Calling any heating engineers....

becksfaz

The hall stat is a digital one (pt plus from BG) and I've set it 16.5c (it's a big hall so trying this working on the basis that all my rooms will be warmer than this).
Yesterday the stat was displaying 16.5c and then thermostat clicked to call for heat - why? The temperature was what I wanted it to be, why the need to call for heat? The boiler then only ran for about 3-4 mins and then stat clicked again and boiler stopped. Rads never got warm.
This then happened for a lot of the morning. The heating was on timer yesterday for a couple of hours. It took about 45 mins to reach temperature but then for the remaining 1.15 mins continued to click on/off when the hall stat displayed my chosen temperature. In the end I turned off the heating at the boiler. From yesterday morning until now I've had heating off and hall has only lost 1c in temperature. I know it's fairly mild at min but this tells me that our insulation must be OK?
What could be causing the stat and boiler to work in that way? Surely this isn't right?

daveyjp

Boiler type? Is it modern where you set the heating water circuit? If so I suspect it is cycling to keep the heating circuit water at target temperature.

becksfaz

It's an old boiler - Potterton Combi 80. Water temperature is automatic. Is there any way I can get it to stop doing that?
I don't want to be using gas when my house has no need for it. We moved into the house last year and had a very large winter bill in a very mild winter. I'm worried sick about this year as if I don't get to the bottom of this system, we will be bankrupt!

tommy-g_3

We had lots of trouble with our potterton boiler in our last house. A heating engineer quoted £270 for the to boards it needed to fix it.
British Gas do a guaranteed max price repair of £140 for £3 per month. Might be worth the years subscription and get them to look at it. Oh they also promise a 24 hr callout but you can't call on the policy within 7 days of taking it out.

becksfaz

Thanks tommy-g. Our landlord has the BG boiler cover but reluctant to call them at the minute as last winter when I called them out half a dozen times - each guy that came had a different answer/solution to the problem and all of which hasn't rectified it!!! My dad has arranged for someone to come round next week and we are going to get an independant opinion, then ring BG to come out, see what they say and take it from there. If it was my house, I'd throw the heap of junk on the scrap heap - sadly, it's not.

tommy-g_3

I know the feeling if it wasn't for the fact we were moving we'd have done the same. I mentioned our boiler issues to a friend who happened to say "let me guess it's a potterton!" it was him who gave me the BG tip.

May be get back on to your landlord and suggest that he replaces it to avoid a repeat of last winter and throwing good money after bad.