Vaillant EcoTec Ignition Problem

pipastro · 7 Apr 2006

I have a Vaillant EcoTec Plus Boiler (For Gas Central Heating and Hot Water) and a Vaillant Vrt240 Electronic Thermostat.

I rennovated my apartment last year and installed the new boiler and central heating. Its a small apartment (500sq feet). I have one small room downstairs with a radiator and 2 rooms upstairs with 4 radiators.

The system has been working fine for 14 months but now I am having a lot of problems.

The main one is that the boiler will not light.

I keep getting the ignition error code f.28 on the boiler display. It seems that I have to reset the boiler everytime I want hot water, it takes a good 5 mins from resetting the boiler and turning the tap open to getting hot water!

Also the heating is not working as the system cuts out after 5 mins.

I looked through the instructions but they dont help at all.

Can anyone help me and tell me whats wrong? How do I fix the problem?

Im not sure if this is of info any use but 2 weeks ago the system did loose pressure, it went down to 0.5 bar so I used the valve on the bottome of the boiler and filled it back to 1.5 bar and since then the prssure is ok. Apart from that nothing noticeable has been going wrong.

Thanks a lot

Pip

chrishutt · 7 Apr 2006

Your boiler has a 2 year guarantee. Why don't you call back the installer or Vaillant?

pipastro · 7 Apr 2006

Im in Croatia and they only gave me 1 year Warranty!

Agile · 7 Apr 2006

His details says he is in the UK !!! Even measures flat area in square FEET !!! There is not much more British than FEET !

The two year warranty only applies if the boiler is serviced at the end of the first year by a CORGI registered engineer.

This sounds like an illegal instal by a non registered person. It seems to me that he will have to call a properly qualified engineer to it now !

Tony

pipastro · 7 Apr 2006

I am English, but Im not in England at the moment. FYI there are loads of English people living in Greece, Spain etc and Croatia is the next hot spot - hence buying a flat here.

My flat is 55 sq meters, so I guessed that was about 500 sq feet.

Still, I have a problem with the boiler. It was not installed illegally as there are no laws with regards to installation etc here.

The main thing is that most of the plumbers here are cowboys and they are rip off merchants, so Id rather get some advice first. If I can reset something then Id do it myself, if it is essential to call a guy, then Id at least like to know roughly what the problem is so I dont get ripped off.

Agile · 7 Apr 2006

Thanks for explaining your situation.

The manufacturer's instructions require that the boiler is fitted and particularly comissioned by a competent gas qualified engineer with the appropriate test equipment.

Your boiler is a sophisticated piece of equipment and needs a boiler engineer NOT a plumber. We have to check several aspects to identify the problem and rectify it. This requires training and experience as well as the test equipment. Thats why we have to charge about £70-£100 to fix them!

Repairing this kind of premix boiler is not just a matter of "resetting something" ! The only thing you can check is that the gas supply is turned on ! Do you have a working gas cooker?

I would suggest you contact your local Vailliant Agent to find out who the approved Engineer is in your area. Ask him if he has a flue gas analyser as it may be required to set the boiler up properly and check its performance.

Tony Glazier

pipastro · 7 Apr 2006

I do use gas to cook and it is working fine.

Basically I usually live in London, so in November I set the radiators and Boiler to keep the flat at 9.c to stop any freezing.

The ater here has a lot of limescale, could that be cauing the problem?

I came back to Croatia in Feb and the problems have started since then.

They are getting worse.

Now I have to open the hot water tap then press the reset button on the boiler and wait 5 mins for hot water to wash the dishes.

I bought a Vaillant as I'd heard that they were good quality, but this one is giving me a bad headache!

I guess I can turn off the boiler, the electricity and close the gd valve off and turn then on again one by one.

As I said though, here there seems to be no such thing as a 'professional' I have had so many problems with builders that its costing me a fortune

and all claim to be certified, but its clear that none of them have done a professional or good job so far. I certainly dont trust any of them - hence being on here.

Any help is most appreciated.

Cheers

Pip

http://www.visitcroatia2.proboards76.com/

Agile · 7 Apr 2006

In your situation I would suggest that you have a too advanced piece of equipment for the local level of expertise.

Its very good and they are popular here but then they are installed by CORGI registered people who have an idea of what they are doing.

Tony

pipastro · 7 Apr 2006

Yes, that may be true - perhaps I should have got a more basic boiler.

The reason I got this one was that they explained that its got more electronics, so maintaining it, its more relaible and running it costs less.... so much for that!

Still anyone got any suggestions whats wrong with the boiler?

I need at least some ideas before I call up the con men, at least that way I can bargain when they try to extort cash from me.

Cheers

pip

http://www.visitcroatia2.proboards76.com/

geoff@cetltd · 7 Apr 2006

Agile said:
In your situation I would suggest that you have a too advanced piece of equipment for the local level of expertise.

Its very good and they are popular here but then they are installed by CORGI registered people who have an idea of what they are doing.

Tony

ROTFLMAO

pipastro · 7 Apr 2006

I called up Vaillant in the Uk and spoke to them.

They said it may be that the gas pressure is low.

Anyways I still have no idea.

How come all you Heating Engineers out there in cyberspace cant help a guy out with some info?

http://www.visitcroatia2.proboards76.com/

Agile · 7 Apr 2006

We have no idea either without doing some basic checks including measuring gas pressures!

These are complicated pieces of equipment! Its not a bicycle where the chain has come off! Its run by a computer!

Tony

chrishutt · 7 Apr 2006

pipastro said:
Im in Croatia and they only gave me 1 year Warranty!

If Vaillant can give guarantee cover in Croatia they must have service agents there. Use them. They should have standard charges set for the Croatian market.

pipastro · 14 Apr 2006

just goes to show that this board is a waste of time.

all the so-called plumbers out there cant even offer some simple advice.

BTW I fixed the prob myself, quite simple really.

Watch out for the conmen in the UK giving non-advice on here, its all useless.

Better just read the detailed manual on your boiler and work it out yourself.

Gasguru · 14 Apr 2006

So what was the problem?

diynot

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Vaillant EcoTec Ignition Problem

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