Maybe in your neck of the woods Agile but not mine
Vaillant Issues
- Thread starter vince101
- Start date
Maybe in your neck of the woods Agile but not mine
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well if your not sure you could always work it out? Although I dont want to risk suggesting that people should be engineers...god forbid
http://www.ukcopperboard.co.uk/literature/pdfs/Installation-Tips/Small-bore-heating-systems.pdf
Vince101, you might want to look at insulating your walls and improving the loft insulation as doing so takes your whole house boiler size down from 18kW to around 12kW!!
Most people on here tend to use this calculator to work out the Whole House size and take a look at this site for further information on cavity wall insulation. You may find you can get it done for free or very cheap via the various subsidies available from energy companies and/or grants and it will save you £££'s on your energy bills!
I have the ecoTEC 418 boiler along with the Vaillant VRT392/VR65 controls connected to a 'standard' open vent cylinder of a similar age to yours and spent a lot of time optimising the boiler and balancing the system. If you want to see the 'nitty gritty' and have some spare time, have a read of my thead here which may help you (or confuse you! lol) - Your issue #1 is a common one it would seem on here with Vaillant ecoTEC boilers due to their initial burner rate being too high for the system to disperse. This results in the boiler switching to "anti-cycle" mode for x amount of time, then attempting again.
There are ways around this issue (my solution is detailed in the above thread) however, your system design issues (i.e. pumping over etc) should be your priority!
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UpgradeMe...I really appreciated your post and was gobsmacked by all the work you've done to optimise your boiler. Impressive.
It's very clear from the expertise on this board, that the experience is in the people who install/use the boilers. I got very little out of Vaillant themselves. I couldn't talk to anyone as I'm not registered and emails were ignored or red herrings given back.
ps. What was the rough cost for the VRT392/VR65 controls? Off the shelf they seem to be about £200 but then there's installation costs on top.
Vince
It's very clear from the expertise on this board, that the experience is in the people who install/use the boilers. I got very little out of Vaillant themselves. I couldn't talk to anyone as I'm not registered and emails were ignored or red herrings given back.
ps. What was the rough cost for the VRT392/VR65 controls? Off the shelf they seem to be about £200 but then there's installation costs on top.
Vince
It has reduced my energy consumption down considerable (currently -30%) from my previous installation so well worth it!
I paid £121 (inc VAT & delivery) from www.supremeplumb.com for both the VRT 392 and VR 65 & I fitted them myself. It took me about 1-2 hrs to actually fit (that was taking my time!
However, I had previously worked out the wiring so knew exactly how to connect them up as a replacement for my existing S-Plan wiring and room thermostat) The actual wiring is a pretty simple job for anyone experienced / competent in electrics!
P.s. Vaillant have released an update to the VRT392 which is called a VRT370. I'm not sure if they are available in the UK (not on Vaillant's UK site) but all their products tend to be multi-lingual and someone may know a EU/UK supplier! (The VRC 430 has also been updated to the VRC470). See this site for details
As its been a few months since I posted I thought I'd give an update as well asking a question. A reminder that I have a replacement boiler:
• Ecotech 428
• Open Vent condensing boiler
• Fully pumped system (2 motorised valves)
• DAB VA55-130: 3 speed pump on setting 2
• Power flushed prior to installation
• Magnetic cleanser
• 22mm automatic bypass valve
Following the feedback from the forum I had the installer connect the expansion tank/ cold water feed correctly to the pump suction per manual. Also I reset D0 to 20. This worked a treat and stopped the use of the expansion tank as another radiator.
I've used the system on both Heating and Hot Water since. Hot water alone doesn't work as it cycles continually and I'm getting a fast recovery cylinder added next month which should help.
I'm considering adding the controls recommended this summer as well.
Only problem is that in last few few weeks the dreaded S53 problem has shown its ugly head again. Tried dropping D0 to 17 but that doesn't help. The system just sits there refusing to work. I don't think its the ambient temp. Now and again it works fine or I just system reset (by pressing top left button) and again its fine.
Reviewing all the wealth of knowledge on this forum, I'm at a loss. Only think I can think of is maybe the pump is slightly undersized. It gives 2m head at 1200 l/min which is slightly under the resistance of 2.5m per manual...but then its worked ok previously. I can't run it a pump speed 3 as this gives a small leak in the cylinder (hence the changeout)
Anybody any suggestions???
• Ecotech 428
• Open Vent condensing boiler
• Fully pumped system (2 motorised valves)
• DAB VA55-130: 3 speed pump on setting 2
• Power flushed prior to installation
• Magnetic cleanser
• 22mm automatic bypass valve
Following the feedback from the forum I had the installer connect the expansion tank/ cold water feed correctly to the pump suction per manual. Also I reset D0 to 20. This worked a treat and stopped the use of the expansion tank as another radiator.
I've used the system on both Heating and Hot Water since. Hot water alone doesn't work as it cycles continually and I'm getting a fast recovery cylinder added next month which should help.
I'm considering adding the controls recommended this summer as well.
Only problem is that in last few few weeks the dreaded S53 problem has shown its ugly head again. Tried dropping D0 to 17 but that doesn't help. The system just sits there refusing to work. I don't think its the ambient temp. Now and again it works fine or I just system reset (by pressing top left button) and again its fine.
Reviewing all the wealth of knowledge on this forum, I'm at a loss. Only think I can think of is maybe the pump is slightly undersized. It gives 2m head at 1200 l/min which is slightly under the resistance of 2.5m per manual...but then its worked ok previously. I can't run it a pump speed 3 as this gives a small leak in the cylinder (hence the changeout)
Anybody any suggestions???
M
mysteryman
I would consider changing to a Y or W Plan when upgrading the cylinder. Then there will always be a path open for pump overrun. 3 port valves are perfectly adequate for your size of boiler, although the reactionaries on here may challenge that. I assume that you've had the layout corrected. Leaving a system pumping over is unbelievable! He should be shot.
I forgot to mention typical D40/D41 values.
Ramping up when D0 = 17 this morning...though its behaved itself much better than previously!
10 mins = 55/30 (dT =25)
20 mins = 67/38 (dT = 29)
25 mins = 70/41 (dT = 29)
S53 for 15 mins and restarts automatically
40 mins = 68/46 (dT = 22)
45 mins = 70/47 (dT = 23)
50 mins = 74/50 (dT = 24) and running ok
Ramping up when D0 = 17 this morning...though its behaved itself much better than previously!
10 mins = 55/30 (dT =25)
20 mins = 67/38 (dT = 29)
25 mins = 70/41 (dT = 29)
S53 for 15 mins and restarts automatically
40 mins = 68/46 (dT = 22)
45 mins = 70/47 (dT = 23)
50 mins = 74/50 (dT = 24) and running ok
Struth! As a new person on the board about to order a new boiler I'm amazed to see extent of the problems with this system.
Looks as though I won't be buying a Vaillant!
Looks as though I won't be buying a Vaillant!
A
ALEC1
vaillant have one boiler that has an issue it is the 400 series...and this can be solved by buying a much bigger than normal pump...
all the rest are fine to excellent with the right controls...
all the rest are fine to excellent with the right controls...
I would explain it a different way!
The installer should be familiar with what he is installing and all its foibles and fit the correct pump at the outset!
Tony
It's not Vaillant's fault if installers insist on trying to balance the boiler for an 11C differential when it is designed for a 20C one. The resistance of the heat exchanger is then so high that normal pumps cannot cope.
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