DIY Powerflush?

AliceBanned

My gas usage is higher than last year and has been since December. It is a slightly colder winter but the difference in my bill is about £12 a month, despite being on a fixed tariff.


I wonder whether the boiler is performing poorly as when I had it tested by previous contractor for boiler protection he said it had sludge in the system and needed a powerflush, but that wasn't covered under the contract. I've noticed this year that it is quite loud and you can hear it when it is on (the sound is like the humming of a kettle coming up to boil). It sounds like it is working hard and the heating is fine and even around the radiators but I am worried about the bills! It is a one-bed flat and the gas is about £40 per month during winter. I am with First Utility and can see the usage on a graph and is about 150-180kw higher this year.


Should I do a flush and add the chemical protector - I saw it mentioned on another MSE post:
http://www.toolstation.com/shop/p94504?searchstr=inh


I wonder whether it is safe to do it myself. I am in a first floor flat and the boiler is in the hallway. There is some gunk on the pump so it looks like it leaked in the past and has been fixed. It is 13 years old and was installed when the flat was new. I do have it serviced every year but obviously this type of repair isn't included - just get it checked for safety.


Thanks

Mr.Generous

Yes if you know what you are doing, is it a combi or do you have a hot water cylinder?

AliceBanned

Mr.Generous wrote: »

Yes if you know what you are doing, is it a combi or do you have a hot water cylinder?

Hot water cylinder.

AliceBanned

And no, I've never done it before so I am trying to get enough information to feel confident about doing it. It not I will pay a plumber to be on the safe side. Thanks.

matelodave

Being on a fixed tariff means the price per kwh wont change, not that your bill wont change. If you use more kwh then you'll pay for more

Are you and have you been reading your meters, if you have and have last years records then you'll find that it's been consistently colder for the past couple of months than at the same time last year. Dont gorget also that even the cold water coming into your house is colder as well so will take more energy to heat it to the same temperature

I dont know where you live but we've had colder days and nights out here in Fenland and my energy consumption has been around 12% higher than last year. This equates to about £15 a month extra in both December and January, even November was a bit colder than last year as well. Even February is a lot colder with the temperatures only around 2-5 degrees.
We use around 70% of annual energy between November and March and only 30% in the seven months beginning April

I wouldn't bother with powerflushing, just keep an eye on your bills and meter readings, dont accept any estimated bills and anticipate that you'll have to pay a bit more. The alternative is to turn your thermostats down a bit.

If you are really interested then have a look here http://www.degreedays.net/ input your location or a big town near you and you should be able to get an idea of the temperature differences. It also helps your understanding how heating has to work harder to maintain the same indoor temperatures when it's colder outside. The consequence being that it will also cost more.

Look at the figures in the following list (They are for Marham, near where I live) - you dont have to understand what they mean to see that the ones for 2015/6 are significantly lower than the coressponding ones in 2016/2017

2015-10-01 144
2015-11-01 185
2015-12-01 172
2016-01-01 308
2016-02-01 312
2016-03-01 305
2016-04-01 244
2016-05-01 110
2016-06-01 55
2016-07-01 22
2016-08-01 21
2016-09-01 30
2016-10-01 154
2016-11-01 293
2016-12-01 299
2017-01-01 383

AliceBanned

Thanks matelodave. I've only been in the flat for 3 years so this has been the most expensive winter for fuel - I also got a dishwasher and a more powerful shower recently so the electric has gone up but that was expected.


So overall I wondered whether something were wrong with the system but reading your post it makes sense now. I have been warm enough so I will try turning down the thermostat to save a bit as well. I also work from home one day a week. I try not to have the heating on much during the day anyway.

Mr.Generous

Just doing a full drain down and then refiling several times and draining again before a final re fill with inhibitor is worth while, this will keep the system working. A powerflush is the solution when its sludged up because it hasn't been maintained. Its amazing the crud that comes out. The crud being circulated knackers the pump and the rad valves eventually, cleaning it out saves money long term just on repair bills regardless of heating efficiency.

matelodave

If you play around with the degree day calculator (set it to monthly rather than daily) you can go back a few years and get a fair idea of how the temperature fluctuates year on year.

I've been keeping records since we moved in in 2010 and our worst January was 2013 where our energy use went up to 1500kwh. Last year was the second lowest at 965kwh and this year was 1175, our 7 year average is 1171 so we are actuall on target - last year was warmer rather than this year being colder

zaax

Every 10 years at the top of summer I completedly drain the system and take off all the radiators and empty the crud. Relatively easy, use Jointing Compound when you put the rads back, and prepair for nasty black staining water, also that rads are heavy. Wash out rad in yard. and doing two rads a weekend. Then the rads are back I put hoses on after the pump and at the bottom end of the system (drain !!!!) and put the main though for 1/2 hour or so (basiclly a power fluch)

AliceBanned

Thanks everyone. I will definitely do nothing until the summer in that case. It does sound quite loud and I know one of the boiler guys changed the setting on the pump. I will ask next time they come to check the system, which is early summer anyway.