What is this thin pipe leaking water in the utility room?

[Deleted User]

Hi! The house I'm renting has a utility room with a washing machine, tumble dryer and a boiler and today there's been water leaking out of something. I isolated the problem as the pipe shown in the photograph below however I cannot seem to work out where this pipe is coming from nor can I locate where it should be going.

A few months ago we had problems with the washing machine leaking water and at the time I looked at all of the pipe work and this small pipe was just hanging over the side not leading anywhere, and it wasn't producing any water. Does this pipe leaking water indicate a problem with the boiler, or is this a pipe that the plumber should have attached to some sort of outflow?

I've looked at diagrams of washing machines and boilers and can't find any similar pipe, but I can't get behind the boiler or washing machine (they're mounted under a work surface) to find out what it's coming from.

phill99

Is it attached to the boiler? And does it only leak when the boiler is on? If so it may well be the condensate pipe that has come away (or was never attached in the first place).

katsclaws

I would say a condensate pipe as well.

plumb1_2

looks to small to be a condensate

macman

Condensate in 15mm copper? I'd guess at a PRV overflow pipe?
OP, is it it a combi or conventional boiler? Only a combi will have the above. If so it should be routed through the wall to to discharge outside. Where does it discharge (other than into the orange pot you've presumably now put under it)?
If my hunch is correct, then you may have low pressure on the boiler, as the PRV is lifting and allowing water to escape.

[Deleted User]

macman wrote: »

OP, is it it a combi or conventional boiler? Only a combi will have the above. If so it should be routed through the wall to to discharge outside. Where does it discharge (other than into the orange pot you've presumably now put under it)?
If my hunch is correct, then you may have low pressure on the boiler, as the PRV is lifting and allowing water to escape.

The boiler is a combi boiler, a "Highflow 440CDI". A plumber came out a few months ago to resolve some unrelated issues and at the time he mentioned that there was low pressure in the boiler system and "if I hadn't fixed it today you would have been without heating by christmas". I've just checked on the boiler and on the pressure gauge it goes up to 4 with the needle sitting just below 1.

The pipe was discharging onto the floor around the boiler, I'm therefore assuming that until today it had never discharged before (or in the last 8 months I've lived here) because I've looked at some pictures I took of around the boiler and I can see that when I moved in the pipe wasn't connected to anything (just hanging over the edge). Here is a picture from April this year, I've circled the end of the pipe:



Do boilers discharge water even when they're working properly? If so I guess maybe the problem is just that discharge pipe isn't linked to the outflow pipe, but in that case I wonder why it hasn't discharged in over 8 months... or maybe it has and I just haven't noticed.

societys_child

A plumber came out a few months ago to resolve some unrelated issues and at the time he mentioned that there was low pressure in the boiler system and "if I hadn't fixed it today you would have been without heating by christmas". I've just checked on the boiler and on the pressure gauge it goes up to 4 with the needle sitting just below 1.

The plumber increased the pressure . . .

The pipe was discharging onto the floor around the boiler, I'm therefore assuming that until today it had never discharged before (or in the last 8 months I've lived here)

It would appear that it wasn't discharging before simply because of the low pressure but as the pressure is now higher (what does it rise to when hot?) the valve is lifting and allowing escape of a small amount of water.

Keep your eye on the pressure, it may drop slightly as the system looses water and "stabilise" or maybe the PRV is goosed.

Do boilers discharge water even when they're working properly?

Yes if the pressure is too high or the PRV weak.

southcoastrgi

I would say that is the condense pipe, that boiler has a in built trap & pump therefore the outlet pipe is smaller than normal, it needs to go to a drain, looking at the above pic it prob went into the top of the white pipe in the corner, you should get loads of water out of that so you would have noticed

if your boiler is going upto 4 bar when you run the heating then your ev (expansion vessel) pressure needs sorting out, also the prv should open at 3 bar so that may need replacing as well

macman

citricsquid wrote: »

The boiler is a combi boiler, a "Highflow 440CDI". A plumber came out a few months ago to resolve some unrelated issues and at the time he mentioned that there was low pressure in the boiler system and "if I hadn't fixed it today you would have been without heating by christmas". I've just checked on the boiler and on the pressure gauge it goes up to 4 with the needle sitting just below 1.

The pipe was discharging onto the floor around the boiler, I'm therefore assuming that until today it had never discharged before (or in the last 8 months I've lived here) because I've looked at some pictures I took of around the boiler and I can see that when I moved in the pipe wasn't connected to anything (just hanging over the edge). Here is a picture from April this year, I've circled the end of the pipe:



Do boilers discharge water even when they're working properly? If so I guess maybe the problem is just that discharge pipe isn't linked to the outflow pipe, but in that case I wonder why it hasn't discharged in over 8 months... or maybe it has and I just haven't noticed.

OK so we know it's a combi. The condensate pipe will discharge regularly when the boiler is running, and should be plumbed into a drain or soakaway. If that's a condensate pipe, it's a horrible bodge.
A PRV overflow will only discharge when the PRV lifts, which indicates that the pressure is dangerously high at around 3 bar.
Look outside to see if there is another 15mm copper pipe venting to the outside, if not then that must be the PRV and is again a horrible bodge.
Have you been issued with a gas safety certificate for this property on occupation, as the law requires?

Mr_Ted

macman wrote: »

Condensate in 15mm copper? I'd guess at a PRV overflow pipe?
Only a combi will have the above.

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Totally Incorrect :rotfl:

A COMBI boiler is just one that does Hot Water and Heating from the same source, NO Cylinder for Hot Water

A CONDENSING BOILER on the other hand, will have a condensate pipe, but this should not be metal, as the condense is acidic, and piped to a drain or soakaway, or as has been stated by SCRGI

ONLY a SYSTEM BOILER will have a PRV, be it a Combi, Conventionl, Condensing or NON condensing boiler, and the sparge/warning pipe should be piped to outside, as should ANY PRV for an Unvented Cylinder or Mains intake PRV as a warning pipe to indicate a problem with the valve or system over pressuring

If you are a Professional offering advise on here, GET THE FACTS RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

diywhynot

Mr_Ted wrote: »

the sparge/warning pipe should be piped to outside, as should ANY PRV for an Unvented Cylinder or Mains intake PRV as a warning pipe to indicate a problem with the valve or system over pressuring

If you are a Professional offering advise on here, GET THE FACTS RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There is another way.;)