Heat exchanger cracked - is this repairable?

silvercar

I have an 18 year old boiler, covered by a British Gas service / repair contract. I’m currently away on holiday while builders are at work in my home. They report that the boiler had a leak which on further investigatIon by the gas safe guy who is moving and swapping rads, there is a crack in the heat exchanger. It’s isolated for the time being.

I know 18 years is a reasonable length of service, it’s a potterton combi, I’m wondering whether it is time to replace.

I have a BG contract on it, and only a few weeks ago it had a fault (something that looked like a spark plug, heat valve maybe) BG repaired that as well as doing a big sell on replacing such an old boiler.

when I get home I’ll call BG to repair. Does anyone know their view on repairing a cracked heat exchanger? Is it worth going down this road, or should I go for a new boiler? I’ve already had a quote from BG at around 3k including the supply of a magna clean that it currently doesn’t have.

I’m just north of London, so London prices unfortunately.

ThisIsWeird

Exact model?

Do some research and see if that part - I presume the Main Exchanger ('Heat Engine') - is still available, because that is BG's oft-used argument for declaring a boiler U/S; 'we cannot get the parts'.

Also check your maintenance contract to see if the MainX is covered. It is one of the most costly parts, and often it is not.

Take it from there...

If you cannot have it repaired under the existing contract, then best to renew the whole boiler - but don't use BG; they are known to be around the most costly. Instead try both local, trusted installers, and also Nationals such as Boxt and others. Compare specs closely.

silvercar

ThisIsWeird said:

Exact model?

Do some research and see if that part - I presume the Main Exchanger ('Heat Engine') - is still available, because that is BG's oft-used argument for declaring a boiler U/S; 'we cannot get the parts'.

Also check your maintenance contract to see if the MainX is covered. It is one of the most costly parts, and often it is not.

Take it from there...

If you cannot have it repaired under the existing contract, then best to renew the whole boiler - but don't use BG; they are known to be around the most costly. Instead try both local, trusted installers, and also Nationals such as Boxt and others. Compare specs closely.

Thanks. I can’t do much until I get home unfortunately.

silvercar

Potterton performa 28i. 2005 vintage.

grumbler

https://www.dhsspares.co.uk/category/gas-boiler-uk/appliance/potterton-performa-28i-pot237 
- just a random website. You can get it cheaper.
Also, I see two different heat exchangers for this boiler - main HE and just HE.

ThisIsWeird

Blimey - cheap!

https://www.heatingandcateringparts.com/product/main-heat-exchanger-for-pottertonperforma-28-28-i-system-28e-248017/

I suspect an easy replacement too.

Check your current contract to see if it's covered, check other fixed-price-repair outfits the same, or ask a local GasSafe if they'd do the job if you supply the part.

I was expecting a more modern type of exchanger, a far more significant part usually consisting of a sealed cylindrical jacket with the burner mounted in the centre - £undreds, and a significant labour task too. But this looks as tho' it's simply mounted above the burner, so could be replaceable without disturbing the actual burny bits (but obviously still very much a GasSafe task).

Call Potterton themselves and ask if they do a FPR on this. (They might not if they cannot get a brand new exchanger).

silvercar

Gas guy here now, doesn’t think it is the heat exchanger. Could be a couple of leaks causing problems…..boiler won’t fire up so maybe main control board.

At the end of the day it is old, so if it isn’t something that is cheap and or covered, it may be time for a new boiler. After all the last fault was only a few weeks ago.

Eldi_Dos

silvercar said:

At the end of the day it is old, so if it isn’t something that is cheap and or covered, it may be time for a new boiler. After all the last fault was only a few weeks ago.

Not many items give that amount of years of service,when we recently replaced boiler I worked out we had six cars over the lifespan of the boiler.
Kind of puts in perspective whether you have had value for money out of existing boiler.

Exodi

18 years! I think definitely time to think about getting a new boiler!

My old one went recently went recently, repair estimated £500-£1000 (not as old as yours, installed 2008, replaced end of 2022 so 14 years) and I kind of just accepted that they don't last forever, and cheered myself up by thinking about how much more efficient the new boiler is and how I'm bound to be saving sooo much money, the new boiler would end up paying for itself! No need to check if it was true or not.

18 years is very good, I'd be grinning ear to ear, definitely got bang for your buck there. If you replaced the heat exchanger, we all know it would be something else in 6 months time, and then 6 months after that. I had a new boiler installed for 2.5k (in December mind you) in the South East.

FreeBear

silvercar said:

Gas guy here now, doesn’t think it is the heat exchanger. Could be a couple of leaks causing problems…..boiler won’t fire up so maybe main control board.

At the end of the day it is old, so if it isn’t something that is cheap and or covered, it may be time for a new boiler. After all the last fault was only a few weeks ago.

With some boilers, the Potterton Powermax in particular, are prone to a number of faults, some of which could result in carbon monoxide escaping in to the room. So for safety reasons alone, it may be prudent to replace if yours is one of the dangerous ones. Certainly, a new boiler will be a little more efficient, so there would be a small saving to be had on your gas bill. Then there is the ongoing cost of repairs if you keep the Potterton - These can quickly add up, and in the long run, cost more than a new boiler.

If you decide a new boiler is a better option, do have a look at heat pumps when deciding which make/model to go for - Yes, you'd probably need larger radiators, but bigger ones would be advantageous even with a gas boiler (lower flow temperatures leading to higher efficiency). Oh, and you'd get a programmable thermostat which could deliver up to 10% savings out of the box.

silvercar

FreeBear said:

silvercar said:

Gas guy here now, doesn’t think it is the heat exchanger. Could be a couple of leaks causing problems…..boiler won’t fire up so maybe main control board.

At the end of the day it is old, so if it isn’t something that is cheap and or covered, it may be time for a new boiler. After all the last fault was only a few weeks ago.

With some boilers, the Potterton Powermax in particular, are prone to a number of faults, some of which could result in carbon monoxide escaping in to the room. So for safety reasons alone, it may be prudent to replace if yours is one of the dangerous ones. Certainly, a new boiler will be a little more efficient, so there would be a small saving to be had on your gas bill. Then there is the ongoing cost of repairs if you keep the Potterton - These can quickly add up, and in the long run, cost more than a new boiler.

If you decide a new boiler is a better option, do have a look at heat pumps when deciding which make/model to go for - Yes, you'd probably need larger radiators, but bigger ones would be advantageous even with a gas boiler (lower flow temperatures leading to higher efficiency). Oh, and you'd get a programmable thermostat which could deliver up to 10% savings out of the box.

Thanks. I've had new radiators fitted last week, definitely not changing those! I have Hive already.
 Ongoing repairs means my british gas homecare., rather than paying per repair.