Opinions please on this combi install? All ok? Pics attached

[Andy.T]

Hi all,

Our ageing heat-only Potterton has finally been replaced with a new Remeha 39c combi. As our boiler had died it was great that the plumber was able to fit us in so quick but the work was done whilst we were away and I had a few queries about how things had been done.

To be clear I'm not on here to bash the plumber as he did a stirling job to fit us in so quick but he did neglect to do some of the work that he quoted to do (e.g. dismantling and disposal of all tanks etc. in the loft etc.) and so as I have to get him back for that I want to be prepared with second opinions on a couple of other issues.

These are just things that I'm not sure about so just wanted to canvass opinion from you guys (they may or may not be problems).

Ok here goes...

A) The gas pipe from the meter to the Remeha needed to be uprated but he has run it outside and then back into the boiler rather than going through the back of several kitchen cabinets. See pics below, does that all look ok?...

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...it's probably just paranoia on my part but I worry the pipe is a bit vulnerable/exposed? Should anything extra be done to protect it?


B) Ignoring the hideous looking filler for a moment , what is the small curled copper pipe in the middle in the pic below. It doesn't seem to do anything, is it some sort of additional inlet/flue? You can see it side on in the pic above.

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C) The new flue can be seen in the pic below, he seems to have put a new brick in, do you reckon that was just a boo boo on his part or might that be the location of the old flue that he has filled in for us?

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D) Part of the job was to fit 2 TRVs on two tatty old rads in the bathroom and WC. What suprised me though was that the TRVs appear to have been installed on different ends of the two rads? One has replaced one of these...

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...and one has replaced one of these...

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...do you think that matters? I figured one was the inlet and one was the outlet and that the TRVs would need to go on inlets (the valves like the the second pic) for both rads?


E) Bottom of the boiler, does this look ok? I was a bit worried about the dangly cable junction...

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F) Can you/would you see a Magnaclean (?sp), magnetic anti-clogging thing here (as there should be one)...

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G) The little rad was supposed to be installed at the bottom of the back of the airing cupboard but he has fitted it pretty high up the right hand wall. Do you think/can you see there might be any reason why it needed to be done like that, or do you think he was just doing it that way to make it easier/quicker...

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...we are going to get the inside of the airing cupbard tarted up as the plaster is badly blown. I'm a bit disapointed in how the electric cabling was left though...

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..are those cables really necessary in a combi system? Should they/could they not be nearer the boiler (downstairs in the kitchen)?


H) Just a trivial whinge but does anyone think the install of this thermostat is a bit wonky?

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...that's it really. Any comments (constructive ideally!) would be gratefully received. Just so I can seperate my paranoia and worrying from any genuine issues that I ought to get him to look again at really.

Cheers!

Andy

 

[kevindgas]

gas pipe where it goes through wall is it sleeved? it should be
is there an earth bond on or near the gas meter? as again there should be
other than that it looks ok 22mm pipe is fairly robust so should be ok on outside wall looks to be clipped reasonably well

electrics under boiler not ideal but if that is how remeha supply the connector i personally would put it above pipes if possible so that it does not hang there

small pipe elbow is the pressure releif valve outlet this is ok

filling of brickwork holes awful!!! as is blown bricks where holes have been drilled!

single brick - could have been the old flue - surely you know where the old one came out!

TRV's should be on flow into rad so it maybe different ends check when you first put heating on which end gets hot first.

smallcupboard rad would think the reason is the joist under the floor would make it difficult to put in pipework on back wall - installer should have asked you what you required him to do (in my opinion) why is part of the floor missing?

 

[swidders]

A) The gas pipe from the meter to the Remeha needed to be uprated but he has run it outside and then back into the boiler rather than going through the back of several kitchen cabinets. See pics below, does that all look ok?......it's probably just paranoia on my part but I worry the pipe is a bit vulnerable/exposed? Should anything extra be done to protect it?

Is fine.

B) what is the small curled copper pipe in the middle in the pic below. It doesn't seem to do anything, is it some sort of additional inlet/flue? You can see it side on in the pic above.

Outlet for pressure relief valve

C) The new flue can be seen in the pic below, he seems to have put a new brick in, do you reckon that was just a boo boo on his part or might that be the location of the old flue that he has filled in for us?

Now, how would we know?

D) Part of the job was to fit 2 TRVs on two tatty old rads in the bathroom and WC. What suprised me though was that the TRVs appear to have been installed on different ends of the two rads? One has replaced one of these... ...do you think that matters? I figured one was the inlet and one was the outlet and that the TRVs would need to go on inlets (the valves like the the second pic) for both rads?

Not true- some TRV's can be fitted on either flow or return.

E) Bottom of the boiler, does this look ok? I was a bit worried about the dangly cable junction...

and?

F) Can you/would you see a Magnaclean (?sp), magnetic anti-clogging thing here (as there should be one)...

Did you/he specify one? It may be elsewhere anyway

G) The little rad was supposed to be installed at the bottom of the back of the airing cupboard but he has fitted it pretty high up the right hand wall. Do you think/can you see there might be any reason why it needed to be done like that, or do you think he was just doing it that way to make it easier/quicker...

Ask him!!!

...we are going to get the inside of the airing cupbard tarted up as the plaster is badly blown. I'm a bit disapointed in how the electric cabling was left though...

You sound like you're disappointed about most things in life

..are those cables really necessary in a combi system? Should they/could they not be nearer the boiler (downstairs in the kitchen)?

No - he did it to annoy you!

