What is this ????????

[Gasguru]

Had an FER Hawk today with the Caleffi DHW flowswitch stuck on.

Pulled it apart and a plastic like object was jammed in the paddle. The inlet filter also contains this strange material. Its formed a string like shape through the filter and then a blob around the paddle. It burns just like plastic ie its not scale. Very odd.

The filter was spotless a year ago (I had it apart to remove the flow limiter...water pressure very low in the property). Is there some strange compound in our water? Is there a conspiracy by the water authorities

 

[gas4you]

Has someone added a leak sealing compound to the system in the past?

 

[Gasguru]

Its on the cold inlet to the boiler so would be illegal to do so, certainly nothing in the last 5 years. Its only taken a year and the mystery substance ignites and burns with a small flame.

 

[chrishutt]

It looks like a flow restrictor that's melted, perhaps due to overheating of the boiler or soldering on the pipework upstream. I've come across one or two like that before.

 

[Gasguru]

Except I removed the flow restrictor a year ago.

 

[mehran]

some lazy ass apprentice could not be bothered to put his chewing gum in the bin so he stuck it on the end of some pipes which where late used to supply cold to the boiler

or some plumbers mate?

 

[Gasguru]

That was my first though...chewing gum shoved down the main during recent work in shop refit below. but does chewing gum burn

 

[Agile]

Even before reading all the replies I thought that it looks like chewing gum!

Might be a naughty apprentice?

I do have to say that its so frustrating that so few young people are serious these days and just immagine that life is playing around. They can be seen on the sat channels getting drunk every weekend.

Tony