leaving boiler on whilst away

[pinheadplanet]

Hi

Going away soon, over what seems to be a very cold spell. Although my boiler supposedly has an automatic system that turns it on if it gets too cold, Is it worth me turning the heating on everynight for a while to stop it freezing up or is it ok for the pipes to freeze and defrost on their on?

 

[tonybhoy]

The only safe thing to do is to turn everything off,gas electric,water and then drain everything,heating system,cylinder,CWST,flush all cisterns and leave all taps open.

Any other course of action is risky and could result in you being flooded out or worst case scenario ,house on fire.

You can't rely on a central heating boiler to keep your house from being damaged by frost.

Oh,and leave a contact address and phone number with a neighbour.

All of this info will be in your insurance documents BTW.

 

[Deleted member 105431]

Leave the heating on constant and turn the roomstat down to 10 deg c.

 

[tonybhoy]

Leave the heating on constant and turn the roomstat down to 10 deg c.

Your not long in the trade are you? And your not a plumber?

That advice is madness.

 

[Deleted member 105431]

It depends how long your "going away" for really.

 

[swbjackson]

Why is that advice madness? I've been in the trade 26 years and that's what I'd recommend. If you drain down you can cause damage through corrosion and seized components. Possible shut off the cold main and drain the storage cistern but draining the whole house is overkill.

A few years back I was asked to drain down a hostel that was being left empty for a couple of months. I tried to persuade the owners to leave the heating on low but their insurers insisted that it was drained. When it came time to refill the system half a dozen radiators had pinholed and the large commercial circulator had seized solid. The new circulator alone cost mor than £500.

 

[pinheadplanet]

cheers

 

[Deleted member 105431]

Leave the heating on constant and turn the roomstat down to 10 deg c.

Your not long in the trade are you? And your not a plumber?

That advice is madness.

I've been in the trade 10 years and probably more qualified than you.

 

[Deleted member 105431]

Why is that advice madness? I've been in the trade 26 years and that's what I'd recommend. If you drain down you can cause damage through corrosion and seized components. Possible shut off the cold main and drain the storage cistern but draining the whole house is overkill.

A few years back I was asked to drain down a hostel that was being left empty for a couple of months. I tried to persuade the owners to leave the heating on low but their insurers insisted that it was drained. When it came time to refill the system half a dozen radiators had pinholed and the large commercial circulator had seized solid. The new circulator alone cost mor than £500.

Thanks I thought tonybhoy was a bit ott. If your away for six months I may agree with him but the average 2 week holiday what he suggests is overkill.

 

[Tipper]

My last insurer wanted the heating on and the house to be maintained above 12oC. If not then it had to be drained down. Well it was insured as a holiday home so could have been empty for relatively long periods. Draining down was not an option on a house you visited regularly even if a few weeks between visits. Better to keep the fabric of the house warm and dry rather than cold and damp.

 

[tonybhoy]

You've obviously not seen the damage that a severe frost can cause to a house. I've been involved in three severe frosts in 35 yrs the last one in 1994 where temperatures reached 20 degrees below zero in Glasgow. The devastation these temps cause was unbelieveable. So much so in fact the water board in my area actually turned off the water at the resevoir due there being so many bursts.

The problems were exacerbated becuase so many people were away on holiday at the time and left no means of contact or access to thier homes.

Entire tenement buildings had no water for periods up to a fortnight and that was some of the lucky ones.

I accept that drain downs can cuase problems but these problems will be rectified in a controlled manner rather than sudden burst pipes and very little possibility of employing a plumber due to the nature of events.

 

[tonybhoy]

Leave the heating on constant and turn the roomstat down to 10 deg c.

Your not long in the trade are you? And your not a plumber?

That advice is madness.

I've been in the trade 10 years and probably more qualified than you.

My dad's bigger than your da

 

[Deleted member 105431]

Southampton is along way from glasgow.

 

[HARALIAN]

Quite agree wi the sweatysock about the draindowns ... but this is oopnorth a bit than the rest of youslot darn sarf..... It gets canny cold here in Cumbria too Sweaty sock meant as a term of endearment so as not to offend But leaving heating on at 12 should suffice for a cpl o weeks Thats 12 degrees not oclock!!!!!!! ( ya just never know do ya) ??

 

[Tipper]

You need to make your mind up where you are young man.

Falklands or Cumbria?

(Note to self......don't get suckered in by spoof posters)