H) Just a trivial whinge but does anyone think the install of this thermostat is a bit wonky?

maybe he's put it on straight and your whole house is, like you, wonky

 

[mickyg]

I wouldn't say there's anything badly wrong anywhere. Only concern would be what looks like 3/4"condense pipe(white one) run outside. Should be as a minimum insulated, or more ideally larger bore pipe. Personally I always try and run all pipework internally where possible to keep a neat job, but this can sometimes add a couple of days to the job and the cost implications can be the difference in losing a job.

 

[cso30]

Hi,

A - I'd say the gas pipe looks fine, it certainly doesn't contravene any regulations. Whether it should have been run behind the kitchen units should have been discussed when pricing the job.

B - The small bent pipe coming out of the wall is a pressure relief pipe, if your boiler was to have a fault and the water pressure was too high in the heating system or more importantly the boiler was to over heat scalding water would come out of the pipe, it needs to be there but it should be run to ground level. I work for British Gas and it is a fault we pick up on a lot of Installations. The white plastic pipe next to it is the condense line and should be run in 35mm plastic pipe, to prevent the condense freezing which would stop the boiler working.

C - I don't really know about the brick.

D - The TRV's can be fitted to any side of the rad.

E - I can't really tell what type of junction box it is.

F - definately no magnaclean in that picture, check this link - http://www.uk-plumbing.com/water-treatment-magnaclean-water-treatment-c-436_1194.html

G - The rad in the airing cupboard looks fine, if you put them too low it looks stupid and you can't really hang anything on it. I can't really tell what type of cable it is and if it should be in trunking.

H - The stat does look a bit out of level but there should be some adjustment on it, to save re-drilling holes.

 

[fitz1]

Two concerns, one being the condense pipe as said above and the other is how much did you pay and what boiler is it.

 

[Andy.T]

kevindgas - Thanks for that.

There is what looks like wider bore copper pipe surrounding the run of gas pipe as it leaves and re-enters the building. Is that all that's needed?

Will check the earth bond when I get home.

I'm not sure exactly where the old flue was (i.e. to the specific brick) it could well be the old flue. I'd assumed the new bolier's flue would be where the old one was. The cupboard in the kitchen where the bolier lives is pretty tight though so he may not have had the luxury of being able to site the new flue where the old one was?

Will check the TRV thing, thanks.

Well spotted on the joist in the airing cupboard, as I say we did discuss it with him prior to going away (that we wanted the rad at the back) but we weren't about when he finished as we were away for the weekend. I'll see what he says about possibly re-siting it when he comes back about the tanks etc. that he left in the loft.

Thanks again,

Andy

 

[Andy.T]

Mickyg - Thanks for that, that's interesting.

cso30 - Thanks for that, interesting on the Magnaclean, I'll ask him about that. Sorry the pics were just done on my phone, the cable used to be the main electrics for the pump etc. when the hot water cylinder was there but they seem to be a mains off switch for the boiler (down in the kitchen) now. I just wasn't expecting any electrics to be needed to be left there was all.

Fitz1 - Hiya thanks for that. I think I put in my first post, it's a Remeha 39c combi, the cost all in was about £2750.

Cheers,

Andy

 

[woogas]

Some parts are tidy, yet others are shocking.
Condensate should be insulated outside or larger bore.
Might see the sleeve inside, but gas run doesn't look sleeved externally.
Pointing is shocking. He doesn't need to be a brickie to know the basics of a tidy finish and pride in his work.
You've not mentioned how much you paid, so you might just as well have got value for money, or otherwise disappointed.

 

[Andy.T]

swidders - Thanks for that, that's helpful.

Yes, I said "there should be" a magnaclean in my post because he quoted on the basis of providing one, not through some intangible sense of justice on my part.

I will ask him about the rad but, as I put in my post, my purpose in coming on here was that I wanted to canvass opinions from others so I felt prepared for what he came back with by way of an explanation. To see if there might be any valid reasons. Kevindgas has mentioned the joist so that sounds plausible and I'll know the chap isn't trying to pull the wool over my eyes.

Just wanted to end by saying, 5 out of the 6 people who took the time to reply on here thought my post was fairly reasonable and felt able to read it properly and respond to it in a mature way. Out of all of them you are the only one who wasn't, and you think I'm wonky?

Perhaps your answers went from helpful and constructive to silly and insulting because you are in a bad mood, perhaps something unpleasant happened to you today...

...I do hope so.

Andy

 

[Andy.T]

Woogas - Thanks for that.

Do you mean the gas pipe run needs to be sleeved all along then?

Cheers,

Andy

 

[woogas]

A sleeve is only a sleeve if it passes right through the wall, and sealed internally in this case

 

[swidders]

On reflection, your snag list would be similar to mine - so, sorry for my loss of patience in my reply

Pipes should be sleeved as they pass though walls to allow for expansion/movement as well as protection from possible reaction with cement etc.

Yes the electrics in the airing cupboard would have been better placed down near the boiler.

Looking at the rad in the airing cupboard, the joist douesn't seem to be getting in the way of hanging the rad on the back wall, as you specified.

And yes, the brickwork/pointing is shambolic.

Looks like the plumber lost interest towards the end and rushed it.

 

[mehran]

Andy.T i would not worry. from what you have shown us the install is good.

installers like to put the boot in on other installers, no matter what you post up some one will find fault. every install will have its short comings it is just life.

 

[kevindgas]

Andy.T i would not worry. from what you have shown us the install is good.

installers like to put the boot in on other installers, no matter what you post up some one will find fault. every install will have its short comings it is just life.

i agree with these comments it is very easy to be critical but all in all the install looks ok

the sleeve should be on the gas pipe when it passes through a wall most installers use a bit of 28mm copper or a bit of yellow gas pipe -all it does is stop the pipe rubbing on the wall directly.

kev