sudden drop in performance if scaling was the problem?

Canucklehead

Hi:

You need to get someone in if you want hot water again.


GSR.

keystone

Lafleur wrote: »

County Down. So us Northern Irish like our Willis immersions more than you guys? haha

No we don't like 'em at all over here.

We got only the cylynder replaced a few years. Here are some more pics you might find helpful

Thanks - as all your images are in the same album you can see all of them in sequence from the link provided yesterday.

thought i'd stick this up here, not quite sure what this cable is, would eb curious to know.

It looks like earth bonding cabling. Presumably disconnected and chucked out by whomsoever [STRIKE]threw[/STRIKE] put in the replacement cylinder as by using all those pushfits he assumed there was no further need for equipotential bonding.

Behind the cylinder on the left is the cold feed connection according to an online manual that seems to fit the cylynder (Apparently its Albion). Theres just one water tank in uor roofspace

Thanks. Single tank implies single feed implies Primatic Cylinder but I'm not convinced thats what you have there as I think I see two feeds and the primary circuit tappings seem too far apart for a primatic. What does it say on the label on the cylinder? Its far too blurred to see in the image. But thats bye the bye.

..........the top of the Willies burns my hand.......

Theres just a tad too much information there!!

We've only encountered this probelm in the last few days when it suddenly started giving me tiny bits of roasting water and not much else.

I am certain that you have a circulation problem whether thats caused by an airlock that has slowly built up over time in that pipework and may have been added to substantially recently by the Willis boiling the water or perhaps you do have a scaling issue up. I'm not entirely convinced of the latter possibility though as IIRC you have relatively soft water in that neck of the woods. However if you have been boiling the water in the Willis for some time it will scale up just like a kettle. What I do know is that if that cylinder is a primatic then you should NOT under any circumstances add any chemicals whatsoever to the system either for descaling or anti-corrosion purposes.

Now whether its air or scaling then its going to be impossible to sort remotely over t'internet. You really have to get someone in to it. Sorry if that not quite what you wanted to hear after several days of this thread. BTW - whilst they are on site get 'em to look at your copper knitting with a view to sorting it out - really needs doing TBH - especially the Willis output, tap drawoff, vent arrangement.

We rely generally half on our immersion heater for hot water, the central heating system for the other half.

Thanks. Is the CH side pumped just as a matter of interest?

No, it doesn't have its own thermostat. We have an oil boiler which powers our central heating

Have you got any form of controls (thermostats, programnmer whatsoever?

Yea, if we leave the heating on for an hour we get jsut enough water for a quick hot shower and a bit left over for doing the dishes roughly. Te indiect coil doesn't provide us with burning water for say 2 quick showers like the willis immersion previously did if left on for an hour. So its not quite our primary heat source, we use the 2 together most of the time.

Yes underaqtand that - thank you. It seems a very inefficient way of managing your heating and DHW requirements but there it is I guess.

I'm also positive that the switch in the bathroom control's the willis heater, not sure why this would be strange.

Thats fine - just seemed a strange way of doing it to me. I would expect it to be adjacent to the cylinder.

Really appreciate your help.

A pleasure. Its free on MSE!! Just stick a score in the childrens charity box when you can if you wouldn't mind.

Cheers