Turbomax plus

[blueback]

Yeah, i have told him I want the plate removed and looked at whatever (im assuming an annual inspection and repair would cover this anyway)

Tony I phoned a local engineer from the internet not out of thin air!

Now this is where your correct as normal, the temp gauge goes upto 92 degrees but the water is reasonably stable at about 55 degrees. The boiler still fires up, increases temp, goes out, ignites when tempdrops and so on - it just doesnt go cold now

Plate HE is probably the real cause then

 

[Agile]

Yeah, i have told him I want the plate removed and looked at whatever (im assuming an annual inspection and repair would cover this anyway)

Anyone repairing the boiler properly would check the plate heat exchanger. It can be removed, filled with water and shaken so the water ( and dirt ) comes out of the inlet port from the diverter. A thermal survey will also indicate a blockage as the heat transfer is reduced.

I and a few others will clean the plate with chemicals, but many engineers will only replace it and they are about £130.

As far as I am aware NONE of the boiler "insurance" cover deals will cover blocked plate HEs or sludge in the system. ( Except BG after they have done a £600 power flush for you. )

Your diverter valve may well have been sticking although the symptoms dont indicate that. Its a very common fault and the later ones have been modified and have 8 mm holes in the side instead of the 4.5 mm holes on the early ones. The later ones have rugby balls inside and the early ones footballs. Replacements are about £90 and yours should be replaced now even if its not sticking as they all do at sometime.

Tony

 

[blueback]

Thanks Tony

I will watch in great detail what is done

BTW - he said he couldnt do it for a couple of weeks - is that ok with what he has done with the diverter

 

[Agile]

Thats fine as long as you dont want heating.

Have you paid him anything yet? If so you may not hear from him again as it sounds as if he may not be quite so competent at diagnosing faults.

Did he say what his screen name on here is?

Tony

 

[blueback]

I gave him a score

Didnt say whether he actually posted

Damn

Na he will be back cos hes corgi reg - wont he?

 

[spacethegas]

an annual service/inspection would not include removing the dhw h/e necessarily.

attempting to rectify your problem would.

a "thermal survey" is completely unnecessary & would be complete overkill. it would just attempt to impress the customer (woe look at my new gadget it was well expensive).

everyone i know involved in boiler repairs would descale/desludge colorifiers rather than renew them, unless absolutely necessary. if this was in fact required the whole system will require treating (with powerflush or not depending upon your situation) as the problem will reoccur.

if your diverter is not the latest version it is probably best to renew it as was said.

 

[Agile]

a "thermal survey" is completely unnecessary & would be complete overkill. it would just attempt to impress the customer (woe look at my new gadget it was well expensive).

I am surprised that you dont use thermal tests as part of your fault finding procedure!

For a start BG dont seem to clean plate HEs ! Reactfast dont expect their people to clean them either.

Did you ever fit an LPG boiler for a policemen?

Tony

 

[spacethegas]

Agile.

temp & temp differential tests as required.

i'm unfamiliar with the practices of these firms.

possibly. but i let my lpg ticket go a few years ago.

 

[Agile]

When I use the term thermal survey, I dont mean a thermal imaging survey, merely a survey of the temperatures at key operating points within the boiler.

A high temperature differential across the plate will indicate that its blocked and give an idea of the extent. If the differential is normal there can still be an excessive temperature difference between the primary and secondary of the plate. This is usually as a result of lime scale on the secondary but can also be as a result of surface deposits on the primary plate.

The impression I get is that the majority of those posting here normally change the plate rather than cleaning them as we do. Their reasoning is presumably that its a messy procedure and they dont feel confident that they can be sure that its fully clear afterwards.

Tony