What's wrong with this storage heater?

scarletjim

My tenants in my flat mentioned a fortnight ago that one of the overnight storage heaters had stopped working. After some Googling, I found quite a lot of people who said that the trip switches inside sometimes trip and just need to be reset. This seems to vary from model to model, but people mentioned a small switch or strip of metal that would click back into place. So I went to the flat, turned off all the electrics, double-checked that , then took off the faceplate to see if I could see this 'trip switch'. I couldn't see anything that looked like that, so I put it all back together, expecting to have achieved nothing. The next day, my tenants called to say that it was working again! However...

...they called me earlier today to say that actually it was only working for a few days, then went off again. That time, apparently it was too hot in that room, so one of them turned down the input and output dials. That night it failed to heat up and hasn't worked again since (despite them putting the dials back up again obviously). So a few questions:

1. Firstly, on this link, does anyone know what / where the trip switch is?
https://www.dropbox.com/s/vdubdeks494skwc/Heater.jpg?dl=0

2. Secondly, does anyone know what is likely to be causing the problem and what (if anything) I can do about it myself, rather than getting (potentially expensive) help?

Thanks in advance.

[Deleted User]

Hi,

if you google, 'Dimplex thermostat and cut-out assembly' then find your particular model.

From your picture it looks like this one,



The cut out is just a make or break, on/off contact, the brass bit in picture.

It can sometimes stick, open or closed, when it sticks closed the heater will overheat, but normally corrects itself as heater cools.

Drying clothes over the heater, or blocking the air vents can cause heater to overheat, as can turning input to max, always keep just a bit below max.

molerat

A contact file or thin nail board can usually fix many problems with these. The contacts sometimes weld together and stay on then click apart and a lump prevents them from making proper contact again.

Risteard

You have a duty to your tenants to get qualified and competent help (i.e. an Electrician) rather than messing about with it yourself and also leaving them without heat.

prosaver

There horrible storage heaters ...i remember, its baking in the morning and cools down in the afternoon, then cold at night. Are they still like that?

EssexExile

prosaver wrote: »

There horrible storage heaters ...i remember, its baking in the morning and cools down in the afternoon, then cold at night. Are they still like that?

Only if you don't have big enough ones or don't set them up right.

konark

Ring Ring

Hello, The 1970s calling, can we have our heaters back.

scarletjim

Thanks for the advice - now I know exactly what I'm looking for, I've reset it yesterday afternoon and this morning it is apparently working again. Will have to see now if it holds, or if it trips again in a few days...

In case anyone else has the same issue, let me explain exactly where the 'switch' is. On the picture that frugalmacdugal very kindly posted above, in the middle there is a black circle. Just to the right of it (in the picture I mean, not on the unit itself), there is a small metal tab sticking up. That needs to be pushed lightly away from you, until it clicks.

By the way in response to some other remarks:

- I'm happy to get an electrician if the probably can't easily be solved myself, but if it's a 5 minute job (which it was) and can be done safely, then it seems silly wasting money. These tenants are friends of mine, they already have very cheap rent for such a property, and therefore accept that I will tend to try and fix any issues myself before calling a professional. If it trips again later this week, then I expect that whole thermostat bit will need replacing, in which case I'll definitely call a pro.

- With regard to these heaters being useless, they actually worked fine for me for the 12 years that I lived in that property. Half he battle is understanding what the inputs and outputs do (very simple, but apparently misunderstood by many people). I know they are not very efficient, but in a block of flats that has only electric, no gas, you are pretty limited in what you can do that would be any better...

I'll feed back if it trips again, but hopefully will be ok now.

Thanks all.
James

scarletjim

This morning the tenants have texted to say that, having worked all week, the heater failed again last night, so has presumably tripped again. What could be causing this? (They promise they are not putting washing on it).

Is it most likely just the thermostat part shown above that needs replacing, or could it be something else? In particular, could it genuinely be overheating somehow?

Hermione_Granger

Risteard wrote: »

You have a duty to your tenants to get qualified and competent help (i.e. an Electrician) rather than messing about with it yourself and also leaving them without heat.

Provided that the OP is competent to carry out a safe job then there is nothing to stop them doing the work themselves.
Unlike gas work which requires a Gas Safe registered engineer, anyone can carry out minor repair work on the electrics provided that the work isn't covered by Part P.

EssexExile

Another cause could be that if the heater has multiple elements, then one failing can cause overheating in other areas. Sorry, I've never worked on Dimplex so I don't know what problems they are susceptible to.