Isar HE24 Water Leak, CH Pipe

[asnoop20]

Hello once again,

You may remember the CH pipe of which name isn't mentioned in the manual, on the middle right hand side of the boiler, which in my case is leaking. Since I could get no help on here I left it to my mother to call out a gas safe engineer, then I went cycling Tajikistan for a month.

During that time a gas safe engineer came out. He diagnosed that the pressure was dropping due to a leak ("no **** Sherlock") and that the leak was coming from the aforementioned pipe ("no **** Sherlock"). He then proceeded to make up some tripe about being unable to fix the pipe and trying his very best to sell a new installation to my mum.

He took his £60 call out charge and buggered off, but not before turning the CH off. At least if we kept the pressure below 1 bar we had CH.

So I've now listened to you Gas Safe Engineers on this forum, and my mum was screwed out of £60. I'm not inclined to call out another without pre-instructing them to get the pipe, i.e, you're not coming out to do an assessment but to fix it.

Regards,

Andrew

 

[dilalio]

Since I could get no help on here I left it to my mother to call out a gas safe engineer, then I went cycling Tajikistan for a month.

Ahh! Poor you!
Well, I'd love to help but I'm off to graft for the day, to put food in my children's mouths and to pay some extortionate business and household bills, to companies who unnecessarily employ hundreds of middle-management types, who's "job" is just somewhere they go, until their next month-long cycling holiday in Tajikistan!

Besides, I'd probably just screw your mum out of £60 and then bugger off!

 

[Razor900]

That's disgusting


A callout should be £84

 

[Dan Robinson]

I could use the special software I have available to me to identify it, but I am off too play golf whilst I think of even more cunning ways to screw £60 out of helpless grannies.

 

[dilalio]

I could use the special software I have available to me to identify it, but I am off too play golf whilst I think of even more cunning ways to screw £60 out of helpless grannies.

Will 'Mini-me' be caddying for you again today Dan?

 

[Dan Robinson]

If you can spare him... He had that marvellous idea of peeing in cold water cisterns last time, so I really value his opinion.

Plus it's his round at the club house.

 

[Agile]

I charge £84 to diagnose faults! So does Dan above!

Your granny has seriously paid under the usual price.

You seem to imagine that the problem is the pipe. Of course it is not. It is the joint between the copper pipe and the ali heat exchanger.

That is a very common place for those boilers to leak.

Because owners don't bother to get their boilers serviced that joint leaks for a very long time and the ali corrodes making the joint almost impossible to replace.

It is a cheap boiler and they have not been very reliable either.

The best advice is to have it replaced with a nice new boiler with a good length warranty.

Tony

 

[dilalio]

The best advice is to have it replaced with a nice new boiler with a good length warranty

Whilst the OP goes off cycling for a month... In Syria!

 

[DP]

It is a cheap boiler and they have not been very reliable either.

Not true Tony. Have plenty customers with these boilers giving reliable service.
What kills any boiler, like you have already said, is lack of preventative maintenance resulting in gradual deterioration to eventually fail like OP's boiler.

Boiler can be easily repaired, no need to trash it.

 

[asnoop20]

I charge £84 to diagnose faults! So does Dan above!

Your granny has seriously paid under the usual price.

You seem to imagine that the problem is the pipe. Of course it is not. It is the joint between the copper pipe and the ali heat exchanger.

That is a very common place for those boilers to leak.

Because owners don't bother to get their boilers serviced that joint leaks for a very long time and the ali corrodes making the joint almost impossible to replace.

It is a cheap boiler and they have not been very reliable either.

The best advice is to have it replaced with a nice new boiler with a good length warranty.

Tony

Tony, thanks for the reasonable post.

You are right the previous owner left it and there is corrosion. I've not investigated any further but I assumed that it was a seal that had gone and could be replaced.

The boiler has been very reliable, after ten years it's only just had the electrode replaced and that's it.

 

[asnoop20]

It is a cheap boiler and they have not been very reliable either.

Not true Tony. Have plenty customers with these boilers giving reliable service.
What kills any boiler, like you have already said, is lack of preventative maintenance resulting in gradual deterioration to eventually fail like OP's boiler.

Boiler can be easily repaired, no need to trash it.

I was hoping the engineer my mother had out would investigate and make a decision, but he put his effort into attempting to sell a new installation instead. Since I don't know the part in the diagram (I suspect it's the one I highlighted with a red question mark), then I don't know if there's a seal or if it's a copper compression washer/ring (I assume the ali corrosion will be significant).

 

[DP]

It is a cheap boiler and they have not been very reliable either.

Not true Tony. Have plenty customers with these boilers giving reliable service.
What kills any boiler, like you have already said, is lack of preventative maintenance resulting in gradual deterioration to eventually fail like OP's boiler.

Boiler can be easily repaired, no need to trash it.

I was hoping the engineer my mother had out would investigate and make a decision, but he put his effort into attempting to sell a new installation instead. Since I don't know the part in the diagram (I suspect it's the one I highlighted with a red question mark), then I don't know if there's a seal or if it's a copper compression washer/ring (I assume the ali corrosion will be significant).

All speculation on your part old chap..
There are three types of plumbers/ engineers out there.

1. Type that will give you hand on heart advice giving you pros and cons of keeping existing or replacement- you decide what you want to do.
2. Type that will look at the boiler, can fix it too, but cannot be bothered, so will want to sell you a new one
3. Type that know nothing of how the boiler works, so will have no option but to recommend a replacement, often cheap and nasty that will be inferior to what you currently have.

Have been to Ideal Training in Hull for this boiler- must say it is no worst or better than any other medium price range boiler on the market

As to leak in question, you do not need to know composition of the joint, but would suspect corrosion may not be the issue.
A service would be a good start. Will certainly cost you more than £60.00

 

[asnoop20]

The engineer was called out to do a service, but I'm unsure what he did and why it was £50. My mother in her age and wisdom is a bit lax when it comes to these things. She says he had an aversion to doing anything and was pushy for a replacement.

The leak is from that pipe header, that's all I know. Quite happy for an engineer to do this particular job (I solemnly swear) but this time I want to proactively tell them to find the part beforehand or order it ready for them to fit. That way they know they're being paid to get their hands dirty!

Cheers, Andrew

 

[DP]

Andrew, I do invite the customer to be present and looking over my shoulder (as have nothing to hide), but if he told me how to do my work, wee eel I would be heading for the next job as I would assume his knowledge is greater than mine.

 

[asnoop20]

Not how to do their work, just what I expect to be done.