We'd like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum. This is to keep it a safe and useful space for MoneySaving discussions. Threads that are - or become - political in nature may be removed in line with the Forum’s rules. Thank you for your understanding.
Vaillant British Gas boiler under warranty
Hi all,
I had a new boiler put in 2019 by British Gas - it is a Vaillant EcoTec. My main reason for going with BG was to pay on finance (now regretting not going independently but I know for next time!). It has been serviced annual by BG during that time and has been working absolutely fine with no issues.
Last boiler service end of November just gone (Nov 2022) - man said pressure was abit high but that we probably just need to bleed radiators and should be fine. We didn’t get around to doing this in the lead up to Christmas.
Few days ago the boiler starts leaking with water dripping from base and sides onto kitchen counter. We turn the boiler off - spend ages bleeding radiators. Pressure comes down but then rises back up even without heating or hot water being on.
Because boiler is under warranty through BG and is very new (only 2019), I call BG out but I’m just concerned they have no idea what the problem is. It’s the same engineer and so far he has replaced the pressure sensor, and the another part but problem remains. He is coming back later today (which will be the third visit) to replace the heat exchanger (I think).
I just don’t understand why any of these parts will have failed in a boiler that is only 3 years old. And don’t all these things get checked in the annual service?! I am just worried as at the moment this is all included under the warranty but if I have to pay independently that will be a nightmare.
any other similar experiences with new(ish) boilers? And BG? Just not sure i have confidence that they will fix it!
thanks
I had a new boiler put in 2019 by British Gas - it is a Vaillant EcoTec. My main reason for going with BG was to pay on finance (now regretting not going independently but I know for next time!). It has been serviced annual by BG during that time and has been working absolutely fine with no issues.
Last boiler service end of November just gone (Nov 2022) - man said pressure was abit high but that we probably just need to bleed radiators and should be fine. We didn’t get around to doing this in the lead up to Christmas.
Few days ago the boiler starts leaking with water dripping from base and sides onto kitchen counter. We turn the boiler off - spend ages bleeding radiators. Pressure comes down but then rises back up even without heating or hot water being on.
Because boiler is under warranty through BG and is very new (only 2019), I call BG out but I’m just concerned they have no idea what the problem is. It’s the same engineer and so far he has replaced the pressure sensor, and the another part but problem remains. He is coming back later today (which will be the third visit) to replace the heat exchanger (I think).
I just don’t understand why any of these parts will have failed in a boiler that is only 3 years old. And don’t all these things get checked in the annual service?! I am just worried as at the moment this is all included under the warranty but if I have to pay independently that will be a nightmare.
any other similar experiences with new(ish) boilers? And BG? Just not sure i have confidence that they will fix it!
thanks
0
Comments
-
LondonS30 said:Hi all,
I had a new boiler put in 2019 by British Gas - it is a Vaillant EcoTec. My main reason for going with BG was to pay on finance (now regretting not going independently but I know for next time!). It has been serviced annual by BG during that time and has been working absolutely fine with no issues.
Last boiler service end of November just gone (Nov 2022) - man said pressure was abit high but that we probably just need to bleed radiators and should be fine. We didn’t get around to doing this in the lead up to Christmas.
Few days ago the boiler starts leaking with water dripping from base and sides onto kitchen counter. We turn the boiler off - spend ages bleeding radiators. Pressure comes down but then rises back up even without heating or hot water being on.
Because boiler is under warranty through BG and is very new (only 2019), I call BG out but I’m just concerned they have no idea what the problem is. It’s the same engineer and so far he has replaced the pressure sensor, and the another part but problem remains. He is coming back later today (which will be the third visit) to replace the heat exchanger (I think).
I just don’t understand why any of these parts will have failed in a boiler that is only 3 years old. And don’t all these things get checked in the annual service?! I am just worried as at the moment this is all included under the warranty but if I have to pay independently that will be a nightmare.
any other similar experiences with new(ish) boilers? And BG? Just not sure i have confidence that they will fix it!
thanks
What makes you think the warranty will not apply, have you modified the boiler or done something to it yourself that would invalidate the warranty?0 -
Components fail: that is a basic fact of life. A service yesterday does not guarantee that a component will not fail today. There is some good advice in this link:
https://www.viessmann.co.uk/en/heating-advice/boilers/what-to-do-if-your-boiler-pressure-is-too-high.html
Has the engineer checked the pressure in the expansion vessel (if you have one)? Often expansion vessels are not replaced when a new boiler is fitted. The expansion vessel has a flexible diaphragm which can perish over time. Has the engineer spoken to Valliant support for advice?
0 -
LondonS30 said:
Few days ago the boiler starts leaking with water dripping from base and sides onto kitchen counter. We turn the boiler off - spend ages bleeding radiators. Pressure comes down but then rises back up even without heating or hot water being on.
0 -
As said check the filling loop tap - is it letting water in and overpressurising the boiler? This happened to us with a 2 year old Vaillant Ecotec and it was fixed by our installer on a maintenance visit. He replaced the tap and also positioned it so we couldn't accidentally knock it open as there is kitchen stuff near it in the cupboard the boiler is in. He also changed a component - probably the pressure sensor.This boiler also failed a week after our installer put it in - wouldn't start. Under the guarantee you are entitled to a Valiant engineer for a manufacturing/component fault - an installer shouldn't touch a component failure not caused by issues outwith the boiler. We had to wait 5 days for the Vaillant engineer but he replaced an expensive faulty component (forget what) in 15 mins with no fuss.0
-
MattMattMattUK said:LondonS30 said:Hi all,
I had a new boiler put in 2019 by British Gas - it is a Vaillant EcoTec. My main reason for going with BG was to pay on finance (now regretting not going independently but I know for next time!). It has been serviced annual by BG during that time and has been working absolutely fine with no issues.
