Another Condensate Drain Thread!

[Doug99]

Hi All,
I thought all condensate water drained by gravity.
My brother suffered a drain freeze last week and was advised by the guy who sorted it for him that it froze because his plastic drain pipe is routed up from the boiler (in airing cupboard) into the loft and across the joists to an external wall (no insulation). The outlet is then fixed vertically down to ground level.

How does condensate water drain 'upwards' into the loft? Are combis fitted with condensate pumps?

Cheers All

 

[KenGMac]

Doug99, good evening.

Sounds like a complete can of wriggly stuff?

OK the Central heating pipework is kept moving by a circulation "Pump"

The Condensate is solely gravity, no pumping of any condensate at all?

As for the [shall I call it] circuitous route you site above, sorry but that is totally wrong, sounds like a complete bodged installation of the condensate pipework

 

[FiremanT]

Doug99, good evening.

Sounds like a complete can of wriggly stuff?

OK the Central heating pipework is kept moving by a circulation "Pump"

The Condensate is solely gravity, no pumping of any condensate at all?

As for the [shall I call it] circuitous route you site above, sorry but that is totally wrong, sounds like a complete bodged installation of the condensate pipework

Ken, are you qualified to comment?

OP: There must be a condense pump present, otherwise the boiler would have failed long before the freeze.

Look below the boiler and follow the condense pipe. You will come across a box with a condense pipe going down and in one coming out then up

 

[CWHEATING]

Hi All,
I thought all condensate water drained by gravity.
My brother suffered a drain freeze last week and was advised by the guy who sorted it for him that it froze because his plastic drain pipe is routed up from the boiler (in airing cupboard) into the loft and across the joists to an external wall (no insulation). The outlet is then fixed vertically down to ground level.

How does condensate water drain 'upwards' into the loft? Are combis fitted with condensate pumps?

Cheers All

Depends what boiler it is. Floor standing condense boilers have condensate pumps.
Also for situations where gravity can’t get the boilers condense to a drain, external condense pumps are fitted. I’ve fit many external condense pumps. And when I say external I don’t mean outside I mean situated externally from the boiler.
If a boiler condense is fitted properly it shouldn’t freeze, however there are a few circumstances where it cannot be helped.

 

[Doug99]

Its a council house installation so i'll ask what type of boiler is fitted.

 

[CWHEATING]

Its a council house installation so i'll ask what type of boiler is fitted.

I doubt it will be a floorstanding boiler more than likely it has an external condense pump that pumps the condense to a drain as where the boiler is situated, gravity alone can’t get the condense water to a drain so requires a separate pump wired to the boiler.