An unserviced boiler will have spent many years collecting the debris that is produced by the rusting radiators, this debris is collected in all the small nooks and crannies that form the internal parts of the boiler.

The initial effect of this debris isn’t really shown as the boiler simply works harder to maintain the temperatures and flow rates that it is designed to produce. However the build up of debris eventually weighs too heavy on the pump and hydraulic pipework and puts a massive strain on the pump which in turn places additional stress on the bearing which begin to fail.

The eventual failure is seen as an inability to drive water through the main plate heat exchanger which results in the boiler overheating and shutting off and then cooling and starting back up again. This necessitates a change of pump at a cost of anything around £ 300 and then a change of plate heat exchanger for a similar sum.

In some cases this can be cleaned with high powered chemical cleaners which loosen the debris and leave it in solution which will then need flushing out; but in many cases the boiler has passed its best and a new boiler is the most economical way of restoring the system back to a decent level of efficiency.

As we have shown in previous posts, the use of inhibitors and magnetic filter is a good way of preventing this from happening.

Please feel free to call us if you have these symptoms, were here to help!