Outlet Pipe from Worcester Greenstar Ri Boiler Frozen

[Drumgilken]

In the past week due to the freezing temperatures. The Outlet Pipe from
the Boiler has been frozen. The plastic pipe going to the waste drain
has had a lot of ice backed up to the wall outlet. I have cleared the ice from the pipe by tapping lightly with a wooden spoon. Was going to use the sledge hammer but, thought I might break it. Today I did the same,
cleared the pipe of all the ice. But now the boiler was making strange noises, gurgling, and engine revving sound after I reset it. Got on to Bosch, but, only result Engineer will visit next Wednesday. In the meantime. Not only will I freeze, but perhaps not wash either.
I decided to pour a kettle of "warm water" on the pipe coming out of the wall. And guess What. My heating system has been working ever since.

My Question is :

Is there any way that I can permanently insulate or fix this problem so it does not become a daily chore ??? I have the foam pipe cover on other
pipes to stop them freezing. Would this work on the Outlet Pipe???

All answers and suggestions gratefully received.

Thanks in Advance.

Drumgilken

 

[swbjackson]

What size is the pipe? If it's overflow it should already be insulated with a waterproof insulation such as armaflex. Alternatively replace the outside pipe with 32mm waste pipe.

 

[Drumgilken]

What size is the pipe? If it's overflow it should already be insulated with a waterproof insulation such as armaflex. Alternatively replace the outside pipe with 32mm waste pipe.

Hi Mike,

Thanks for your reply.

Not sure how to reply on here. the pipe coming out of the wall is
copper from the bottom of the boiler. It is then covered in plastic pipe
which is about 45/50mm in dia. which in my opinion is around 32mm i.d.
this goes all the way down to the ground drain/waste.
Where is comes out of the wall, this is the area that is frozen. This is where I would like to further insulate the pipe/cover it with "whatever" stops it freezing.



Does this make sense??

D

 

[mrgas]

At this point a photo whould be most helpful.

 

[Corgigrouch]

Gurgling suggests to me that the pipe is still frozen and the condensate is not draining.... If the pipe is outside, then a kettle of hot water should do the trick, if not then get your wifes hair drier on it.

As has been said if the pipe is outside, then it should be 32mm or insulated if it is overflow pipe, but 32 mm is better because I have found that the pipe freezes from the outlet back and if it is overflow, then it will still freeze even if it is insulated.

And just to be extra pedantic, I always use black 32mm so that the pipe has a chance to attract any warmth from the sun in the daytime to further ensure none freezedness

 

[Drumgilken]

Once again thank you all for your replies.

I contacted British Gas who were the Supplier of the Boiler in Dec 2007. I was not the customer, previous owner of the house.They were not interested as the 12 month installation gurantee had expired in December.
I then phoned Worcester Bosch, who send an Engineer out on 13/01/2009
On his arrival I was informed that the Corgi installer should have lagged the pipe under Corgi regulations and British Gas should not have passed the signed off installation without this being done.

The Moral of This Story is. ""If they Can Cut Corners and Get Away With It, They will."" If you are spending lots of your hard earned cash on anything, make very sure the job is being done properly and complies with the necessary regulations

D

 

[misscheef]

I have the same problem, and bitterley regret swapping my totally reliable 22 year-old baxi backboiler for a so-called 'A' rated green worcester bosch! Although my heating engineer has done his best by renewing the armaflex insulation around the pipe, the freezing conditions have been such that it still froze and I had to pour hot water over it. After further discussion, we have decided to box in the pipe and use another layer of insulation. It would be nice for a representative from Worcester-Bosch to make a comment on this problem.

 

[SuperMario80]

Hi, where is the boiler located? Is there anyway the condensate can be run internally? If you want that done. Let me know as I'm a plumber in Wiltshire and would be happy to help.

 

[Steady]

It would be nice for a representative from Worcester-Bosch to make a comment on this problem.

Eh?
They are not responsible for your pipe freezing. Neither are any of the other dozens of boiler manufacturers.
It is the result of extreme temperatures and in some cases poor installation work.

 

[Drumgilken]

Good morning to you all. And here we are almost 1 year to the day.
And last night the old familiar noise started. My heating stopped working and it was too cld to go outside with my secret weapon ! Bucket of Hot Water.
It is my own fault I have to admit. Lasy January I did lag the pipe with the foam type pipe cover, and recently bought a 3mt length of down pipe and clips for my son to do a proper job. I even attempted to cut the pipe myself, so that I could wrap it around the condensate pipe with insulation underneath. Anyway the weather beat me again. It is definitely a High Priority Job on my To Doi List. I have also discovered
that the Heating and water timer has been wired wrongly (One again under the close scrutiny of British Gas the installers) I think they
have got them wired together. The Heating is "On" water on the Off position yet the two red lights are on. I'm no expert on these matters, but feel they should operate independantly and together as required.


To Those who have posted on my Thread, Many thanks to you all, and do hope we can all get our Condensate pipes sorted, But British Gas
won't be doing mine.

D

 

[Drumgilken]

It would be nice for a representative from Worcester-Bosch to make a comment on this problem.

Eh?
They are not responsible for your pipe freezing. Neither are any of the other dozens of boiler manufacturers.
It is the result of extreme temperatures and in some cases poor installation work.

In reply to your comments.

The manufacturers of any boiler or any product made for a specific purpose, do not operate properly in the environment for which they were made, should not be selling the products. They are not ""Fit For Purpose"" And as such should not be charging extortinate prices for the products. After all most people do not replace their boilers, so that they won't work in the winter. After all this i when we need them most.

We are not the only country with these extreme weather conditions.

Dee

 

[Steady]

They are not ""Fit For Purpose"" And as such should not be charging extortinate prices for the products.

Sue 'em then. Let us know how you get on.

 

[griggs]

The boiler manufacturers do not provide the condensate pipe, only a connection point on the boiler itself and guidelines on how to install it which are based on a british standard which advises internal runs where possible, maximum lengths and lagging / upsizing the pipe if run externally.

 

[ub7rm]

It would be nice for a representative from Worcester-Bosch to make a comment on this problem.

Eh?
They are not responsible for your pipe freezing. Neither are any of the other dozens of boiler manufacturers.
It is the result of extreme temperatures and in some cases poor installation work.

In reply to your comments.

The manufacturers of any boiler or any product made for a specific purpose, do not operate properly in the environment for which they were made, should not be selling the products. They are not ""Fit For Purpose"" And as such should not be charging extortinate prices for the products. After all most people do not replace their boilers, so that they won't work in the winter. After all this i when we need them most.

We are not the only country with these extreme weather conditions.

Dee

I have a WB boiler. My condensate pipe is routed internally to a drain and so I have no problem with it freezing. This was done by the plumber who installed it. WB have nothing to do with the way your boiler was installed. You sir, are a moron.