Sime format C 100 problem.

[5teady]

Hi,

Over the last few weeks our hot water when run is slightly warm and upstairs the water runs hot then cold.

Now when the hot water is run it starts off fairly warm, gets really hot for 10 seconds then runs cold for ages til it satrts to get warm and only very slightly warm.

Even the radioators seem to be struggling tonight the upstairs ones are warm ish, but the back end of the downstairs of the house they aint even warm, they are cold.

I phoned a few people and had some conflicting information.

Does anybody know what our problem is?

One guy said its the heat exchange and would be around £160 - £180, 200 max.

Another siad its the flow switch, another said something i didnt even understand (maybe he was foreign haha).

I would really appreciate some help and would be very greatful.

Regards,

Wayne

 

[Agile]

Hi,

I phoned a few people and had some conflicting information.

Does anybody know what our problem is?

One guy said its the heat exchange and would be around £160 - £180, 200 max.

Another siad its the flow switch, another said something i didnt even understand (maybe he was foreign haha).

Regards,

Wayne

It seems pretty obvious to me that you were calling engineers in the hope of getting a free telephone diagnosis so that you could try to do the repair yourself.

I expect that they all sussed that out, its not usually very difficult, and not surprisingly, were probably not very keen to tell you what is likely to actually be wrong.

In any case the only place to correctly diagnose a fault is in front of the boiler.

I will ALWAYS charge to diagnose faults. Thats where the skill lies. The client can then decide to repair it themselves or let me do it for them.

Tony

 

[5teady]

What a very unprofessional reply,
I have had a plumber in today, the boiler a few days ago totally cut off which he has fixed yet the water problem still remains and has got a lot worse since it cut off a few days ago.

i called him back about the hot water problem and he said he thinks it could be the heat exhcange, but he cannot do it til late next week for a prcie of £160-£180 200 max, which im happy for him to do has i have a pregnant girlfriend and 2 children and we need heating and hot water, but late next week is a long time for us, so i called another guy who said he thought it could be the divertor vavle or maybe the floew switch and he could repair it for £120, so with having 2 conflicting suggestions i then phoned a third who said it could be the pump or possibly the thermistors (sorry if i spelt that incorrect) with all this conflicting info and in our position of finding it hard to afford all the callout charges and all 3 things replaced, i was hoping to get some advice here and hopefully come to the best decision on which we should try first, what could be most likely.

I would never try to fix a boiler problem myself, i have no experience in this field and would not put my family in jeopardy and i dont think it was very nice of you being a proffessional to throw that accusation at me.

Im just seeking the best advice and help, im not a irresponsible person.

If anyone who can help me come to the best decision who has some advice, i would appreciate it.

This is my problem at present...

heating on, boilder starts and ignites, the temperatur goes from 50 deg to 75 deg in about 10 seconds and then theflames go out and the boiler stays off for about 30 seconds in which the temp drops back to 50 deg and then the boiler starts up again... the heating is warm ish upstairs, but all radiators expcept 1 downstairs all seem cold, the boiler just does that same cycle constantly.

The hot water is now just cold, it sometimes get warm for about 10 seconds then goes back cold, if the tap is on very very slowly, the water gets hot and does seem to hold its temperature.

any ideas on what we should try first?

Regards

Wayne

 

[Agile]

First of all try a boiler engineer rather than a plumber.

You seem to have had somebody there who has not managed to repair the boiler and still does not seem to have much of an idea what wrong.

You then call two more and each makes a guess of something different.

I have little respect for people who guess at whats wrong. There is only one way to diagnose faults and that at the boiler by doing tests.

NONE of the people you describe seem to have much of an idea. I would say you need someone better and one who offers a no-fix no-fee.

I have not seen your boiler but if I HAD to make a guess then I would be suspecting the pump is weak. But I dont guess at boiler faults and can only diagnose faults in front of the boiler.

Tony

 

[5teady]

Thanks for your reply, i was not really aware that plumbers was not the best people to call for this problem, like i said i have no knowledge of this field.

I will search some boiler companies in my area.

I really do appreciate your help.

i will keep you informed on the progress.

regards

wayne

 

[Agile]

Its common for the public to call anyone who works in this field a plumber.

A plumber deals with water supplies, drainage and bathrooms etc. and in many cases will do associated woodwork and tiling.

A boiler engineer specialises in boilers and is experienced at repairing them and can deal with the associated electronics and wiring and controls.

Some will do a bit of each. I stick to boilers and only do general plumbing for myself and good friends.

Let us know what eventually turns out to be the cause of the problem. Its not helping you that your boiler is not seen as very good either.

Tony

 

[slapper]

Thanks for your reply, i was not really aware that plumbers was not the best people to call for this problem, like i said i have no knowledge of this field.

I will search some boiler companies in my area.

I really do appreciate your help.

i will keep you informed on the progress.

regards

wayne

Ring British Gas on a no fix no fee, youve already spent more time/money on phone calls than prob what the boiler repair would cost

 

[Agile]

Whilst BG do give a no-fix no-fee I gather from customers that they do now charge about £89 for a diagnosis and quote if the customer is not happy with the quote which is now based on how long the engineer thinks they will take to complete the job.

As the higher BG charge is now over £400 its understandable that some people may decide to replace the boiler instead.

Tony

 

[5teady]

Hi the boiler is now fixed, i got in touch with a guy recommended from a family member and he came today and said it sounds like there is a flow problem, after taking the front off he found the problem within minutes, there was a black plastic joint (like a T shape) and it was totally blocked with black dirt, he cleaned it all, then had a good look at other things on the bolier and litterally gave it a good check over, he run the hot water and the heating and made sure everything was working fine, and so far so good. we now have hot water again and all radiators are very hot.

He was here nearly 2 hours and charged us only £50, i thought this was very very good for the time he spent here and what hes done for us.

So all good for now

 

[Agile]

That seems very cheap!

We always suggest personal recommendations are best.

I would probably have charged £136 in London but our living, parking, council tax etc. are far higher than Hull.

Tony

 

[DP]

OP, will suggest whoever looks at the boiler, focuses on the diverter valve first and not look elsewhere until this area has been ruled out. Clamp probes and thermometers will assist,

 

[5teady]

That seems very cheap!

We always suggest personal recommendations are best.

I would probably have charged £136 in London but our living, parking, council tax etc. are far higher than Hull.

Tony

He prob gave us it cheaper because hes apparently done work for lots of my family members which i did not know.
He has also recommended to us a power flush to the full system to stop the same problem accuring again, he said the power flush would be £400, we have 11 radiators and he said the job would be around 7 hours.
With our home being a old house, this would prob be best regardless i think, dont you?