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If I remember correctly the boiler stat has an NTC thermister on the end of thin wires. But to respond properly the pocket the NTC goes into has to be filled with thermal conduction paste. You can buy that for computer processors. But if caught out some silicone grease will do a temporary job.

It is very likely that a noisy fan will need to be replaced with a new one. Some firms do recondition fans although the quality of their work varies very widely. One of the best firms was sold about a year ago and I do not know if the purchaser is doing a good job or not.

Leak sealer might stop the leak but I think that many installers do not trust it not to block something internal.

The Vaillant 615 has been a pretty reliable boiler and any leak is most likely to be on the system rather than inside the boiler. It should be quite repairable up to at least 15 years.

You should check the resistance of the sensor. Probably a nominal 10k at room temperature. Also check that its plug is making properly. A common fault is that they can go open circuit. If you wanted to check that the boiler PCB is properly reading the sensor put a 10k resistor across the...

A friend in Manch had a roofing contractor try to inspect his roof. But it would not go above 8m. He said he was more than 3 miles from the airport. But today he had a flyer from the airport showing their safeguarding map which included his location. So how can the airport interfere with a...

A security scan of my router shows an Apple elthan camera connected. How could anyone do that without the password?

Merely replacing a system boiler should not have disturbed the Megaflow flow rate or the cold water flow rate either. I cannot guess what the installer has done. Possibly he turned off the stop cock and has not fully turned it back on. Many would say call the installer back to investigate for...

This doorstep is south facing and has not been painted for many years. I would like to paint it with some Dulux exterior Trade gloss paint as I already have some donated by a neighbour. In an ideal world I would use red masonry paint but that would be quite expensive and this is for a lady who...

I wanted to remove the battery from my 307cc. But when I disconnect it the alarm goes off. But what is powering the alarm when the battery is disconnected?

Well 14 years later I am still alive. But I do not spend so much time on forums as I may have done 20 years ago. Today I am hoping to go to an electronics show near Reading. But I find that I rarely meet more than a few people that I know there. That is partly because ex-BBC colleagues all...

My petrol 1974cc Peugeot 307cc 2004 year goes through long cycles of showing an antipollution fault. It is showing the light at the moment and the MOT is due next month. I cannot tie any driving history with the light going on or off. It seems totally random. Any further suggestions on how to...

Probably something to do with the time but most teaching cars were Morris Minor 1000 when I took my test and passed first time. I also did most of the teaching for my wife. I had told her that the oil was to cool and lubricate the bearings. She was asked that question on her test and armed...

And I still do not know how the waste fitting was attached !

The BBC report on the problem seems to say that the Heathrow emergency generators did start up as expected. But it seems they decided that was insufficient output to power everything needed when handling passengers like luggage handling facilities and lighting so just decided to close...

My reaction to the apparent problem is to fit a shower which uses the stored hot water. Electric showers do not give a very good shower, usually no more than 6 litres per minute. Whereas a cylinder can give up to 22 litres per minute. I like at least 10 to 12 litres per minute for a nice...

Yes, but why would a transformer suddenly seriously overheat? Particularly on a warm 14 C day when domestic demand is low? The buchholz relay obviously failed to trip the OCBs.

So when did two RCD consumer units become "old"? They have always seemed a good idea to me! But then I repair boilers and like the lights to still be on when a boiler has tripped an RCD. Boiler pumps sometimes leak internally and cause leakage to the case to trip an RCD. One amusing case I...

Now my experience of repairing large transformers is limited to just one repair to a 150 kW oil filled one. It provided the HT supplies to the 100 kW transmitter when I worked in Doha Qatar! And that was just to help the Pakistani engineer in the SW transmitting station. And on the basis that...

I have always thought that all properties installed since 2004 needed an RCD to all circuits in a kitchen or bathroom. But that there is no requirement ( at the moment ) to bring them up to the current standards.