Flush?

[Dylan123]

I just took off a radiator and drained it and it was full of brown, really brown thick sludge.

the house is cold and I always felt the rads don’t work well.

I see you can get a “power flush” done. Willing to try this.

i have one of the new baxi back boiler - the newer ones from about 10 years ago, and a tank in the airing cupboard

I wonder if just draining each rad will go a long way to doing this, or do you need a power flush to really get it all out?

It seems to be about £400 for my 3 bed terrace.

I’m not sure these new baxi ones have a long life expectancy and a new combo is £2k so paying £450 just for a flush ..... not sure what’s best and whether it’s worth it.

cheers

 

[oldbuffer]

1. There is no correlation between the cost of the boiler and any need for a power flush. If you need a power flush you will have to spend the money, no matter what boiler you have and what it costs to replace.
2. You could try alternatives to a power flush. You could:
2a. Run the system with something like Sentinel X800 in it for a couple of weeks, then drain the whole system, refill, drain again, refill, drain again then refill and add inhibitor.
2b. Drain the system, then take off each radiator in turn and flush it through right way up, upside down left to right and right to left, all while giving it a good banging with a non-marking implement.
2c. 2a and 2b.
3. The advantage of a power flush is that it cleans the pipes as well as the radiators. I personally prefer not to power flush modern boilers for fear of washing sludge into them. Also, a decent power flush should leave you with a report showing pH values and Total Dissolved Solids within certain limits.
4. If you opt for any of the above, if it involves draining, making sure that if there is a Feed & Expansion tank in the loft, it is bailed out and cleaned before the draining.

 

[Dylan123]

1. There is no correlation between the cost of the boiler and any need for a power flush. If you need a power flush you will have to spend the money, no matter what boiler you have and what it costs to replace.
2. You could try alternatives to a power flush. You could:
2a. Run the system with something like Sentinel X800 in it for a couple of weeks, then drain the whole system, refill, drain again, refill, drain again then refill and add inhibitor.
2b. Drain the system, then take off each radiator in turn and flush it through right way up, upside down left to right and right to left, all while giving it a good banging with a non-marking implement.
2c. 2a and 2b.
3. The advantage of a power flush is that it cleans the pipes as well as the radiators. I personally prefer not to power flush modern boilers for fear of washing sludge into them. Also, a decent power flush should leave you with a report showing pH values and Total Dissolved Solids within certain limits.
4. If you opt for any of the above, if it involves draining, making sure that if there is a Feed & Expansion tank in the loft, it is bailed out and cleaned before the draining.

Is my 2008 baxi back boiler a new boiler?

I don’t know how to drain a system or what as sentinel x800 is!

 

[JohnD]

Sentinel X800 in it for a couple of weeks

I think X400 for a couple of weeks

or X800 for a few hours.

 

[Mottie]

My system was powerflushed when I had it converted to a sealed system and unvented hot water. Two years later before I was having a new boiler fitted, I removed the rads and took them outside and flushed them through several times with a hose, shaking the rad half full with water in between flushes until the water was crystal clear. I then ran some X400 through it for a few days before draining and flushing the system the day before the boiler was fitted. I had a magnetic filter fitted and inhibitor added. The water has remained crystal clear and the PH is within limits specified by the boiler manufacturer.

 

[just pumps]

People dont advise powerflushing microbore pipes.