On Sat, 18 Feb 2006 22:15:23 +0000, Michael Pacey wrote:

On Sat, 18 Feb 2006 21:52:24 +0000
Ed Sirett wrote:

As others have already said this boiler is Dangerous. Any
professional coming across it in its current state WILL condemn it.
The fact that the casing is also getting hot almost certainly means
that the flue and/or heat exchanger is blocked. Maybe the flue liner
has collapsed ?

Just one point - this boiler was designed and installed long before
combi boilers were around (in the UK at least). It comes from the
Concorde era!

Frankly the cost of putting this right - and being really sure it's
right
- should probably go straight towards the new boiler.

Have a look at the BoilerChoice FAQ below.

Hi Ed,

I realised this was not a combi boiler about a third of the way through
the FAQ (the bit that says combi boilers heat water "only when it is
needed").

I'm a bit distressed that you think it will be condemned, I am
currently "between jobs" and the idea of digging into my savings
for the £1.5k or so that it would appear this is going to cost me does
not appeal... I'll keep an open mind till I get someone to look at it!

Mind you, what is meant by "condemned"? I am reading this as "requires
replacement", not as "requires repair".

It may well be possible to get it to work well enough again. Obviously it
having already sooted up would make me and probably most other fitters
look very very carefully at it. I'd really want to be 100% sure that the
problem would not return in the next couple of years.

It is a simple unit being essentially no different from any of a dozen
models of it's era.

Essentially all that's needed is a thorough clean out.
Check the flue after a 5 minutes operation
that it draws well enough to clear a smoke pellet and check that all the
flue gases are going upwards when in operation.

However there is no margin for error on this job. The cause of why it
sooted up must be found and corrected. This is a plausibly a matter of
life and death.



--
Ed Sirett - Property maintainer and registered gas fitter.
The FAQ for uk.diy is at http://www.diyfaq.org.uk
Gas fitting FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/GasFitting.html
Sealed CH FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/SealedCH.html
Choosing a Boiler FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/BoilerChoice.html