Manufacturers and rule makers prejudice against elderly.

[Paul Barker]

Yesterday fitted new boiler, old man is deaf scenile and stroke ridden, wife is barely coping with life.

Anyhow due to regs I had to fit a stat, and since they have a lovely home and the boiler is in a utility back addition some way from main room I fitted a programmable radia stat.

When I cam to explain it all I very quickly realised my mistake, after turning the flat upside down for the reading glasses the old lady found a magnifying glass, but she still couldn't see the little 1 figure you know, stating the Drayton rf2 is on.

I quickly realised the techknowlogy was absolutely useless to her, so I stuck it at 21 degrees on position 1, and showed her how to turn the big knob on the vokera compact between the three positions. Likewise the segmented analogue timer on the vokera is useless to frail fingered old people.

I should have just left them with the original trv controlled system and flaunted the regs.

I've given a 5 year guarantee so I can envisage many pleasant trips to Whitby, but on the plus side I have been told there is a cup of t for me any time I'm in the area.

Don 't even ask how the filling loop demonstration went.

CAN WE PLEASE HAVE ELDERLY FRIENDLY CONTROLS?

I recon if every time I'm on a job in Whitby I call round for my cup of t and check the system I'll save on my time in the long run.

Perhaps I should have let British Gas have the job at their 3.5 g's for a combiswap price they gave them.

Actually now I've fitted what Preser wants me to, I suppose I could bang the temnp on the radiostat right up to 25 and stick the trv's back in the room, so the system is changed back to what it was in the first place, it would be more efficient that way than in the hands of folk who cant comprehend, see or have dextrous ability to operate the controls I'm required to provide.

On similar note while I was breaking a sink for an old lady from church (well managed to get one tap off successfully but half way through loostening up the putty on second CRACK. New policy hit basin with lump hammer from start, saves all that unnecessary initial effort to save it.

ANYHOW, to get to point, some verty nice people fitted her heating for free, but now I have a lifetime of checking her filling pressure and topping up for free. I didn't even start to explain it.

Could we please have talking pressure guages and big levers on filling loops with very positive nighting?

 

[chrishutt]

Agree wholeheartedly with all of above. I'm getting to an age where I'm beginning to yearn for the simpler times of yore, when a simple on/off room stat was the height of sophistication. Do we really need so much complexity in everything?

More specifically I've been trying to track down a simple, low cost voltage free room stat for fitting with Biasis (and other combis that require voltage free switching). They're mostly going into tenanted flats where the last thing you want is to have to explain the workings of complex controls to every new tenant, or to be called out because the batteries powering the stat have run down.

Best bet so far looks like the Drayton Combi Stat. No batteries. Nice large dial. Suits all voltages, with or without accelerators. Low Price. Anyone know of anything else like this?

 

[cowboyplumber]

I was up sc'boro/whitby a few days ago - the contracting work is a no go..
Looks like there's some right rough fitters up there Paul.
Never seen so many incorrectly sited flues.
My personal favourite was the one projecting out at least 600, three stories up.

 

[Paul Barker]

You should visit the Isle of Mull m8!

 

[Gasman1015]

Welcome to the world of elderly customers, it has always been difficult to find the right controls, for years I stuck with the Drayton Lifestyle 711 for the timer because of the large advance button and always wired in the stat such as the drayton, the Lifestyle is much easier for my band of elderlies, now that it adjusts its time twice a year, saves me two extra visits. would never use a programmable stat for such customers.
As for the filling loop always leave them connected but always just tell them to call me instead and I will pop in on my way home.
Even thought about connecting through a pressure reducing valve, set to 1bar, but thought better of it.

 

[chrishutt]

Even thought about connecting through a pressure reducing valve, set to 1bar, but thought better of it.

I've seen that done for an elderly lady. Quite tempted to do the same. I think such connections might be quite normal elsewhere in Europe. I think it's just the UK that has this stupid filling loop that everyone leaves connected anyway.