Any Opinions on Eurofilters 'Sieve' Central Heating Filters

[Bling_Bling]

Hi Hi Hi

Does anyone have any experience or opinions on these central heating filters: http://www.eurofiltersuk.co.uk/ , as I can't find much about them online. I put a magnaclean on the neglected system that I moved in to a few years ago, and it seems to catch a bit of sludge, but it lets all the oily oxide flakes straight through to the DHW heat exchanger, where they slowly collect until the hot water starts going south after several months. I'm thinking about replacing the magnaclean with a magnatised sieve Eurofilter, (or putting just a Eurofilter sieve after the magnaclean, if I can fit it in without ripping up floorboards).

The idea of just cleaning a filter rather than having to flush out the dhw heat exchanger is nice, but do these filters actually work? They make very grand claims about catching 95 - 100% of contaminants, compared to 50 ish %, or even much less, for more well known brands, but that wouldn't be so great if the filter is forever clogging and shutting down the boiler?

 

[Dan Robinson]

shyte

 

[Dan Robinson]

Why not just flush the system once and for all?

 

[Bling_Bling]

Why do you say shyte? They block up all the time, or restrict flow too much?


I'm going to give it one more go at a diy flush, one radiator at a time, when the weather gets a bit better, and failing that, get a pro flush. The system seems pretty clean now though, apart from these occasional flakes, that I think may be the result of and all the cleaner I've put through it last year? (They system was badly neglected when I moved in. In hindsight, I should have got pro's in then, but I didn't)

 

[Dan Robinson]

Restrictive to water flow, don't catch that much, poorly made and a PITA to clean.

 

[Dean744PiN5]

i take it you are choosing that filter because of it's price? you will get what you pay for, have a look at the spirotrap mb3 double the price but al brass, easy to service ,reliable and with a 20 year guarantee.

 

[Agile]

If you are a keen DIYer as it sounds then a simple and cheap alternative is to use a brass gauze filter. This will trap any particles and not just magnetic ones.

They need to be fitted with isolating valves and in spite of the arrows on the body I always fit them so the cleaning nut is pointing downwards.

Usually its better to fit one size above the actual pipe size so 28 mm on a 22 mm pipe. This gives a greater collecting volume.

They are very effective at collecting dirt but because of the small volume can only hold a small amount before they get blocked so are only suitable for well cleaned systems. A few boilers like the Performa range had them fitted at the return valve on the boiler.

Tony

 

[Bling_Bling]

Thanks for the helpful advice everyone.

It's not really about the price Dean, it was the only one I could find with an actual physical filter rather than just a magic magnet. The Spirotaps with an actual filter seem to all be designed to be fitted on the flow side. (and are also all over £100)

Are you talking about this type of Y-type strainer Agile? http://www.advancedwater.co.uk/prod-014-345-1001.html. So step it up from 22mm to 28mm directly after the Magnaclean, then the Y-strainer, then step it down to 22mm again, then finish it off with an isolating valve at the top (and use the Magnaclean one for the bottom). The MagnaClean should catch most of the crap, then the brass mesh just has to catch any flakes that are slipping through. Sound good in principle? And what size brass mesh? I'd guess 40 or 50 microns?

Thanks again.

 

[simond]

I would expect to pay >£100 for a decent filter. Many of the newer ones inc Spiro MB3 are designed to trap both ferrous and non-ferrous.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Funny how money isn't an issue, then gets brought up as a negative in the same short paragraph.


Why do you spiros have to go know the flow? Are you looking at the rv2 by mistake?

Filters are not designed to solve problems. They're there to reduce the chance of them occurring.

 

[flameport]

Does anyone have any experience or opinions on these central heating filters: http://www.eurofiltersuk.co.uk/

Experience - none, never heard of the product.

Opinions:
Company hasn't updated their website in over 3 years
Website has no actual contact details, only a form to fill in and an email address.
Product apparently only available from the company directly via their own website or ebay.
A plastic cylinder fixed at both ends between hard metal pipework will result in cracks due to thermal expansion
The demo video only has 770 views after being available for well over 4 years.
The other videos on their YouTube channel are certainly not what you would expect to see from any kind of company making or selling products.

 

[Bling_Bling]

"Funny how money isn't an issue, then gets brought up as a negative in the same short paragraph."

