Leaking boiler.

B0bbyEwing

So just found out my boiler (Worcester Greenstar) is leaking from towards the rear-right. Even worse is this must've been doing it over a week. The carpet is absolutely drenched & it's started to show on the ceiling of the room below - which is how I noticed it.

The boiler was serviced just before Xmas. As in only a couple days or so before.

I'll not be calling the same plumber out as he messed us about quite a bit but I'm wondering since not long has passed since he serviced it - how likely is it that he's damaged something or not put it back together properly & it's lead to this leak?

WIAWSNB

I guess you'll only know if/when you get someone else to fix it.

Does the boiler have a pressure gauge? Do you need to top it up?

If yes and no, then it'll either be condensate - a bit nasty as slightly acidic - or clean mains water. Any idea which?

B0bbyEwing

Well I had the heating on & when I had a look at the gauge it said about 1.7 bar.

It's been leaking for a week for sure so I would've expected the pressure to have dropped (though I don't have a clue what I'm talking about).

If it's condensation then it's a LOT of condensation. Like I say, the carpet is soaking & it's all the way through to the ceiling below.

I've turned the boiler off, put a bucket underneath & dehumidifier on. Will have to call an emergency plumber in the morning.

Additional questions -

1. Since mould seems to be notoriously bad to get rid of, how do you guys advise to deal with it having nor formed on the carpet and floorboarding
2. And how to deal with the brown water staining on the ceiling of the room below?

dnpark38

Re. 1 and 2 won't you need to talk to your house insurance people on them?

grumpy_codger

If it's condensation then it's a LOT of condensation. Like I say, the carpet is soaking & it's all the way through to the ceiling below.

If it's a condensing boiler it really produces a lot of condensate.

1.Since mould seems to be notoriously bad to get rid of, how do you guys advise to deal with it having nor formed on the carpet and floorboarding

2.And how to deal with the brown water staining on the ceiling of the room below?

1. Just keep them dry.
2. google 'stain blocker'. Use it to paint the staining, then over with usual paint.

B0bbyEwing

Well I've just had a check now after watching a 90min film & the bucket underneath caught more water than I expected since I turned the boiler off.

Emptied bucket & will see how much it fills from 10pm to wake up. Will have to phone an emergency plumber in the morning.

WIAWSNB

If there's significant water in the bucket in the morning - ie with the boiler having been off overnight - then it's unlikely to be condensate. So, most likely clean mains water.

NB - 'condensate' is produced by the boiler when it runs, and is drained away via a plastic pipe under the boiler. It is not 'condensation' such as you'd find on your window panes.

It's Iikely a very simple issue to fix, assuming it was an error by the plumber - eg a fitting left loose or similar, tho' it's also possible that a component has failed. If you cannot ID where it's coming from, say by shining a torch under the boiler, then you just won't know the likely repair cost until it's investigated.

If the carpet is ruined, then it could be an insurance job as dnpark says - and you'd get the ceiling sorted at the same time. I doubt they'd fix the actual cause, tho'. It's impossible to say from this side whether the carpet will be ok if simply cleaned and wet-vac'd.

There's a chance, if it's found to be plumber error, your insurance co may wish to chase his policy to recover the cost. No idea how likely this is, but they might also wonder why you didn't get this guy back to sort. Tbh, I have no idea how likely any of that is.

Soooo, really, you should try and see where the leak is coming from, and also strongly consider getting the guy back to sort it; if it's 'error' then at least the fix won't cost you a penny. What he'll suggest for sorting the carpet and leak, no idea - but he'd be liable.

thebullsback

if its leaking about a cup full a Day my guess would be the Pressure Relief valve is faulty . About £25 to buy but Gas Safe types will charge about £150 for twenty min job.

B0bbyEwing

Well the bucket isn't full but it's got water in this morning. I'm not going to go clanging & banging at this time so once the wife wakes up I'll have a better look at it all.

As for why I wouldn't be looking to get the plumber out. 2 reasons basically:

1. We've had him out a few times. First maybe 2 times he was OK but after that he's just constantly late & I'm not talking 5mins. The past twice were really quite bad. 2nd last he turned up an hour late & just said "I'm late aren't I" with a laugh. Then part way through a service he says you don't mind me going home do you, I have a delivery coming. He doesn't live far away but he took ages. On his return - I'm a bit ('bit'!) later than I thought I stopped for a brew with [whoever]. For his last time we booked him in via his site & he didn't turn up. He then messages the next day to say his booking system is messed (hmm!) can we do X-date at X-time. We say yes. 2 hours after that time without any contact from him to say he's running late, I decide to have my dinner & then head to town. As I'm taking my last bite the door goes & he turns up with just "I'm late" & walks in. No apology. I decided then not to deal with this guy again.
2. Cover ups. I don't trust anyone, especially where money is involved, to investigate something & say - oops I've caused this & now it's damaged your property so I'll certainly rectify this with a payout.

Oh and 3) his website doesn't say he's a 24/7 emergency plumber yet there's another guy down the road who it does say is an emergency on call plumber & seemingly gets good reviews over 50 reviews.

Edit to add - I ended up turning the boiler ON before I went to bed. Reason being I saw the forecast & it was set to get to -2c through the night & I was concerned things might freeze & cause more damage if the boiler is turned off.

WIAWSNB

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81883981#Comment_81883981

It could be that, but it still shouldn't leak out of the boiler.

WIAWSNB

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81884013#Comment_81884013

Ok, perfectly understandable, and your call to make.

The water in the bucket (assuming it's a clean bucket...), is it completely clear? And no smell? If so, then likely to be mains water.

If not perfectly clear and with a slight tangy chemical smell, then condensate.

Either way, you ain't going to DIY it! But, it would help to know the source, and all I'm suggesting is to shine a torch under where the pipes are, locate the drip, and try and trace it upwards.

Ok, this isn't important to do if you are getting a new GasSafe out, but I'd suggest is pretty vital if calling out the original guy.

I personally wouldn't call the new guy out as an 'emergency', at least not if it costs you more! Since he lives close to you, he'll almost certainly offer to pop in when he either leaves for, or returns from, other jobs; he will diagnose the issue in 5 minutes.

It's worth you considering your next moves too;

What are you going to do about your carpet? Who will you get out to clean it, and what will this cost?

Ditto for the ceiling stain. (Which will need to fully dry first.)

Will you make an insurance claim? If so, what is the excess, and will your premiums increase?

I totally agree - the first guy is a waster and untrustworthy. So, you could argue you have legitimate cause to not want him back to sort this; "You have lost all trust in him", and you can cite all the earlier stuff for this. So, if it turns out that he made an error - left a fitting loose, dislodged a pipe or whatever, there is still the potential for making a claim against him. But I suggest you make it as modest as possible for it to be approved; a carpet clean, not replace etc. and the cost for the other plumber.

And you'd need to be able to justify your decision to not first give him an opportunity to fix it. I guess this might not be too hard; when he left last time, you had made the conscious decision to never have him back again. When you discovered a leak well over a month later, you acted on this, not knowing whether it was connected with that visit, so you got the new guy out as you'd decided. It was only when the new fellow diagnosed the cause that you realised it must have been caused by the old guy, but by then it was too late...

It would have to be clear that it was the previous guy's error, of course.

A MoneyClaim.org should sort it. I think you'd win, given everything you've said.

Do you have Legal Protection included in your house insurance? If so, call them up for advice - they should guide you. Have the facts ready. Be absolutely clear that you don't know if the issue was caused by the guy during the last service, and you had - following his last visit - already made the decision to not use him again (and justify this).