Condenser Boiler discharge pipe question...

[Paramelvina]

Hi,

My neighbour upstairs has just had a condenser boiler fitted and I have a few issues.

The contractors have run the drain pipe outside down the front of my flat. Ignoring the fact that she is in breach of the lease by doing this, I read up on it a bit and it seems the installation is in breach of regs anyway.

1) The pipe comes out of her 1st floor flat, runs horizontally for approx 3m, then down approx 2m. The pipe is 22mm plastic, they have lagged it in grey foam. Q: Should it not be wider diameter pipe for such a long run? Also it is only supported twice along the entire run.

2) When it comes to ground level they have taken a bit of flexible piping, then squeezed it so that it fits between the grates of a drain, so at that point it is uninsulated and only maybe 6mm or so wide. Is that acceptable?

She assures me that her Plumber tells her the installation is in line with CORGI regs, but I find this hard to believe. I have asked here to have the work redone so that is discharges into the internal waste water system in her flat, but she seems unwilling.

Any pointers would be gratefully received!

Many thanks for your time...

 

[gas4you]

It is usually a requirement that any external condensate pipework is run in 32mm (1 1/4") waste to prevent any chance of freezing.

It is allowable, although unsightly to insulate 22mm overflow to obtain the same result. In this case all corners must be mitred to fit properly.

I personally would clip the 22mm every 1M on a horizontal run and every 1.5M on a vertical drop.

As for what your lease says, only you can comment on this, although at the very least they should have asked your permission I would have thought

 

[Paramelvina]

Hi Dave,

Thanks for your prompt answers. Do you have any opinion as to the way in which it enters the drain? To be explicit at about 1 ft above ground level it becomes a bit of flexipipe (not sure if I'm using the correct term), this runs into the drain at an angle of about 30 degrees, then the insulation stops and the pipe is squeezed flat to pass through the gaps in the grill.

Does this sound OK???

Cheers!

 

[Paramelvina]

Ignoring the regs the workmanship looks pretty rubbish to me.

 

[Corgigrouch]

What size is that gas pipe? Although most brickies take the mick out of my brickwork, I do try to match the brick to the rest of the house.... And yes, that con pipe does look bad.... I always allow the con pipe to terminate a few inches above the grid so that it is less likely to block up with gunge and makes it harder for creepie crawlies to find their way in.. Squish the pipe to fit in the grid? thats a potential blockage!

 

[gavinda]

openeable window above flue anyone

 

[giblets]

No such thing as CORGI regs. Either Gas Safety Regulations or Building Regulations which the condensate pipework would be covered by. Might be worth contacting your local council's Building Control dept.

 

[gavinda]

im not an installer so dont know this for definite, but im pretty sure condense should go directly into soil stack or into the ground in a correctly designed soakaway. an open end just left dripping is not acceptable .

 

[simond]

Condense doesn't go uphill willingly, so it will block up over time.

There are all sorts of pointers that this is a lash up, from the proximity of the flue to the window, to the likelihood that the boiler sitting under the window has the manufacturer clearances applied.

I suspect the reason that the external pipe is where it is, is because the boiler is literally sitting on the floor inside, and the condense was at FFL.

To the OP, I think you have three options.

1. Leave it as it is, but if you sell your house the presence of the pipe and insulation clearly reduces the aesthetics.

2. Ring CORGI and say you suspect there may be a dodgy install upstairs. Don't expect a fantastic response.

3. Contact the freeholder of the building to see if permission was granted for the external pipework.

 

[Paramelvina]

No such thing as CORGI regs. Either Gas Safety Regulations or Building Regulations which the condensate pipework would be covered by. Might be worth contacting your local council's Building Control dept.

I called building control at my local council (Hackney) but the duty officer was completely useless, may try again on Monday, but in my experience it works better with them to actually go along and see them (I'm only 10 mins walk away luckily).

In terms of the freehold both she and I own a 1/10th share each of the management company, so I guess I will have to gather some support from the other 8 shareholders, personally I think it devalues every flat in the entire estate. It is not exactly a lovely building, but it just looks awful now...

As gavinda points out the window above the flue is openable, are there any issues or regulations relating to that???

Sorry for all the ?s

 

[bengasman]

building control will be of little help as most of them are not corgi registered themselves.

I would not worry about the quality of your neighbours' installation, they will be cold if it fails, not you.

They are not allowed to stick THEIR pipe on YOUR wall.
If it is YOUR wall, send them registered letter to remove pipe.
Also send a registered letter to freeholder.

condensate pipe is very low priority issue, as it is unlikely to ever threaten life, health, or damage to property.

my advice, either have friendly word with neighbours, or live with a bit of pipe on the wall

 

[bengasman]

if the open window is too close, you can contact corgi directly yourself as an interested party suspecting unsafe gaswork.
if the inspector actually finds a dangerous situation, and orders the installer to correct it, THEN he might tell him to rectify the pipe as well.

 

[Paramelvina]

Well, the flue only sticks out about 10" or so, and it is directly below the kitchen window which opens outwards. As you can see from the pic it is only about 6" below the bottom of the window.

Is that correct? Doesn't seem right to me, though as a complete amateur I would bow to the opinions of others on this forum more qualified to comment.

And a merry blinkin' xmas to you all etc...

 

[Master of None]

I am not a heating engineer but how can that flue be so low and the underside of the boiler not be visible in your flat?

 

[screech]

with that installation it looks rubbish and if it's in the kitchen why couldn't they have put the condensate in to the waste pipe? a worst case scenario is using a condensate pump to do so. it also runs horizontally for a bit, no drop at all, which is a no no no

as for that flue termination i'd say it's incorrect, pretty much every manufacturer says the flue should be 300mm or more below an openable window that looks more like 200mm.

i'd say there's pretty much no chance it's installed properly