Power Flush

Swanlander

I have a British Gas deal where they cover my electrics, plumbing and boiler etc for a set fee each month. Last week I realised a radiator was not working and an engineer repaired it. However when he took it off the wall and emptied it he showed me how grey the water from it was and it was filled with a light grey powder too. We put the central heating on after he had refitted the radiator and he told me the system was clogged as the radiators took a few minutes to warm up. He has suggested a system flush. The bungalow is 42 years old with original radiators apart from the recently repaired one and a new bathroom radiator. He tells me the underfloor pipes (set in a concrete floor) are good quality copper but a neighbour has told me of a friend who had problems with a flush. Four pipes all leading to radiators all broke when he had a flush done causing great problems. Any thoughts from anyone are welcome.

Plumber90

It wouldn't hurt to flush a system that is that old, it's very rare for pipework to fail but it can happen and it's so etching the plumber can't do anything about (apart from fix it obviously).

Does your deal with BG cover you for a power flush or do you have to pay extra for that

Swanlander

I have to pay for it - £600.

ciderboy2009

If you decide to get it done then I would suggest getting some quotes from a local plumber - you'll probably save £200-£300 on BG's price.

macman

It's a bit like Del Monte: the man from BG, he always say 'powerflush!'
Your rads taking a few minutes to warm up does not indicate a clogged system. Rads clogged with sediment will simply feel cold at the bottom, where they will not warm up at all.

Swanlander

Am I guessing BG engineers are on commision to 'sell' powerflushes?

Big_Tree

50 quid for each one

buglawton

Get a powerful magnet and touch the copper pipe at the very lowest system points, if it is attracted it means ferrous metal from the rads could be blocking the system. My plumber detected this issue and was able to unblock this section and improve the efficiency of the whole system. The blockage was so solid it required replacing a small section of pipe. He did not recommend a power flush and I suspect one would have never cleared this problem.

nikki2804

The plumber that I use and trust only takes £200 for a power flush. BG came out in February to sort my boiler and general checks, engineer said the water in the system was dirty and I would benefit from the flush. He didn't push anything but after reading some of the above comment's I'm wondering if I do need one?

Swanlander

nikki2804 - same story as mine. I think this is clearly BG engineers pushing power flushes.

LOLAF

Same story here - one of my radiators does not work - was advised to do a power flush for £720(!) which is clearly not covered by the insurance