Potterton Lynx Electronic - Engineer says may need replacing

[rednev]

Hi.

We have a Potterton Lynx (Electronic) boiler powering the central heating/hot water in our home we bought just over a year ago.

The other day it stopped heating water and central heating, (On Demand light would come on but no sign of ignition) and smelt burning from the unit.

Called our home insurance cover and they sent an engineer to look at it for us.

It seems it could possibly be a PCB that needs replacing, but he also mentioned that there was a sensor higher up on the unit that he couldnt get a multi meter reading from reliably, so wasnt sure if that had gone.

The engineer has said to the insurance company that the PCB can be fitted, but the sensor is now obsolete or very difficult to fit due to corrosion of contacts from what I remember my convo with him.

Im hoping the replacement PCB may solve the issue, but if it doesnt we are left without a boiler .

So will have two options:

1) See if I could get someone else to fit the sensor should I be able to source one.

2) have a new boiler fitted.


Im guessing that 1 could still cost me a fair bit in labour, but cheaper than new boiler.

However It may be best to go with option 2 to be safe going forward (we have a 3yr old and another on the way soon).


The engineer that came out for the insurer gave me a rough estimate of approx £2k for the install of a Worcester boiler in replacement of our current one. Said that would need a few minor adjustments to pipe work and new flue.

Does this seem a realistic price?

There are also a few radiators around the house that are a bit rusty so they may as well be replaced at the same time too. However I wasnt really looking to have those done until we were decorating the rooms they were in, as was considering getting a few pipes being run into the walls rather than how they are visible at the moment, and still to decide where we would want them placed in the room..... which I would guess would start to bump the price up considerably. We dont have loads of cash at the moment.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[hazetimesfive]

Does one ever have loads of cash ?

 

[Inky Pete]

If you've been paying for a cover contract on it then I'd say it's down to the company to get it sorted one way or the other - even if that means they have to replace the thing - otherwise, what have you been paying out each month for?

 

[rednev]

Havent been paying out cover from utility company. And I dont believe any company would pay out to replace a boiler that old would they?

We pay approx. £40 per year ontop of our house insurance per year to cover central heating, plumbing etc. As part of the Ts and Cs they will replace part needed to get it up and running, but if there are other contributory factors that are causing the problem then its upto us to get it sorted out in the future.

I.e a part failed due to the boiler not having a service for a while, we would need to get it serviced before they would do any more to it should anything happen to it again.

 

[Inky Pete]

You've still been paying for cover on it, and by taking your £40 a month the insurance company have accepted responsibility for fixing it.

It's up to them to get it fixed, regardless of what part it needs or how "difficult" it is.

Having said that, there's no way that I would use one of these cover policies. If you stick the £40 a month into a savings account you could afford to have a brand new boiler every 2 to 3 years!

 

[nickso]

Inky Pete is dreaming.

It's your appliance in your home, if it needs replacing it's your responsibility unless your T&C's says different.

The sensor has been obsolete for years.

Frankly 2k for any Worcester is a vast improvement over a Lynx.

 

[Inky Pete]

So you'd be happy to have been paying insurance premiums of nearly £500 a year on something only for the company to wash their hands of you as soon as there's a problem would you nickso?

They will have known what make, model and approximate age the boiler was when they took it on. Having accepted the premiums it's their responsibility to fix it.

 

[D_Hailsham]

As part of the Ts and Cs they will replace part needed to get it up and running, but if there are other contributory factors that are causing the problem then its up to us to get it sorted out in the future.

I.e a part failed due to the boiler not having a service for a while, we would need to get it serviced before they would do any more to it should anything happen to it again.

But a sensor is not a serviceable part; it either works or it doesn't. So the fact that the boiler had not been serviced is irrelevant.

Doe the T&C's say anything about unobtainable parts, or about replacing the boiler?

 

[nickso]

So you'd be happy to have been paying insurance premiums of nearly £500 a year on something only for the company to wash their hands of you as soon as there's a problem would you nickso?

They will have known what make, model and approximate age the boiler was when they took it on. Having accepted the premiums it's their responsibility to fix it.

Sorry but you are radio rental.

The cost of the premium is irrelevant, the T&C's are entirely relevant and you can bet I would have checked if it was worth the outlay for the potential return. Sadly too many people like you don't check and then get all outraged when it doesn't go their way.

As Hailsham has said, it's not a serviceable part, if it's obsolete then there's not a hell of a lot they can do other than make the customer aware it's obsolete.

I can't see how they are washing their hands. They have diagnosed it as one of two parts, I think they are going to try one but the other is obsolete. If it isn't the PCB then they have given a rough figure for a replacement and will likely follow it up with a firm one. Presumably you want them to put a new boiler on the wall for free yes?

 

[GeeTee]

Umm, I think someone has misread. The OP stated he pays £40 / year not £40 / month.

 

[mickyg]

its ancient, its failing, it was never a good boiler when it was new...skip it.

 

[D_Hailsham]

Presumably you want them to put a new boiler on the wall for free?

If the terms of the policy say that they will replace a boiler which is unrepairable, the OP is entitled to a new one.

 

[nickso]

Presumably you want them to put a new boiler on the wall for free?

If the terms of the policy say that they will replace a boiler which is unrepairable, the OP is entitled to a new one.

That's why I said that in my first post.

 

[rednev]

Looks like my last post gained some interest


Hopefully getting the Potteron PCB replaced today so will see.

I pay £40 PER YEAR on my emergency cover for plumbing, central heating etc. which I think is reasonable value. Especially considering the likes of British Gas' Homecare have following stipulations:

Replacing your boiler if it is less than 7 years old and cannot be repaired. 10 years if installed by British Gas and you have had a continuous cover agreement for the life of the boiler.

Any idea what would be a good replacement for the Potterton Lynx Electronic?

I see Worcester brand gets a lot of vote in the trade. Could anyone advise on what model would be suitable to replace the Lynx?

 

[Dan Robinson]

Worcester are average boilers with above average support.

they are popular in the trade because the public are gullible and believe everything they read.


Intergas
Atag
Vaillant

are my preference order with WB 4th.

Any 24kW combi will do.

There is a reason why we called the Lynx the "Jynx" They were cack.

Send it to Inky Pete. he seems daft enough to want one .