Gas central heating issue!!

angeljay

I will try to keep this brief in 2009 I had a new combi boiler installed as my old boiler was condemned and leaking carbon monoxide. I had to get this on credit as was unable to pay it all off in one lump sum.

However after 3 years the boiler was paid off and no problems with the credit.

However during the last five years we have always had issues with the radiators in the house not fully heating up, if you turn off one radiator this pushes the heat to the radiators not heating up. I assumed this was maybe air trapped in the system or the radiator that was not working needed bleeding and did this on numerous occasions.

The radiators did originally work the day the boiler was fitted as I have been informed the hot water was pulled through the system making u thinking it was working and it was 8pm in the evening before they left.

However at the early part of this year we decided to get British Gas Homecare agreement, the engineer came out and explained that the house was not plumbed up correctly and this is why the system does not pump the heating around to all radiators. He could not cover us on the home care agreement and suggested we looked into getting the plumbing changed.

The heating system worked fine with the old boiler and hot water tank if inefficient, however they had to move the location of the boiler due to drainage from the new combo boiler.

I then got a friends husband who is a corgi registered engineer to come to inspect our system and provide a price and further information on what need to be done, after a whole day of lifting floorboards, fitting one new radiator he stated that majority of the house was not plumbed correctly with some radiators not having a return to the boiler and also some pipes not being big enough to push the water through without pressure of turning off other radiators. He suggested that we contact the company who fitted the boiler (Northern Gas Heating) as by trading etiquette they should have informed us of these issues and changes that had to be made to get the system working correctly before installing the boiler in the new location.

We contacted Northern Gas Heating around June / July explaining the issues with the system that a magna clean was ordered and not installed and about the issues with the radiators. After inspecting our contract the magna clean was never added, we believe we have paid for this but have no proof apart from mine and my mothers word against the sales rep as no paperwork was done for this.

They have finally agreed to visit our home, I intend to show them the radiators not working whilst the heating is on and show that not all radiators heat up. Also since putting the heating on this year our boiler either loses pressure when heating is off or goes overboard on the pressure into the red - bar is this to do with the boiler working to hard trying to push water around the system? Should I mention this to the rep visiting next week.

After such a long bit of information, I basically would like to know what my rights are after 5 years. I understand I have waited a long time but for a lot of the years I did just put up with it, put on a electric fire or got a blanket and just assumed my system was old or needed repairing which I could not afford.

Will he actually rectify this issue or fob me off with excuses on his visit?

My friend quoted £900.00 to sort the issue with the plumbing and did explain our boiler is over compensating trying to push water to radiators which are not plumbed correctly and will lessen its lifespan.

Thank you for your help

GAP-p+h

What make and size is the boiler you have? And how many radiators are on the system?

bod1467

Sounds like the CH system was originally fitted using micro-bore pipes.

LilElvis

angeljay wrote: »

I will try to keep this brief in 2009 I had a new combi boiler installed as my old boiler was condemned and leaking carbon monoxide. I had to get this on credit as was unable to pay it all off in one lump sum.

However after 3 years the boiler was paid off and no problems with the credit.

However during the last five years we have always had issues with the radiators in the house not fully heating up, if you turn off one radiator this pushes the heat to the radiators not heating up. I assumed this was maybe air trapped in the system or the radiator that was not working needed bleeding and did this on numerous occasions.

The radiators did originally work the day the boiler was fitted as I have been informed the hot water was pulled through the system making u thinking it was working and it was 8pm in the evening before they left.

However at the early part of this year we decided to get British Gas Homecare agreement, the engineer came out and explained that the house was not plumbed up correctly and this is why the system does not pump the heating around to all radiators. He could not cover us on the home care agreement and suggested we looked into getting the plumbing changed.

The heating system worked fine with the old boiler and hot water tank if inefficient, however they had to move the location of the boiler due to drainage from the new combo boiler.

