D
Deleted member 98127
Hi there,
I have a 25-year-old Vaillant CombiCompact 242EH which has developed a hiccup on the heating side, and was wondeirng whether anyone might have some advice - yes, I know, "Get a new boiler!" is the most likely, but it seems like such a small (and intermittent!) issue that I wonder whether it cannot be fixed easily by someone who has some actual experience with this or a similar model and knows what they are doing.
I've had 5 different plumbers in both last March when the issue first arose and this winter, and they've not been able to fix it (the last one was a good 5 years younger than the boiler and seemed rather intimidated by anything that didn't have a digital error code display; he took one look and condemned it on the spot....).
So, the issue:
The hot water side of the boiler runs perfectly fine, no problems. The heating side runs most of the time. Occasionally, however, when the thermostat sends the signal to the boiler to fire up, it just doesn't ignite. Usually there is a first a relay click that starts the pump and ventilation, and then after a few seconds another click, closely followed by the click of the ignition and the "wooompf" of the gas igniting. Sometimes, though, there is the first click, the sound of the pump and ventilation starting, but nothing else. The gas does not ignite, and the boiler just pumps cold water through the heating system. The heating is usually fine to start up first thing in the morning, but then starts acting up in the late morning until the evening. If you keep trying and switch it off and on again a few times, however, it will eventually ignite (though that's really no good if I'm not at home to stand next to the thermostat to do this...)
The several heating engineers who have been here have installed both a new diaphragm and a new diverter valve with no change in the situation (I have a home emergency insurance, so unfortunately they send a different person every time....). It does seem like just the relay needs adjusting or cleaning or replacing, but none of them seemed to know which part might be responsible. I thought it was worth asking whether anyone here has more experience and has come across this issue or would know which part is the culprit, and whether this is fixable - before I start getting in quotes for a brand new boiler...
Thanks ever so much!
I have a 25-year-old Vaillant CombiCompact 242EH which has developed a hiccup on the heating side, and was wondeirng whether anyone might have some advice - yes, I know, "Get a new boiler!" is the most likely, but it seems like such a small (and intermittent!) issue that I wonder whether it cannot be fixed easily by someone who has some actual experience with this or a similar model and knows what they are doing.
I've had 5 different plumbers in both last March when the issue first arose and this winter, and they've not been able to fix it (the last one was a good 5 years younger than the boiler and seemed rather intimidated by anything that didn't have a digital error code display; he took one look and condemned it on the spot....).
So, the issue:
The hot water side of the boiler runs perfectly fine, no problems. The heating side runs most of the time. Occasionally, however, when the thermostat sends the signal to the boiler to fire up, it just doesn't ignite. Usually there is a first a relay click that starts the pump and ventilation, and then after a few seconds another click, closely followed by the click of the ignition and the "wooompf" of the gas igniting. Sometimes, though, there is the first click, the sound of the pump and ventilation starting, but nothing else. The gas does not ignite, and the boiler just pumps cold water through the heating system. The heating is usually fine to start up first thing in the morning, but then starts acting up in the late morning until the evening. If you keep trying and switch it off and on again a few times, however, it will eventually ignite (though that's really no good if I'm not at home to stand next to the thermostat to do this...)
The several heating engineers who have been here have installed both a new diaphragm and a new diverter valve with no change in the situation (I have a home emergency insurance, so unfortunately they send a different person every time....). It does seem like just the relay needs adjusting or cleaning or replacing, but none of them seemed to know which part might be responsible. I thought it was worth asking whether anyone here has more experience and has come across this issue or would know which part is the culprit, and whether this is fixable - before I start getting in quotes for a brand new boiler...
Thanks ever so much!