I'm not sure why this is so complicated? I was not asking about the Eurofilter and dismissing the Spirotrap MB3 because of price. I was asking about the Eurofilter because it has a physical filter. The spirotrap MB3 works in the same way as the Magna Clean I already have fitted, and with no info or opinions here indicating otherwise, I assuming the MB3 would have similar results.

"Why do you spiros have to go know the flow?"

I really don't know? There must be some reason why Spirotrap state that the Spirocombi needs to be fitted on the flow pipe though. Whatever the reason, even though it has a physical filter, it's not what I'm looking for.

"Are you looking at the rv2 by mistake?"

No. I was referring to the Spirocombi air and dirt separator (the one with a physical filter). Since my OP states that I already have a Magnaclean, and was asking about the effectiveness of the Eurofilter sieve filter, I thought Dean may have referenced the MB3 by mistake rather than the Spirocombi, so I pointed out why both weren't what I was looking for. (and yes, I don't want to pay over £100 for something which isn't fit for my purpose, and has extra features I don't need anyway. That's not 'about the money', that's just common sense)

"Filters are not designed to solve problems. They're there to reduce the chance of them occurring."

I know! I did say above I've been cleaning and flushing the system, it's nearly there, and I'm going to give it one more go before getting pro's in? When I moved in the system was f*cked, with really rusty gritty sludgy water trying and failing to circulate. It had been neglected for years, possibly decades. I replaced the pump, the diverter valve, the DHW exchanger, the pressure relief valve, various other valves and other bits and pieces. I've cleaned and flushed it several times, so the water is no longer rust colored, everything get's nice and toasty hot top to bottom, and there's no sludge to speak of. Now there is just this sprinkling of oxide flakes, that in my amateur opinion, am guessing may have been loosened off by all the cleaners, and are coming free in their own time. There aren't that many of them, and I'm hoping that with an otherwise clean system and plenty of inhibitor, they will eventually ease up. If not, I'll get a powerflush. In the mean time. do you think it's a bad idea to put the brass mesh filter after the Magnaclean, since the Magnaclean is useless at catching the oxide flakes? (You know, to reduce the chance of a problem occurring if they get inside the boiler)

 

[Bling_Bling]

Does anyone have any experience or opinions on these central heating filters: http://www.eurofiltersuk.co.uk/

Experience - none, never heard of the product.

Opinions:
Company hasn't updated their website in over 3 years
Website has no actual contact details, only a form to fill in and an email address.
Product apparently only available from the company directly via their own website or ebay.
A plastic cylinder fixed at both ends between hard metal pipework will result in cracks due to thermal expansion
The demo video only has 770 views after being available for well over 4 years.
The other videos on their YouTube channel are certainly not what you would expect to see from any kind of company making or selling products.

Well you nailed that one down! Thank you. It looks like the filters you get in the top of kettles.

 

[Dan Robinson]

The spirotrap MB3 works in the same way as the Magna Clean

Really? If you bother to look, you'll see they are pretty much polar opposite.

"Are you looking at the rv2 by mistake?"

No. I was referring to the Spirocombi air and dirt separator

The air bit being key. The MB3 is different.


I've told you that the Euro filter was shyte and why, as have others. I have actually tried one too.

 

[simond]

An air separator has to go on the flow because the air bubbles are created when the water is heated, but it is advantageous for a dirt filter to go on the return just before the boiler, because this is the thing you are protecting.

I have a SpiroTECH microbubble deaireator on my own boiler (flow)..... and I have their dirt filter on the return.

There are a multitude of plastic bodied filters on the market; the Worcester Bosch one is probably the most effective in terms of capture on a domestic boiler, but that is where the good news ends - it is a complete pain in the backside to fit and to open/close...... they have a new one coming out this month.

The newer Magnacleans incorporate some non ferrous capture, the earlier Magnatec dual thingy with the wire wool in the bottom was total rubbish, we had two burst.

In terms of reliability and build quality, the SpiroTECH MB3 is good, although I have had one leak from the circular knuckle joint.

Or you could fit an eBay special, at the end of the day we can give advice because this is what us pros do for a day job. Unlike you, we've fitted more than 1. But if you want to risk flooding your house having asked for the advice, it's your choice.