magnaclean, to be or not to be (from a girl!!)

[Deleted member 105431]

I reckon you can find a decent local RGI that will do a service and fit a magnaclean for around £200 and if it is in conjunction with the job, do a chemical flush for another £100.
If your boiler and system are of reasonable quality and not too old, you should have no real need to pay about £200 a year for insurance.
Direct debit the money into a savings account, and have an annual service in stead. With a bit of luck, your savings will cover the best part of the price of a quality new boiler by the time you need one.

good advice.

 

[bengasman]

good advice.

Your idea of canceling ****ish gas contract was not so bad either, even without them saying they wouldn't come out for a repair.
I have heard plenty of people complain becayse they refused the repair (or "couldn't" do it) because a powerflush was not covered. This is the first time I have heard them tell somebody in advance that the work would not be done.
If that doesn't take the biscuit, I don't know what will.

 

[holty]

If that doesn't take the biscuit, I don't know what will.

a plumber on diet

 

[bengasman]

If that doesn't take the biscuit, I don't know what will.

a plumber on diet

Is that a bit like an honest politician?

 

[petit_pablo]

A 22mm magnaclean from BG is 250.55 fitted generally. A bit more in london.

The idea that if the customer doesnt get it fitted and has a problem with mucky system isnt new but has been mis-quoted by the engineer. That get out clause is supposed to be aimmed at people with repeat problems like blocked plate heat exchangers. There is only so many times it will be repaired free as BG will give "Best Advice" lol and advise that the system is cleaned. If it isnt then future work is chargeable. Its insurance, not charity. If you keep claiming on house or car insurance premiums go up or they wont cover it any more. Its the same thing

 

[catpuss1]

thanks guys,i've had very serious conversations with british gas over the weekend saying that they are blackmailing me,problem is it's an ariston boiler that really britsh gas have buggered over the years.they have quoted me £210 for the magnaclean.if i haggle with them to reduce the price if i can get it for £190 think it's worth having???the system is 14yrs old??what do you think???

 

[nickso]

thanks guys,i've had very serious conversations with british gas over the weekend saying that they are blackmailing me,problem is it's an ariston boiler that really britsh gas have b*****r over the years.they have quoted me £210 for the magnaclean.if i haggle with them to reduce the price if i can get it for £190 think it's worth having???the system is 14yrs old??what do you think???

dont waste your time. mimimum price is £207 (probably not london) if the system is drained and the engineeer fits it there and then. any lower price is a special dispensation from a manager for whatever reason. the system doesnt always need to be drained to get this price, i often lie to the office that it is, but the eng is going to have to fit it there and then.

as for the blackmail bit its going to boil down to a few facts and not some nonsense dreamed up by the regular dreamers on here.

the engineer(s) is supposed to advise you of anything that will affect the system and contract. if there is something, and in this case you have been advised of corrosion and or sludge, then certain parts of the contract, as part of that contract, are now changed and no longer available. some see this as unfair but they are usually the ones who didnt read the contract in the first place.

what you need to do, if you believe you are being conned, is figure out if the advice regarding the corrosion/sludge is bullshit or the truth. then you need to figure out if you want to buy any remedies from BG or if you want to do this with a third party or possibly yourself. be aware that although BG often charge more as an unfortunate side effect of their lumbering size they quite often give better guarantees on the work.

another issue you need to deal with is that italian junk that some call a boiler. getting rid of the ariston for a better quality of boiler will do you a lot of favours.

 

[JohnD]

As I see it, a 14-year old system is pretty sure to have lots of sediment in it, so a Magnaclean is a very useful thing and will do nothing but good. the device costs about £100 (unfitted) If it was me I would fit it myself and do a chemical clean as well. If you are paying someone else to do it for you I suppose you have to expect to pay more.

Do you like DIY plumbing? You can use teh Magnaclean to help you add a cleaning chemical, but you will have to drain and flush it yourself. It is not particularly difficult but might take you half a day.

I am a householder not a pro.

 

[gas_man_gaz]

some of the replies to the op really do make me laugh, eg recommending she cancels her contract without even knowing the make and model of the boiler.
if you read the terms and conditions of your contract it does say any fault caused by dirt in the system are not covered but if you haven't been previously informed they will repair the fault free of charge and advise you what work needs to be carried out to help prevent future probs.
personally i think the engineer has done his job, hes fixed the fault, hes advised you on just a magnaclean and hasn't tried to sell you a expensive powerflush and he's advised you on the terms and conditions of your contract.
norm installation price for a magnaclean on a combi is £250, i do um for £200 on the day if the boiler has to be drained to carry out the repair

 

[JohnD]

I reckon if you don't want to DIY, £210 fitted is quite reasonable, and well worth having.

Once it's in, come back and ask how to do a DIY chemical clean.

Make sure you know where the drain cock is, and where the system is filled from (if 13years old it probably has a feed and expansion tank in the loft)

 

[Deleted member 105431]

some of the replies to the op really do make me laugh, eg recommending she cancels her contract without even knowing the make and model of the boiler.
if you read the terms and conditions of your contract it does say any fault caused by dirt in the system are not covered but if you haven't been previously informed they will repair the fault free of charge and advise you what work needs to be carried out to help prevent future probs.
personally i think the engineer has done his job, hes fixed the fault, hes advised you on just a magnaclean and hasn't tried to sell you a expensive powerflush and he's advised you on the terms and conditions of your contract.
norm installation price for a magnaclean on a combi is £250, i do um for £200 on the day if the boiler has to be drained to carry out the repair

and what is the point of having a contract where no future claims are covered exactly? she's better off saving her money and putting it towards a new boiler installed by a local rgi.

 

[gas_man_gaz]

not exactly, no future claims caused by dirt in the sys (which she has been advised about) will be covered unless she has done something about it. so if she rang in with a fault on the hw, eg diaphragm split that would still be covered even if she hadn't done anything about the muck in the sys.

i have to agree on the new boiler bit tho, but if the engineer adv her on that he would of been accused of trying 2rip um off.

 

[picbits]

Having done some tests on my own heating system, if funds allow it I'll almost certainly be putting a Magnaclean on my system when I have a new boiler fitted.

Some pics and video on the link below
//www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=185286