Hi there,
I was having some problems with my central heating system a couple of months back. One radiator started leaking and I got this replaced and then about a month later none of the radiators were heating up. I got a few people in and they all said I needed a power flush and the system was blocked due to sludge.
I got the power flush done and asked them to also service my Potterton Suprima boiler at the same time. When they did they found that the heat exchanger (I think that's what it was) was incredibly corroded. They said I'd need a new boiler at some point. I weighed it up and decided it was best to do this now as it was badly corroded. I decided to switch from an open vented system to a combi boiler.
The same man was due to come back a week later to install a Valiant EcoTec Pro 24. A few days before he was due one of my radiators (a 2 column vertical Acova radiator) suddenly popped and water was gushing out. I had to get someone in to shut this off as the valve broke in the process of trying to get a bucket under the water. I got a replacement radiator and asked him to install this as he was installing the Combi. The hole that the water was coming from was about 2mm in diameter! And when I peeled back the paint there was no visible rust.
Once the boiler man came back to install the boiler and he had finished installing the Valiant, he fired up the system and all of a sudden another radiator (4 column horizontal Acova radiator) popped and water gushed out again. He shut this off and another hole had formed about 2mm in diameter. Again when I peeled back the paint there was no visible rust. I am now going to have to replace this one.
The boiler man came back a few days later to finish off a few things and drained the system and then when he filled it up again ANOTHER radiator popped (not an Acova, but under 10 years old). He shut this off and the hole was slightly smaller about 1 mm but again there was no rust. I will have to replace this too.
When I asked the boiler man why this was happening he said he'd never seen this before. I also called my friend who used to be a plumber and he said he hadn't seen that happen either. They both thought that the power flush had exposed weaknesses in the radiator and the pressure from the new boiler was too much. I'm wondering whether anyone had seen this happen and whether this is the reason? Four out of six of my radiators have just gone and three of them have all sprung huge leaks in the space of two weeks since the power flush. Is there any way the power flush was done wrong? The guy I got to do the work so far was recommended and also gas safety registered. I'm obviously worried the other two will go now but if there's something wrong in the system then I'm worried it might just happen to the new radiators. I asked him whether he put an inhibitor in when he did the power flush and he said yes and I also got a magna filter fitted when he put the combi boiler in.
Would be good to hear if anyone knows why this might have all happened and if they have any similar experiences considering the boiler man said he'd never seen this.
I was having some problems with my central heating system a couple of months back. One radiator started leaking and I got this replaced and then about a month later none of the radiators were heating up. I got a few people in and they all said I needed a power flush and the system was blocked due to sludge.
I got the power flush done and asked them to also service my Potterton Suprima boiler at the same time. When they did they found that the heat exchanger (I think that's what it was) was incredibly corroded. They said I'd need a new boiler at some point. I weighed it up and decided it was best to do this now as it was badly corroded. I decided to switch from an open vented system to a combi boiler.
The same man was due to come back a week later to install a Valiant EcoTec Pro 24. A few days before he was due one of my radiators (a 2 column vertical Acova radiator) suddenly popped and water was gushing out. I had to get someone in to shut this off as the valve broke in the process of trying to get a bucket under the water. I got a replacement radiator and asked him to install this as he was installing the Combi. The hole that the water was coming from was about 2mm in diameter! And when I peeled back the paint there was no visible rust.
Once the boiler man came back to install the boiler and he had finished installing the Valiant, he fired up the system and all of a sudden another radiator (4 column horizontal Acova radiator) popped and water gushed out again. He shut this off and another hole had formed about 2mm in diameter. Again when I peeled back the paint there was no visible rust. I am now going to have to replace this one.
The boiler man came back a few days later to finish off a few things and drained the system and then when he filled it up again ANOTHER radiator popped (not an Acova, but under 10 years old). He shut this off and the hole was slightly smaller about 1 mm but again there was no rust. I will have to replace this too.
When I asked the boiler man why this was happening he said he'd never seen this before. I also called my friend who used to be a plumber and he said he hadn't seen that happen either. They both thought that the power flush had exposed weaknesses in the radiator and the pressure from the new boiler was too much. I'm wondering whether anyone had seen this happen and whether this is the reason? Four out of six of my radiators have just gone and three of them have all sprung huge leaks in the space of two weeks since the power flush. Is there any way the power flush was done wrong? The guy I got to do the work so far was recommended and also gas safety registered. I'm obviously worried the other two will go now but if there's something wrong in the system then I'm worried it might just happen to the new radiators. I asked him whether he put an inhibitor in when he did the power flush and he said yes and I also got a magna filter fitted when he put the combi boiler in.
Would be good to hear if anyone knows why this might have all happened and if they have any similar experiences considering the boiler man said he'd never seen this.
