Baxi Boiler - Is this repair price about right?

[W4SIM]

As i mentioned a c ouple of days ago my Baxi 105e Combi boiler decided to start playing up by dropping all pressure to Zero bar.

Iv had some one come out and look at it and they came up with 2 problems:-

1. Pump Leaking - Needs Replacing.
2. 3-way Valve stuck - Needs Replacing.

I have been told this would take about 2.5 to 3 hours of work to replace.

I have been quoted at £320 including parts and labour.

Alhtough i know for this type of work there is no sort of guidline mark to each persons rates, would you still say this sounds about right or does it sound a little too high?

The prices i was given for the parts were:-

1. Pump = £80
2. Valve = £105

 

[Agile]

I would take up to 1.5 hours and charge about £290.

BUT I would try cleaning the diverter valve or fitting an internal repair part if available.

Tony

 

[W4SIM]

Tony

Thank you very much for your near instant reply mate.

It brings some sense of relief that you are charging approx the same, though slightly cheaper, which is starnge for a London price. But good on you mate.

Appreciate your help.

Im getting some one out to look at it again for a second opinion, will get them to see if they can clean the diverter valve or do something else with it which might save on replacing.

 

[ChrisR]

Pumps rarely leak through the electrics, which is the only place you can't stop it in 10 minutes.
Another 20 minutes would see the diverter unstuck, if it does it in the usual place.
Add time for getting tools out and back, draining, testing.
Multiply all times if it's hard to reach.

 

[W4SIM]

Im getting some one out to look at it again for a second opinion, will get them to see if they can clean the diverter valve or do something else with it which might save on replacing.

Ok, another engineer has been out to look at it for a second opinion today. Didnt tell him what the first guy found, thinking he would find the same thing.

However, this is what he found:-

Pump = The screw off the "Automatic Air Vent" is missing and letting some water out. So that needs replacing, if it is even a replacement part?

Pressure Relief Valve = Leaking, needs replacing. Can see water drops coming out of the copper pipe sticking out of the side of the house.

Now this time the opinion was that the pump DOESN'T need replacing, just the PRV.

Iv got 2 people in to see it and they have both diagnosed it with 2 different problems.

I dont how much a PRV is or how much to replace it but i really dont want to pay the wrong guy the wrong amount to do the wrong job, and still be left with the same problem.

What are my options? A 3rd opinion?

 

[baxpoti]

Call Heateam Baxi's in-house repair service.

Price is around £300 and includes all parts and labour and 12 months guarantee.

Reading between the lines, I think you'll probably need an expansion vessel!

 

[doitall]

Prv leaking, loss of pressure, all signs of an duff expansion vessel

 

[Agile]

The PRV and the AAV are both fairly cheap parts. We would charge about £140 to replace both.

It would be easy for someone to think the pump is leaking if he either did not look properly or just wanted to jack up the price of the job.

As for the diverter sticking, they certainly do regularly on your model but as I said they can usually be cleaned or probably have just the inside replaced. We would charge an addition £20 to clean that with the other work or perhaps about £40 to fit the internals, if available, if the cleaning did not work for long.

We dont come free to give opinions or quotes! All our visits are chargeable! If you run around making free visits then you have to charge £300 when you actually do a repair!

Tony

 

[W4SIM]

Ok, an update.

Iv now realised that the PRV is still leaking water from almost any pressure. I top it up to 1 bar and then a couple of hours later its back down to zero again. Less time if the CH is on.

HOWEVER, the intresting part is that the PRV also leaks water outside and drops pressure even when the boiler is switched OFF from the mains power!

Would that be any better indicator of a duff expansion vessel? Or would that be any sign to eliminate the expansion vessel and say its only the PRV thats leaking?

Tony my friend, i wouldnt mind paying you for a call out charge if you diagnosed it right. Id be pretty ****ed if i paid for a call out charge only for the engineer to get it wrong, and hence make me spend more money on the wrong thing. As in this case, 2 engineers, both with different diagnoses. Go figure.

Many Thanks.

 

[Agile]

I always diagnose the faults right!

But Middlesbrough is way outside our normal operating area from the Thames up to the Trent. ( or London to Brum! )

Tony

 

[Gasguru]

They're all dead simple repairs, replacing leaking aav's and prvs is routine service work and parts are normally kept on the van. Just make sure the expansion vessel pressure is inflated and checked. The pumps often leak on the O ring connection between the top plastic pipe moulding and the brass casting behind. Dumb design only having a single retaining screw. Since the diverters coming out make sure the plate heat exchanger is checked /cleaned.

 

[ChrisR]

You could have a variety of problems but there's no evidence from what you've said thatteh expansion vessel needs changing.

No way I'd come to you for nothing. From what you're saying it would be
>replace AAV
>replace prv
>pump up pressure /exp vessel
>Check diverter is working - if sticking then clean/grease the usual part and suggest you try it for a while.
That would be all within the first hour, and parts a tenner or so.
If the secondary heat exchanger is dirty then take it off and clean it, = another 20 - 30 minutes depending.

WIth labour rates around £60/hour that's £100 all in, excluding congestion charges, & parking.

 

[Agile]

WIth labour rates around £60/hour that's £100 all in, excluding congestion charges, & parking.

Do they really have congestion charging in Middlesbrough?

 

[W4SIM]

Do they really have congestion charging in Middlesbrough?

I bloody hope not!

No, they dont have congestion charges in Middlesbrough mate (well, not YET anyway). I think Chris was being generic about his own work in and around London.

And i was being generic when i said about paying you for call out charges, i didnt actually ment you come up and have a look at it. I did realise your in London. Its just iv read a fair few threads on this forum about people paying silly money for engineers to come out a mis-diagnose a problem. I believe you've started a thread about this havnt you, if i read right and engineer came out and charged £105 for something that was wrong. And then it took you 10mins to find the right problem. A siezed pump i think it was. Now you see where im coming from.

Im hoping i can get away without having the expansion vessel replaced as i was talking to the engineer today and discussing with him some of your suggestions about the expansion vessel being duff. He said it could be a possibility, so he's coming out on Thursday to do a pressure test on it.

He was also saying that its much easier, and labour cost friendly, to attach an expansion vessel somewhere else rather than to replace the original one as its a right pain to get to and then get back in again. The expansion vessel for this boiler is around £90, but the labour could be around 3 times the price of that.

 

[W4SIM]

Ok just an update.

Finally got this sorted out about 2 weeks ago.

This is the work that got carried out:-

1. Replaced PRV
2. Replaced AAV
3. Replaced both diaphragms for the Diverter Valve.

Apaprt from the water now not being as heated as it used to be when the tap was fully opened everything is running pretty much spot on.

The price i got to sort this out from the first engineer was £320.
The price i paid the second engineer to sort it was a princely £85.

And i was saying something about paying the wrong guy the wrong amount to do the wrong job. Go figure!