Replacement Boiler Fan Kit. What's the Silicone Sealant for?

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I've just had a new fan fitted to my Baxi Solo 3. As an electrical engineer, after the Gas Safe guy had left I decided to check out the old fan motor to see what was wrong with it, as I fished it out of the box that the new one came in. I noticed that there was an unused mini tube of silicone sealant in there along with a used white seal/gasket. I assume that the silicone came with the new fan and should have been applied to something. Is this correct? [Polite answers only please ]

On another matter, I'm thinking of sending the old fan off to CET and having it refurbished so that I can keep it as a spare? The boiler is 14 years old now, and on its 3rd fan. At the extortionate price of almost £300 a time plus fitting for a new one, £65 for a refurbished one looks good value. Is this a good idea? Would a Gas Safe guy be allowed to fit a part I had purchased? I would of course not hold him responsible for the fan in the event of its failure.

 

[Agile]

It may be a tube of sealant for glueing the gasket to the fan or it may be lubricant to ease the fan outlet into the flue tube.

Regardless I don't think that you need to be worried about it.

Better to keep your old fan until you actually need to have it repaired. New fans should last 10 years.

Unfortunately that boiler places the fan above the huge chunk of metal of the heat exchanger and so its working in a very hot environment. I don't think there is any pump over run either. Or if there is it may not be connected up. You should check that.

Your boiler is already old and may not last another 5-10 years!

Tony

 

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That's interesting, the guy that installed the new fan also commented that the fans location in a hot position can cause problems. In my case the motor windings had become open circuit, so maybe its location contributed to it overheating, although it doesn't look burned.

I'm hoping to keep the boiler as long as possible, because it's heat only, non condensing and nice and simple. Parts are still readily available (albeit it expensive) the corrosion inhibitor is kept up to strength, so hopefully it won't be rusting internally. The fan has been the only failure that has caused it to breakdown completely, and on both occasions it was fixed within a few hours. Economy wise, for a non condensing boiler a SAP rating of 78.5% isn't too bad.

My thinking was that if I had a replacement fan to hand, the engineer could fit it in one visit rather than two. However, if the new fan lasts 5 years, then I suppose by then it could be time to change. I imagine the gas solenoid valve will be the next item to fail, it's still on the original.

The Solo 3 does have a pump overrun. When the PCB failed, it kept the pump running permanently 24/7. If there's a power failure and the pump goes off whilst the boiler is running, the overheat trips and has to be manually reset. Annoying when you are away and are relying on it for frost protection.

Thanks for the reassurance about the silicone Tony, I'll be able to find a use for it somewhere I'm sure.

 

[Agile]

Unlikely any of those parts would fail.

The usual faults are fan, APS and PCB.

Apart from the first two mainly caused by the hot location they are quite reliable boilers.

Very compact too.

But you should be thinking of replacing it sometime.

The GlowWorm or Vaillant 18 kW heat only is very reliable as well as being efficient too.

Tony