Boiler Flue Position

[Kan0]

Hi guys first time poster so please be gentle.
I have just moved into a new build house and notice the fan flue terminal on the condensing boiler only has 100mm clearance from the soffit which has continuous vents in it, this has caused condensation in the roof space, the boiler installer claims a heatshield he has now screwed to the soffit is all that is needed. Also the flue is diagonally above an air brick vent and only has 200mm clearance from this.
From what i can see online the clearance should be 300mm from the soffit because of the continuous venting and 300mm above or to the side of the air brick. I take it it's the same, 300mm for a diagonal measurement?

Thanks.

 

[Agile]

It would seem that your interpretation is probably correcty.

Ensure you have details of the i9nstaller. They should be on the Benchmark certificate that will have been completed.

Make a co0mplaint to Gas Safe that the boiler has not been installed in accordance with the manufacturers instructions and that it may be unsafe.

Then they will serve a defects notice on the installer.

You will probably find that the boiler may be turned off for several days until its corrected. Keep an exact diary of what happens and then claim compensation for inconvenience from the developer or builder. Take some photos of the incorrect installation just in case.

The value of the compensation depends largely on the quality and price of the house. If cheap then probably £50-£100 per day, Perhaps equating towards the cost of moving into an hotel. If it were a luxury house then perhaps rather more because anyone buying an expensive house would expect a better life style and would place a higher value on their comfort..

Tony

 

[bengasman]

Hard to answer this one from behind a keyboard.
The best way of sorting this out is to contact gas safe register, and tell them you have safety concerns about your boiler install.
Do NOT go into detail over the phone other than telling them it seems you get fumes back into the house.

 

[Kan0]

I now have some pics, You can see the condensation in the first one that was going straight in through the soffit vents, i have noticed we also have a weep vent for the brick next to the flue, so they seem to have the terminal surrounded with vents that make it impossible for the wind to blow in any direction without putting us at risk. The measurment in pic 3 is only 200mm

 

[bengasman]

Do I recognise a Vokera flue?
Which exact model do you have?

 

[Kan0]

It's an IDEAL LOGIC HEAT 24, it was only installed about eight weeks ago.

 

[bengasman]

Only 8 weeks? Definitely call to GSR then.

 

[Kan0]

So i guess you guys on here think it's a little too close as well?

 

[bengasman]

So i guess you guys on here think it's a little too close as well?

Not necessarily, but GSR will make sure anything that is not 100% will be corrected at no extra cost to you, and they are foc themselves.
They will also come back if you are still worried about safety issues.

Bear in mind that they will ONLY interfere with safety related issues, not with lack of speed, quality, or price issues. One of the reasons not to get into any detail on the phone.

 

[Agile]

Another question will be if the flue is sealed with cement under that black rubber gasket?

This creates disagreement from less careful installers but I always cement on the outside and thats what Gas Safe expect too.

Tony

 

[mickyg]

I would definately call GSR. If its new build I'm assuming there's more than one new house there? They could check them all. The vents in the soffits is a concern.

 

[Kan0]

I have filled in the Gas Safe online form and will post up how i get on, looking at other houses on the estate there are people with vents closer than i have. Thanks for the advice so far.

 

[Kan0]

Gas Safe called me back today and advised i call the emergency gas number, 30 mins later i have a Concern for Safety Notice and my boiler has been switched off. Lets see what the builder thinks of this.

 

[Agile]

Had you asked we would NOT have advised you to do that unless you are ready to move into a hotel the next day when the builder fails to make it safe.

A friend of mine, a retired solicitor, moved into a hotel after his builder flooded his kitchen!

Unless you take a firm stand against the builder you are going to have a lot of inconvenience.

Tony

 

[Kan0]

The boiler being switched off is a good thing in my book, as it makes a very loud statement that it is not installed correctly. It will be fun to watch the builder try to make light of the situation now. They are still hanging on to the hope that mistakes are made, and everyone including the guy that switched it off could be wrong and the install is ok and meets the standards, it's almost laughable.