- Joined
- 17 Mar 2005
- Messages
- 17
- Reaction score
- 0
- Country
My CH comprises a Glo-worm space saver 45-60 with a gravity fed primatic cylinder and 9 radiators. Over the last few years it has become increasingly noisy, to the point where the neighbours have actually commented on it.
The noise occurs in both the pumped and gravity circuits, although the pumped circuit is noisier. It is coming from the boiler itself, then resonating though the pipework! I've tried changing the pump speed but it makes no difference. Before we realised it was a primatic cylinder, we tried Fernox descaler but it made no difference (apart from muckying the HW).
I've had a few plumbers out and all they want to do it rip it all out and fit a combi, or worse still 'twud be a condensing boiler now since the April deadline looms.
As I see it my possibilities for the cause of the noise are :-
1) Scaled up boiler. Thing is I live in a soft water area, so is this really likely? as I said we tried Fernox to no avail.
2) Air in system. But its gone gradually worse, moreover I've never had any problems with air in rads. etc.
3) Flow problem due to sludge. Dunno here, the water looks really clean when you run a bit out. I could drain it all and flush out the rads I guess?
4) Corroded heat exchanger. Given that the system is probably about 20 years old, and inhibitor won't have been used in that time, could the problem be a corrosion pitted surface causing local hot spots and thus boiling the water.
Personally I suspect (4) corroded heat exchanger. I bet I'd never get a new one for such an old boiler. Natually I don't want to replace if at all poss cos of this new "you vill fit vat we say" rule as of April.
Anyway if anyone has any bright ideas then I would be very grateful to hear them.
Thanks
Rob
The noise occurs in both the pumped and gravity circuits, although the pumped circuit is noisier. It is coming from the boiler itself, then resonating though the pipework! I've tried changing the pump speed but it makes no difference. Before we realised it was a primatic cylinder, we tried Fernox descaler but it made no difference (apart from muckying the HW).
I've had a few plumbers out and all they want to do it rip it all out and fit a combi, or worse still 'twud be a condensing boiler now since the April deadline looms.
As I see it my possibilities for the cause of the noise are :-
1) Scaled up boiler. Thing is I live in a soft water area, so is this really likely? as I said we tried Fernox to no avail.
2) Air in system. But its gone gradually worse, moreover I've never had any problems with air in rads. etc.
3) Flow problem due to sludge. Dunno here, the water looks really clean when you run a bit out. I could drain it all and flush out the rads I guess?
4) Corroded heat exchanger. Given that the system is probably about 20 years old, and inhibitor won't have been used in that time, could the problem be a corrosion pitted surface causing local hot spots and thus boiling the water.
Personally I suspect (4) corroded heat exchanger. I bet I'd never get a new one for such an old boiler. Natually I don't want to replace if at all poss cos of this new "you vill fit vat we say" rule as of April.
Anyway if anyone has any bright ideas then I would be very grateful to hear them.
Thanks
Rob