Last boiler service end of November just gone (Nov 2022) - man said pressure was abit high but that we probably just need to bleed radiators and should be fine. We didn’t get around to doing this in the lead up to Christmas.
Few days ago the boiler starts leaking with water dripping from base and sides onto kitchen counter. We turn the boiler off - spend ages bleeding radiators. Pressure comes down but then rises back up even without heating or hot water being on.
Because boiler is under warranty through BG and is very new (only 2019), I call BG out but I’m just concerned they have no idea what the problem is. It’s the same engineer and so far he has replaced the pressure sensor, and the another part but problem remains. He is coming back later today (which will be the third visit) to replace the heat exchanger (I think).
I just don’t understand why any of these parts will have failed in a boiler that is only 3 years old. And don’t all these things get checked in the annual service?! I am just worried as at the moment this is all included under the warranty but if I have to pay independently that will be a nightmare.
any other similar experiences with new(ish) boilers? And BG? Just not sure i have confidence that they will fix it!
thanks
What makes you think the warranty will not apply, have you modified the boiler or done something to it yourself that would invalidate the warranty?0 -
[Deleted User] said:Components fail: that is a basic fact of life. A service yesterday does not guarantee that a component will not fail today. There is some good advice in this link:
https://www.viessmann.co.uk/en/heating-advice/boilers/what-to-do-if-your-boiler-pressure-is-too-high.html
Has the engineer checked the pressure in the expansion vessel (if you have one)? Often expansion vessels are not replaced when a new boiler is fitted. The expansion vessel has a flexible diaphragm which can perish over time. Has the engineer spoken to Valliant support for advice?
yes he has - he initially topped up the pressure in the expansion vessel and then replaced it. Pressure still remains high. He has spoken to his superior person at BG but I don’t think to Vaillant specifically. I will ask him.0 -
Olly_J said:LondonS30 said:
Few days ago the boiler starts leaking with water dripping from base and sides onto kitchen counter. We turn the boiler off - spend ages bleeding radiators. Pressure comes down but then rises back up even without heating or hot water being on.Where else can water enter the system from?
I live in an older property so the stopcock for the water supply is outside. We had the bathroom redone recently and they turned it on/off from there. Could this have anything to do with it? Or as long as the filling loop is closed can water not enter the boiler system?
im just concerned he seems to be replacing all these parts but not knowing where the problem actually is!0 -
nadsat said:As said check the filling loop tap - is it letting water in and overpressurising the boiler? This happened to us with a 2 year old Vaillant Ecotec and it was fixed by our installer on a maintenance visit. He replaced the tap and also positioned it so we couldn't accidentally knock it open as there is kitchen stuff near it in the cupboard the boiler is in. He also changed a component - probably the pressure sensor.This boiler also failed a week after our installer put it in - wouldn't start. Under the guarantee you are entitled to a Valiant engineer for a manufacturing/component fault - an installer shouldn't touch a component failure not caused by issues outwith the boiler. We had to wait 5 days for the Vaillant engineer but he replaced an expensive faulty component (forget what) in 15 mins with no fuss.
so all the work so far has been done by the BG engineer (not Vaillant) so he has ordered all the Vaillant parts and replaced the pressure sensor, expansion vessel etc.I purchased my boiler through British Gas so have had all my dealings with them (big mistake). Should I speak with Vaillant directly?? I’m worried as I don’t want to be charged by them if covered by British Gas. But don’t really know who is responsible within the warranty period. My warranty is via British Gas if that makes sense.0 -
LondonS30 said:The filling loop is definitely closed. We checked this first and he has since checked it as well.Where else can water enter the system from?The filling loop is the only point of entry, but it is possible they can become faulty and not close off the supply, even when they appear closed, dirt or debris preventing a tight seal etc so water still seeps in, as its under 2 bar of pressure or so. If you were to turn off the stop outside, run a tap for a bit to release pipe pressure then re-check your boiler that should tell you if its the issue or notDo you have a pressure gauge on the boiler side pipe work or are you relying on the boiler display itself?0
-
Olly_J said:LondonS30 said:The filling loop is definitely closed. We checked this first and he has since checked it as well.Where else can water enter the system from?The filling loop is the only point of entry, but it is possible they can become faulty and not close off the supply, even when they appear closed, dirt or debris preventing a tight seal etc so water still seeps in, as its under 2 bar of pressure or so. If you were to turn off the stop outside, run a tap for a bit to release pipe pressure then re-check your boiler that should tell you if its the issue or notDo you have a pressure gauge on the boiler side pipe work or are you relying on the boiler display itself?
He keeps saying how dirty the system is and keeps talking about a Powerflush (which i already paid for when boiler was installed 3 years ago). Whilst i accept a dirty system can cause issues and cause parts to fail - I don’t think it’s the sole problem!!
I will double check but I think he would have replaced the filling loop before all the other components (hopefully). If it was an issue with debris in the filling loop (even if closed) and you replaced it, would that fix the issue/ normalise the pressure? Thanks0
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply
Categories
- All Categories
- 347.8K Banking & Borrowing
- 251.9K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 452.2K Spending & Discounts
- 240.1K Work, Benefits & Business
- 616.3K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 175.4K Life & Family
- 253.5K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16K Discuss & Feedback
- 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards