Excessive dust (back boiler )

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With a new born baby in our house weve had the heating on 24/7 since october. We have a back boiler.. wich works fine but for the last 3 week when we go in the living room in a morning its covered in a fine white dust, especially near the fire?

also when the pilot light is on and the boiler is heating up it keeps making a noise... like a pssssh noise throughout its heating up?


any help appreciated

Dan
 
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When was the last time it was properly serviced??

It sounds like it needs a strip and clean out.

Pilot when slightly overgased make a hissing noise but its no big issue,

If I were you I would be using NEITHER boiler or fire and get it looked at pronto!!! Also I would be buying a proper Carbon Monoxide alarm!!

Every house should have one...and not the cheep paper style either.
 
The noise could be a leaking HE dripping onto the burner.

As said get a CO alarm. The paper ones only tell those that find you how you died :eek:
 
You can't take a risk with back boilers. If you don't get them serviced regularly then you die.
There was a pic in this months gas installer of one that was serviced a year ago but because the owner had laminate flooring the dust had gathered even more and it looked like it hadn't been touched for 3 years or more. If you have laminate flooring consider getting it serviced 6 monthly especially if you have any furry pets or do ironing in the same room.

When dust lands on a carpet or rug it stays there until hoovered up. With laminate floors it blows about and joins the airflow coming through your vents and heading towards the back boiler. You need this air to burn your gas. With no filtration effect of the carpet it just gathers in the boiler causing Carbon monoxide and carbon to be produced then you die.

Although not the most efficient; back boilers are usually very reliable and so long as you still like the fire front they are well worth keeping IMO. The number of times I hear people regretting parting with their old back boiler for a new fangled condensing boiler that doesn't work you wouldn't believe.
Invest in a carbon monoxide detector or 2 as a back up. They are only £12.99 in Lloyds chemists.


also when the pilot light is on and the boiler is heating up it keeps making a noise... like a pssssh noise throughout its heating up?

I assume what you describe is a constant noise and I suspect this may be a bit of kettling caused by poor flow through the boiler. It could however indicate a combustion problem so I would like to reinforce the opinion that you don't use it until its been checked out.
If I were you I would be using NEITHER boiler or fire and get it looked at pronto!!! Also I would be buying a proper Carbon Monoxide alarm!!
 
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Whilst I hate back boilers, they are simple.. they need proper care and attention.


I agree with the laminate floor thing. I have this stuff in my office, the dust that I periodically blow out of the office PC and server goes everywhere I don't hoover it up straight away.
 
Check the temperature of the water in the F + E tank see if its hot or cold. and let me know
 
Water hot. Boiler stat needs changing.

Not really is it ? tank could be warm because heat in the system has expanded to a degree where it has to go somewhere, you would know that if you had a clue, bit like a blow off in a combi...Does that help?
 
If the water in the f+e tank is hot and steaming it normally means the boiler stat is not working and overheating.
 
This would explain the phssing noise when the water is boiling, causing the boiler and pipework to vibrate , Hence the dust. Its worth checking out rather than dismissing it as nonesence.

Most plumbers with little experience would not even think off this.
 

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