Does a combi boiler diverter valve ever "unstick" on its own?

[joebron]

The title says it really.

I'm pretty sure the sensor for the diverter valve in our combi boiler has stuck. For the last week or so, we've only had DHW when CH is on. There might have been once yesterday that drawing water from the hot tap caused the boiler to ignite, which made me hopeful for a second, but I might have just fooled myself by having the heating on (I haven't been able to repeat it).

I'd rather not have anybody in the house due to COVID, so I was wondering whether there's anything I can do to encourage the sensor to trigger (eg: could CH being on long enough to heat up the inside of the boiler casing loosen some lubricant on the microswitch actuator, or might some particles stuck in the valve be flushed by long or sudden changes in water drawn from the hot taps or repeated on/off cycles of CH - if this weren't a gas installation, I'd try taking the cover off and giving the actuators a little tap/wiggle etc). I believe it must be the microswitch or pin that triggers it, as the boiler shows no sign at all of recognising that water is being drawn - there's no failed attempt to light, just nothing at all.

And another quick question - if CH currently works fine and can get DHW with CH on, can I rely on that being the case for at least a month or two, or might that be a sign we're about to have no hot water at all?

Thanks for any help

 

[ianmcd]

Our crystal balls are all on lockdown Im afraid, so anyone who can guess what boiler you have can have a week off

 

[joebron]

Thanks Ian. I didn't expect that the model would make much difference as it is quite a "crystal ball" question anyway. It's a Vokera Maxin 24e.

 

[ianmcd]

Thanks Ian. I didn't expect that the model would make much difference as it is quite a "crystal ball" question anyway. It's a Vokera Maxin 24e.

See how easy was that, your boiler does not have an actuator, it will be the DHW diaphragm that has perished, not a huge job to be honest and the diaphragm is only a few quid

 

[joebron]

Thanks Ian. Can this be a stable situation, or should we expect all hot water to go kaput soon?

 

[Terrywookfit]

It can only get worse.

 

[ianmcd]

you will get some HW when the CH is on, but when the CH is off you wont get HW, its a very easy fix for someone who knows the boiler

 

[durhamplumber]

No

 

[durhamplumber]

The title says it really.

I'm pretty sure the sensor for the diverter valve in our combi boiler has stuck. For the last week or so, we've only had DHW when CH is on. There might have been once yesterday that drawing water from the hot tap caused the boiler to ignite, which made me hopeful for a second, but I might have just fooled myself by having the heating on (I haven't been able to repeat it).

I'd rather not have anybody in the house due to COVID, so I was wondering whether there's anything I can do to encourage the sensor to trigger (eg: could CH being on long enough to heat up the inside of the boiler casing loosen some lubricant on the microswitch actuator, or might some particles stuck in the valve be flushed by long or sudden changes in water drawn from the hot taps or repeated on/off cycles of CH - if this weren't a gas installation, I'd try taking the cover off and giving the actuators a little tap/wiggle etc). I believe it must be the microswitch or pin that triggers it, as the boiler shows no sign at all of recognising that water is being drawn - there's no failed attempt to light, just nothing at all.

And another quick question - if CH currently works fine and can get DHW with CH on, can I rely on that being the case for at least a month or two, or might that be a sign we're about to have no hot water at all?

Thanks for any help

How many inanimate mechanical items do you know that spontaneously repair themselves?