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UK diy (uk.d-i-y) For the discussion of all topics related to diy (do-it-yourself) in the UK. All levels of experience and proficency are welcome to join in to ask questions or offer solutions. |
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#1
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Evil growth in hot water header tank
Four years ago we had a new central heating boiler installed in the
airing cupboard upstairs. It is an icos HE24 condensing boiler, open vent. Apart from the electronic controller failing a year ago, everything has been fine. No problems of any kind. A few weeks ago we had a radiator replaced. When draining down the system, the plumber discovered an evil growth in the boiler feed/expansion tank in the loft. The growth was a dark brown, gungy, jellyfish-like mass about dinner plate size and about one inch thick. He removed the tank from the loft, disposed of the gunge, and thoroughly cleaned the tank before replacing it back in the loft and adding inhibitor. Since then, there has been a strong, damp, "metallic" smell in the boiler/airing cupboard, which appears whenever the boiler is firing. When the boiler is switched off for a few hours, the smell goes away There is no trace of the smell in the loft around the header tank. There is no sign of any leaks around the new radiator or anywhere else. As a double check, the plumber has just re-examined the header tank, and reports that a new evil growth (a thick yellow skin on top of the water) has appeared. Is the water temperature too low perhaps, to kill off the evil bacteria? (I don't know what the temperature setting is, but it hasn't been altered since the original installation, and the new rad was a straight replacement for an old one). Could there be a problem if the new inhibitor was not the same type as the old? We're stumped. Any ideas on what to do next? I -- Ian |
#2
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Evil growth in hot water header tank
On 4/25/2010 9:01 AM, Ian wrote:
Four years ago we had a new central heating boiler installed in the airing cupboard upstairs. It is an icos HE24 condensing boiler, open vent. Apart from the electronic controller failing a year ago, everything has been fine. No problems of any kind. A few weeks ago we had a radiator replaced. When draining down the system, the plumber discovered an evil growth in the boiler feed/expansion tank in the loft. The growth was a dark brown, gungy, jellyfish-like mass about dinner plate size and about one inch thick. He removed the tank from the loft, disposed of the gunge, and thoroughly cleaned the tank before replacing it back in the loft and adding inhibitor. Since then, there has been a strong, damp, "metallic" smell in the boiler/airing cupboard, which appears whenever the boiler is firing. When the boiler is switched off for a few hours, the smell goes away There is no trace of the smell in the loft around the header tank. There is no sign of any leaks around the new radiator or anywhere else. As a double check, the plumber has just re-examined the header tank, and reports that a new evil growth (a thick yellow skin on top of the water) has appeared. Is the water temperature too low perhaps, to kill off the evil bacteria? (I don't know what the temperature setting is, but it hasn't been altered since the original installation, and the new rad was a straight replacement for an old one). Could there be a problem if the new inhibitor was not the same type as the old? We're stumped. Any ideas on what to do next? I Sounds like this stuff - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_bacteria http://www.hhs.state.ne.us/enh/IronSulfurBacteria.pdf If it is, raising the temperature should help get rid of it. |
#3
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Evil growth in hot water header tank
On 25/04/2010 14:29, S Viemeister wrote:
Sounds like this stuff - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_bacteria http://www.hhs.state.ne.us/enh/IronSulfurBacteria.pdf If it is, raising the temperature should help get rid of it. Sort of like the foundary scene at the end of the Terminator movies ;-) -- Adrian C |
#4
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Evil growth in hot water header tank
Ian wrote:
We're stumped. Any ideas on what to do next? Run! Run away while you still can! -- Dave - The Medway Handyman www.medwayhandyman.co.uk |
#5
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Evil growth in hot water header tank
On 25 Apr, 14:29, S Viemeister wrote:
On 4/25/2010 9:01 AM, Ian wrote: Four years ago we had a new central heating boiler installed in the airing cupboard upstairs. It is an icos HE24 condensing boiler, open vent. Apart from the electronic controller failing a year ago, everything has been fine. No problems of any kind. A few weeks ago we had a radiator replaced. When draining down the system, the plumber discovered an evil growth in the boiler feed/expansion tank in the loft. The growth was a dark brown, gungy, jellyfish-like mass about dinner plate size and about one inch thick. He removed the tank from the loft, disposed of the gunge, and thoroughly cleaned the tank before replacing it back in the loft and adding inhibitor. Since then, there has been a strong, damp, "metallic" smell in the boiler/airing cupboard, which appears whenever the boiler is firing. When the boiler is switched off for a few hours, the smell goes away There is no trace of the smell in the loft around the header tank. There is no sign of any leaks around the new radiator or anywhere else. As a double check, the plumber has just re-examined the header tank, and reports that a new evil growth (a thick yellow skin on top of the water) has appeared. Is the water temperature too low perhaps, to kill off the evil bacteria? (I don't know what the temperature setting is, but it hasn't been altered since the original installation, and the new rad was a straight replacement for an old one). Could there be a problem if the new inhibitor was not the same type as the old? We're stumped. Any ideas on what to do next? I Sounds like this stuff - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_bacteria http://www.hhs.state.ne.us/enh/IronSulfurBacteria.pdf If it is, raising the temperature should help get rid of it.- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - The last thing you do is raise the temperature of the water in the plastic header tank! Put some biocide in the water to stop the growth. The smell in the boiler compartment is probably down to whatever inhibitor your guy used and some may have leaked out of the AAV on the boiler. BTW I believe the ICOS uses an aluminium heat exchanger - he did use an aluminium compatible inhibitor didn't he? |
#6
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Evil growth in hot water header tank
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember "The Medway Handyman" saying something like: Ian wrote: We're stumped. Any ideas on what to do next? Run! Run away while you still can! I recall reading "Slime", about a genetic freak growth that developed in the New York sewers. Charming stuff that tended to grab people on the bog. Luckily, it was fiction. |
#7
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Evil growth in hot water header tank
Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember "The Medway Handyman" saying something like: Ian wrote: We're stumped. Any ideas on what to do next? Run! Run away while you still can! I recall reading "Slime", about a genetic freak growth that developed in the New York sewers. Charming stuff that tended to grab people on the bog. Luckily, it was fiction. Sure about that? If I were the OP I'd be running... -- Dave - The Medway Handyman www.medwayhandyman.co.uk |
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