Gloworm Swiftflow 120 just clicking, no CH or HW

[andsam]

I dont think the fan is causing you the problem ,as you said in an earlier post the fan runs then stops.

 

[Polly1]

I dont think the fan is causing you the problem ,as you said in an earlier post the fan runs then stops.

Well it runs, then it slows & speeds up over & over in unison with what I believe is the air pressure switch clicking.

My usual plumber says it's either the air pressure switch is faulty, or the fan is faulty. He wanted to change the switch & see if it fixed the problem (about £140 for labour & parts - no guarantee of a fix though). The move onto the fan if it still didn't work.

But a Glow-worm technician I managed to get on the phone yesterday said that the fans sometimes stick in a way that prevents them running fast enough which I guess when running it normally activates the air pressure switch & allows the boiler to fire up. He said I might be able to knock the fan free by giving it a bash around the fan which I will try when I'm back at my home.

So yes the fan runs, but it might not be working properly. Personally I'd hoped someone would read this thread who's had direct experience of the problem, but it did sound like the Glow-worm guy had.

If knocking it doesn't work, I'm left with calling the guy I spoke to today. I would have liked Tony's fixed price diagnostic & attempt to repair there & then, I am not as tight as he first thought, I just don't like writing blank cheques like my existing plumber wants.

It's like your mechanic changing your dashboard because the brake light is showing. You pay for it & the light still shows because you actually needed to change your brakes!

 

[Agile]

You can always squirt WD40 into the fan bearing yourself and see if that changes the situation.

I am still of the opinion the problem is NOT the fan but the APS or PCB or venturi.

Tony

PS Went to a boiler this evening with about NINE different faults, most were due to incompetent installer or subsequent fiddlers. Left it working eventually at 22.45 and bill of £172 but it ideally still needs a new PCB.

 

[Slugbabydotcom]

he doesn't do no fix - no fee because he is always able to fix it

Thats what you call confidence!!!

Trouble is a conman can be confident cos he can swap everything till he hits on the right problem.

What would I do in your situation ?

Offer tony a bonus to travel out of his normal patch as his reputation precedes him. Devil you know Vs devil you don't

Dont know if I'm out of order for saying that on here [advertising] But thats the way I see it, so read this post quick before it gets deleted

 

[Agile]

That will not work! Firstly I have no reputation. Secondly, we aim to give total customer satisfaction.

We can only give the latter when we are able to ensure that we could, if asked, go back to the property promptly.

The other side of London is really a no-no. Its a four hour return trip.

The job I went to this evening in East London ( still north of the river ! ) took 4 hours on site and about 1.5 hours travelling and our charge according to our standard formula came to £172 including a £28 part.

Not that worthwhile really but we impressed the customer who had been kept waiting seven days by a manufacturer's service agent. It will probably lead to other recommendations! He also gave a restaurant recomendation as better than Brick lane and thats worth £20 in itself.

Tony Glazier

 

[Slugbabydotcom]

Firstly I have no reputation

1200+ reputable posts would imply otherwise to me.
I take your other point though, 4 hours travelling is a bit much.

Maybe one of the other lads here could help? ChrisR perhaps?

 

[Polly1]

Through Earl's Court from NW10 to SW11 it takes 30 mins as long as it's not peak traffic and as long as Chelsea isn't playing that day!

Interesting tip on the WD10 though, thanks. Whatever the cause is, the fan isn't running at full throttle & it was until the fault surfaced.

 

[Slugbabydotcom]

Take care with the WD40. I did that on a swiftflow 80 [same thing sticking fan] But the spray propellant turned out to be butane which is heavier than air. It made its way down to the pilot, ignited and gave me a free beard and eyebrow trim

 

[like to help]

hi have a look at www.cetltd.com for recon fan and pcb i think £75 +vat and del is good value
worth it for a 8 yrs old boiler
i have talked to my cent heat eng and he thinks this model has a sensor in series with the aps and they play up
i hope this helps i am sure you can get it fixed but will glowworm come out soon ??? post back when fixed same model as mine
i have had 2 fans and 1 pcb

 

[pierrot]

Well I managed to find a local guy available next week who says he doesn't do no fix - no fee because he is always able to fix it. He charges £50 + VAT an hour & says if it's the fan it'll probably cost about £200 in total.

Does that sound right?

From what I hear about london prices that sounds cheap.

 

[like to help]

have a look at chat with www.adlinkuk.com
may be able to help

 

[ChrisR]

Just mended one of these on Lavender Hill.
You put kettle on.
Engineer puts tacho on the fan to see how fast it's spinning. If he doesn't recognise the type to know the speed, then putting WD40 on the BEARINGS will show a speed increase and diagnose any fault there.
Then he checks the pressure switch with a digital manometer.
White no sugar. It is/isn't your fan/APS, dahlin'.
Probably several other things...
Busy this week - I really must finish my bathroom.

 

[Polly1]

hi have a look at www.cetltd.com for recon fan and pcb i think £75 +vat and del is good value
worth it for a 8 yrs old boiler
i have talked to my cent heat eng and he thinks this model has a sensor in series with the aps and they play up
i hope this helps i am sure you can get it fixed but will glowworm come out soon ??? post back when fixed same model as mine
i have had 2 fans and 1 pcb

Hi, thanks for posting the above. Are you a dealer selling parts? Or a poor soul relying on these boilers like me?

I arrived back at my place this afternoon. I opened up the old beast, located the air pressure switch and bypassed it with a screwdriver which got the boiler running.

The fan sounds like an aeroplane in there, so I suspect the APS is giving a correct reading to switch off because of a fault with the fan. But I can get the hot water running and at least have a shower. The burner is burning blue, so I think it is pushing enough air through despite the noise. Because the fan is so loud I am sticking with electric radiators until I get it fixed.

I gave it a little oil around the fans axle prior to bypassing the APS though, but that hasn't seemed to help the fan run any better.

If anyone thinks I'm an idiot for forcing the boiler to run, let me know now so I don't blow myself up!!

 

[Polly1]

I just realised that with the fan being so loud that if the fan is on bearings as mentioned by another poster above, that the bearings may have had it & may be restricting the speed the fan can run at.

Does that sound right?

The way this is going I think I'll use the bypassed boiler (watching to see that the flame is always blue) just for showers and shut it off at all other times. And I'll book the Glow-worm £195 all-in deal for January. That's also partly because HRPC just gave me a price for the fan of £163.06 + VAT, which makes the all-in deal with Glow-worm sound great.

Thanks for the help forumites.....

 

[like to help]

i am not a dealer just a diy chap who works with electrics for my job and had friends who have had so many experts not repair combi boilers and modern boilers.get the parts ordered and the local guy to fit
i have no association with the companies i suggested except i have used them and cet are on the ball
i am sure you could get them both ordered and fitted in a couple of days
good luck post back with results

i think you should have at least 4 yrs left in the boiler.are you in a very hard water area ???
good luck post back when fixed.
i think for safety best to switch off