DIYbanter - Potterton Boiler not firing up

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Potterton Boiler not firing up

I need some advice on a Potterton Boiler.

It's an old ground standing unit and has worked fine since its
installation 26 years ago but is now not firing up. The power supply to
the control unit seems ok and there are no loose wires, the pilot light
is ok and I've had a look for a fuse but can't see one. I'm
therefore guessing it can only be one of two components within the
boiler itself.

The first is the thermostat but this looks ok to me. It's only a
simple device and again there are no loose wires.

The second is the main unit (not sure of it's proper name) that
controls the gas flow. This is a sealed unit that again looks ok to me
with no obvious problems.

I'm not an expert on boilers but am a reasonably competent DIYer but
I don't know where to go from here. Any advice would be much
appreciated.

Thanks.

In article .com,
wrote:
I need some advice on a Potterton Boiler.

It's an old ground standing unit and has worked fine since its
installation 26 years ago but is now not firing up. The power supply to
the control unit seems ok and there are no loose wires, the pilot light
is ok and I've had a look for a fuse but can't see one. I'm
therefore guessing it can only be one of two components within the
boiler itself.

The first is the thermostat but this looks ok to me. It's only a
simple device and again there are no loose wires.

The second is the main unit (not sure of it's proper name) that
controls the gas flow. This is a sealed unit that again looks ok to me
with no obvious problems.

I'm not an expert on boilers but am a reasonably competent DIYer but
I don't know where to go from here. Any advice would be much
appreciated.

Most likely the thermocouple. That's the device which pokes into the pilot
light and has a thin copper tube going to the gas valve. It senses the
pilot light being alive and well and then allows the gas valve to open on
demand. If it's faulty, the gas valve won't open.

You'll get one from some B&Q etc, or any PM for a few quid.

--
*It's not hard to meet expenses... they're everywhere.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Tue, 14 Jun 2005 11:02:47 +0100, "Dave Plowman (News)"
wrote:

Most likely the thermocouple. That's the device which pokes into the pilot
light and has a thin copper tube going to the gas valve. It senses the
pilot light being alive and well and then allows the gas valve to open on
demand. If it's faulty, the gas valve won't open.

You'll get one from some B&Q etc, or any PM for a few quid.

I'm pretty sure that on these boilers, if the thermocouple fails then
the pilot light will also go out.

sponix

In article ,
s--p--o--n--i--x wrote:
What is the model of this boiler? I have a 33 year old Potterton floor
standing boiler

That's even older than my Kingfisher. It's not quite 30 years old but
still going strong.

Any advance on 33 years?

--
*Why is it considered necessary to screw down the lid of a coffin?

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Tue, 14 Jun 2005 11:44:12 +0100, "Dave Plowman (News)"
wrote:

That's even older than my Kingfisher. It's not quite 30 years old but
still going strong.

Any advance on 33 years?

Still got the original installation instructions for it, complete with
pencilled notes made by the plumber!

The card I have gives the model as a "Potterton Kingfisher CF45 & 55".

The timer is correctly set and there is no obvious fault but I'm no
expert.

On Tue, 14 Jun 2005 11:02:47 +0100, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

In article .com,
wrote:
I need some advice on a Potterton Boiler.

It's an old ground standing unit and has worked fine since its
installation 26 years ago but is now not firing up. The power supply to
the control unit seems ok and there are no loose wires, the pilot light
is ok and I've had a look for a fuse but can't see one. I'm
therefore guessing it can only be one of two components within the
boiler itself.

The first is the thermostat but this looks ok to me. It's only a
simple device and again there are no loose wires.

The second is the main unit (not sure of it's proper name) that
controls the gas flow. This is a sealed unit that again looks ok to me
with no obvious problems.

I'm not an expert on boilers but am a reasonably competent DIYer but
I don't know where to go from here. Any advice would be much
appreciated.

Most likely the thermocouple. That's the device which pokes into the pilot
light and has a thin copper tube going to the gas valve. It senses the
pilot light being alive and well and then allows the gas valve to open on
demand. If it's faulty, the gas valve won't open.

You'll get one from some B&Q etc, or any PM for a few quid.

True but in this case the pilot is fine. So its
a) External ( test incoming electrical supply).
b) The thermostat (does it click on and off? - is power sent to the gas
valve solenoid).
c) The gas valve/solenoid (they can sometime still be heard to click but
not pass gas).

This is a low tech boiler. The only electronics will be an RF supression
cap.

A replacement thermostat if you can track one down is sub £20.
A replacement gas valve would be sub £100.

--
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