I then got a friends husband who is a corgi registered engineer to come to inspect our system and provide a price and further information on what need to be done, after a whole day of lifting floorboards, fitting one new radiator he stated that majority of the house was not plumbed correctly with some radiators not having a return to the boiler and also some pipes not being big enough to push the water through without pressure of turning off other radiators. He suggested that we contact the company who fitted the boiler (Northern Gas Heating) as by trading etiquette they should have informed us of these issues and changes that had to be made to get the system working correctly before installing the boiler in the new location.

We contacted Northern Gas Heating around June / July explaining the issues with the system that a magna clean was ordered and not installed and about the issues with the radiators. After inspecting our contract the magna clean was never added, we believe we have paid for this but have no proof apart from mine and my mothers word against the sales rep as no paperwork was done for this.

They have finally agreed to visit our home, I intend to show them the radiators not working whilst the heating is on and show that not all radiators heat up. Also since putting the heating on this year our boiler either loses pressure when heating is off or goes overboard on the pressure into the red - bar is this to do with the boiler working to hard trying to push water around the system? Should I mention this to the rep visiting next week.

After such a long bit of information, I basically would like to know what my rights are after 5 years. I understand I have waited a long time but for a lot of the years I did just put up with it, put on a electric fire or got a blanket and just assumed my system was old or needed repairing which I could not afford.

Will he actually rectify this issue or fob me off with excuses on his visit?

My friend quoted £900.00 to sort the issue with the plumbing and did explain our boiler is over compensating trying to push water to radiators which are not plumbed correctly and will lessen its lifespan.

Thank you for your help

It might be "etiquette" for the company to tell you that your heating system isn't up to par, but that does not make them responsible for the fact that it isn't. You needed a boiler. They installed a boiler. Any problems you have with the pipework are down to the company who did that work, not the installers of the new boiler.

bris

They only changed the boiler so have no liability for the rest of the pipe work, their job was to fit the boiler and make sure that was working so unless the boiler is installed wrong why blame them.

angeljay

Completely understand we are just taking the advice of an actually central heating installer who looked at our system, he told us to contact them and discuss the issue with them.

I am assuming they do not have to do anything even though the system worked with the old boiler and because they had to relocate the new boiler and just connected it to existing pipes under the floor they are now not responsible for my radiators not heating up?

bod1467

You appear to have overlooked post #2.

angeljay

Part of the system I believe is 20mm pipes and part is 15mm, my measurements could be wrong. The engineer who came out had the intention of changing the 15mm pipes to 20mm as he thought he would solve the issue. However after inspecting the pipework he explained this would not solve it as there is no return off the radiators to the boiler and the system is not installed right.

The boiler does work in a fashion but does not heat up all the radiators, isn't this what the boiler is suppose to do?

It is a Potterton Promax Combi 28 HE with 5 radiators around the house, I live in a 2 bed terrace.

Thanks.

LilElvis

angeljay wrote: »

Part of the system I believe is 20mm pipes and part is 15mm, my measurements could be wrong. The engineer who came out had the intention of changing the 15mm pipes to 20mm as he thought he would solve the issue. However after inspecting the pipework he explained this would not solve it as there is no return off the radiators to the boiler and the system is not installed right.

The boiler does work in a fashion but does not heat up all the radiators, isn't this what the boiler is suppose to do?

It is a Potterton Promax Combi 28 HE with 5 radiators around the house, I live in a 2 bed terrace.

Thanks.

And that's where your problem lies. Had you asked the company who installed the boiler to investigate and remedy the other problems with your heating system, and paid them to do the additional work, then the onus would be on them to rectify the problems now. You didn't pay for them to do anything other than replace the boiler so that is end of their obligation to you.

I know what it's like when a heating system is bodged because mine is a total pain too, but I've got the joy of having to sort out 19 radiators whilst the developer who built the house suns himself in his new home in Oz.

angeljay

The current new boiler has 3 pipes going from it into the floorboards above, if there is no return to the boiler what would they have connected these three pipes too? I assume one is the gas into the boiler and the other two are out and return but how have they connected a return without an actual return to the system?

angeljay

The problem was even though the old boiler was knackered there was no problem with the heating system all radiators got hot and heat got around the house, so I had nothing to ask them to rectify at the time as I was unaware of these issues!!