Hide and seek heating system

[Slugbabydotcom]

This week I have been playing hide and seek with a heating system.
Here's the F&E tank hiding behind a plasterboard wall in the eaves of a street house.

Ok found that. Let's look for the pump
Is it in here?

No!




Are you sure?

The whole house was like that. Priest holes and mysterious boxing ins everywhere.I didn't get a specific picture but that boxing at the back on pic 2 had the heating system isolation valve in it, but again no access.

 

[Gas2Air]

They never hide for long.

Did you do all that chopping out to find it was the room stat kaput and not bringing pump on?

 

[swidders]

They never hide for long.

Did you do all that chopping out to find it was the room stat kaput and not bringing pump on?

Nah - it was a faulty TRV

 

[kevindgas]

i go away for a week and look at the mess you make in my house

had a couple of these myself over the years

 

[fitz1]

Rogue trader. Five minute job stretched out to cover the hourly charge. lol

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

I went to look at an interesting one this week. Self build originally, friends of friends have recently bought it and are having problems.... 36x18 cylinder supplying 2 bathrooms, cloakroom, downstairs W.C., kitchen and utility. They're always running out of hot water. Hang on, not utility, hot piped up as far as back of sink, tail not connected. Goodness knows where other end is.....

Cylinder primaries in 15mm, not sure where they go. Boiler found eventually hiding behind a blind thingy in garage, Vaillant Combi. However although cold mains (I think) supply is connected, DHW isnt. Blanked off on exit from boiler. Apparently they cant get HW in summer without heating on, from memory there's no cylinder stat, unsure as to existence of any motorised valves. Assume only method of getting HW in summer is to turn heating on and then manually shut all rads.... Gas bill is circa 2K a year and rising.....

Oh and lack of 45 deg bends on utility sink waste means pipe has been forced around obstructions, leading it to exit a 90 bend at about 80 degrees. How it doesnt leak I do not know, maybe why there's no hot connected at that sink! Shower waste however, does leak, over lounge ceiling, bathroom floor 8'x4' chipboard, ceramic tiled, with fitted carpet on top of that.

 

[DontAsk]

congratulations on your promotion.

inspector slugbabydotcom of the yard.

 

[swidders]

I went to look at an interesting one this week. Self build originally, friends of friends have recently bought it and are having problems.... 36x18 cylinder supplying 2 bathrooms, cloakroom, downstairs W.C., kitchen and utility. They're always running out of hot water. Hang on, not utility, hot piped up as far as back of sink, tail not connected. Goodness knows where other end is.....

Cylinder primaries in 15mm, not sure where they go. Boiler found eventually hiding behind a blind thingy in garage, Vaillant Combi. However although cold mains (I think) supply is connected, DHW isnt. Blanked off on exit from boiler. Apparently they cant get HW in summer without heating on, from memory there's no cylinder stat, unsure as to existence of any motorised valves. Assume only method of getting HW in summer is to turn heating on and then manually shut all rads.... Gas bill is circa 2K a year and rising.....

Oh and lack of 45 deg bends on utility sink waste means pipe has been forced around obstructions, leading it to exit a 90 bend at about 80 degrees. How it doesnt leak I do not know, maybe why there's no hot connected at that sink! Shower waste however, does leak, over lounge ceiling, bathroom floor 8'x4' chipboard, ceramic tiled, with fitted carpet on top of that.

Another competent installation by BBurner

 

[swidders]

congratulations on your promotion.

inspector slugbabydotcom of the yard.

Luckily, slug's brother's a plasterer and his dad's a carpenter

 

[corgiman]

They never hide for long.

Did you do all that chopping out to find it was the room stat kaput and not bringing pump on?

Nah - it was a faulty TRV

they only asked him to rewasher the sink tap

 

[Slugbabydotcom]

They never hide for long.

Did you do all that chopping out to find it was the room stat kaput and not bringing pump on?

Nah - it was a faulty TRV

What room stat?
What TRV?

TRV's weren't invented when those pumps were on the go. We are talking pre bye-law 30 here. An F&E tank with a lid on was sheer luxury in them days.

The job was to figure out why the boiler kept cutting out.
Pump was constant but noisy so I checked there was water in the system and then found and changed the pump. There were cold spots in the rads hours after the new pump was fitted so I was thinking a powerflush might work. Anyway went back yesterday and whatever blockage there was had cleared. I fitted the new pump horizontal like it says in the instructions, so the electrics are now above the bottom of the floorboard level. I reckon the best way to sort it is put a 2"x2" frame round the back of the cupboard and board over it.
It bugs me how some people like to box everything in then cry about it when something behind their pretty boxing needs work doing on it. It's a pity in this instance that the boxer and the cryer are two different people .
The boiler is a stelrad mexico rs40 so I reckon this timebomb is at least 25 years old.

congratulations on your promotion.

inspector slugbabydotcom of the yard.

Cheers Watson, I think this is the work of the evil Moriarty LOL

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

One I looked at cant be BB's.... There's no thermal store.