Keston Boiler Starting problems

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30 Jan 2007
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Surrey
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United Kingdom
I have a Keston C130 which I inherited when I bought this house last year. Lately it seems to have problems when firing up, which can take it 15-20 minutes or more. Red boiler light is on but the green light flashes once each time the burner tries to light but fails. This cycle is repeated over and over until it finally does light. Boiler pressure is 1.5bar and the only other thing of note is the noisy intake fan which I understand is a design problem with this boiler. Anyone help?

cheers,

John
 
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the whole boiler is a design problem....definately in my top 3 worst boilers ever made.

i would junk it at your first opportunity.

thankfully ive not had the pleasure of working on one of these for quite some time and cant remember its particular faults other than the condensate leaking like an open tap onto the electrics.

best thing is to get someone to look at it properly.....if its not been opened for a while the allen bolts will probably shear out of the captive part so its best looked at by someone else if you dont fancy repairing that.
 
If the fan runs up to full speed (OK- it's noisy!), the green light (burner on) flashes then goes out, the boiler has lit but then for whatever reason gone out again. Either the flame sense gave up and locked it out, or the flame actually failed.

If the thing hasn't been serviced for a while (as it should have been!), your most cost-effective option would probably be an overhaul by Keston. You're apparently in Surrey, they're in West Kent, so geography is in your favour.
 
The spark electrodes "=ignitor" and HT lead are particularly weak points.
Nobody's favourite to work on...
 
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I am quite happy to work on them but like others I find them pretty unreliable.

Thats a pity because the basic design and components are almost industrial quality.

Its let down by AAVs above electrical components, unreliable pressure switches and in early versions a fan supply which blows a fuse soldered onto the PCB. The HT leads are far less reliable that a car ignition lead but much more expensive.

Tony
 
I installed two keston c130 LPG boilers on a rig and both have given me no end of trouble. On one I have had to install 3 pumps at a cool £900 fitted only to find that the condensate is leaking into the pump from a now defective stainless steel heat exchanger. So total repair cost this time will be £2000.
I rang Keston and they are fully aware about this problem but couldnt care less. My advice to anyone who considers a keston is DONT!
If you have a loss of pressure over time in your Keston it could well be a Faulty heat exchanger at least a £1000 to repair.
I hope that this will make Keston think twice about shoddy boilers and crap customer service
Richard
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Sad
 
I work on loads of these boilers, normal problem is electrode and HT lead.
Or sometimes the burner just needs washing with household detergent and rinsing through.

Normally solves ignition problems.

James
 
Scrap the b*stard.

Keston boilers are amongst the most unreliable out there. Ignore all the H&V Awards pony and trap, they are easy to install (thus the awards) but after that you are in a world of pain. And a noisy fan.

Either get GForceJames to sell you a fixed price annual maintenance contract (ha ha) or bin it.

Kestons are mainly specified by self build virgins taken in by the H&V awards, or unscrupulous installers looking for an easy flue job and never intending to return.
 
I'll 7th the get rid vote, have never opened one up yet that isn't full of water at the bottom, stupidly expensive parts, continual ignition faults. Just yuck.
 
I moved house around 18 months ago and inherited a Keston 170 installed in 2002.

I have to agree with the negative comments I read on various blogs regarding this companies products.

With the 170 and perhaps the other models one of the main problems seems to lie in the control boards.

The original company that supplied them has gone out of business and the new boards have gone through different versions (they refer to them as variants).

I have had three repalcement boards and am currently talking to a company who swears that if they get a very recent board through Keston directly all the ignition problems will be solved.

I was told by Keston that their engineers would not come out between the months of October and March as they were too busy repairing boilers still under their one minimal year warranty.

The whole thing smaks of "firefighting" to be frank. I will be writing to Keston and am considering action against them. I believe I have a good case to suggest that their boilers are not of merchantable quality.

If you would be interested in giving your support (in the form of written comments) to an action group of some sort then let me know.

I really feel strongly about companies producing high value consumer goods that clearly are not of sufficient quality and that this should be made public.
 
In a school close to my house they had a Keston 170 fitted, the fan is like an aircraft engine, it can be heard all over the new part of the building were the boiler is situated. (In a room that is locked shut).

It runs a full UFH system. Surprisingly it only broke down once since 2002.
 
In a school close to my house they had a Keston 170 fitted, the fan is like an aircraft engine, it can be heard all over the new part of the building were the boiler is situated. (In a room that is locked shut).

It runs a full UFH system. Surprisingly it only broke down once since 2002.

I'm told there is a "silencer" that can be fitted to the exhaust outlet on the outside of the building. Essentially a baffle of some sort. If its no longer made there must be alternatives made by other manufacturers. My own boiler (when it works) is noisy outside and I will be fitting this part or equivalent.
 
I'm told there is a "silencer" that can be fitted to the exhaust outlet on the outside of the building. Essentially a baffle of some sort. If its no longer made there must be alternatives made by other manufacturers. My own boiler (when it works) is noisy outside and I will be fitting this part or equivalent.
If its the same issue as the C25 then a restrictor is placed on the air intake. I think you ought to talk to keston although its unlikely that they will explain any such 'temporary' fixes.

I think Tony fixes Kestons so maybe he would comment.
 
I moved into a new house in 2000 which had a pair of Keston C170 boilers.

From the outset these proved hideously unreliable. However, it also became apparent that they had not been installed correctly in that the 'manifold' approach recommended by Keston had simply been ignored. I finally paid to have the two boilers replumbed into a manifold and the result has been a huge improvement in reliability - but problems do still occur.

I have not kept a log of the faults and failures I have experienced since 2000 but I'm certain, on average, that I've had to call out an engineer at least once a quarter throughout the period.

Just about every component that could fail has failed at some point on one or other of the two boilers including two heat exchangers, one fan and several RAM CPUs. The cost has been HORRENDOUS.

On the plus side, when they are working, the C170 boilers are great - very efficient and seemingly economical. Although the Services Consultant who designed the house's heating system reckoned two boilers were needed, we've only ever run one to heat a 7500 sq ft house and pool - which is just as well as it leaves the second boiler in reserve to take over when the first one fails, as it inevitably will.

Given the choice, I wouldn't want Keston to heat my next home - and especially as during my first 30 years of home ownership I only ever had Potterton and their boilers never let me down even once.

You have been warned!

PS Message to Keston: Try a lot harder; do a lot bettter; or jack it in and let those who know how to manufacture a quality product get on with the job without you.
 

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