Am I out of my depth? Boiler pump

[Ollieg]

I will clean it for £120 inc VAT. But on my first visit i will just tell you it needs a clean and charge you call out.

 

[Boilerbud]

Hi John

Ignition electrode can also be problematic and possibly the pcb. Look at what Heateam charge before you forked out money on expensive items like pcb.

 

[Killy Bing]

What the....unless the trap is leaking why think of replacing it? Just give it a blast with a hose in worst case scenario

 

[JohnBristol]

Here is the pic. I am not sure why it rotated. It is silt or fur on the right side and discoloured on the left.

So based on that should I ask someone to clean it? I can't see any leaks or anything like that.

 

[Rickster123]

If I was a suspicious man I'd say this entire thread has been you fishing for info on a DIY boiler repair. Countless times you've been advised what to do. The fact that you are happy to remove boiler casing would to me suggest you are happy to attempt a repair.
Get a local gas safe registered engineer in to resolve the issue or you.

 

[JohnBristol]

I am sure it may seem that I want to DIY this but I have no desire to do anything that could be considered dangerous but I also do not want to be tricked it not doing unnecessary work.

As suggested I did get a professional to come in and have a look at the issue. He explained that my original idea of it being the pump is unlikely because of the issues with the trap and potentially the PCB.

I was perfectly happy to go ahead with them fitting a new trap but I thought I should check with you, as experts, to see if what he suggested made sense and was a fair price. Then a lot of you say I am being ripped off and that the trap can probably just be cleaned but that a picture would helpful. From memory I thought the trap was outside of the case and thought it would be easy to get a pic. When I got home I realised it wasn't but thought experts would not ask me to get a picture of something if I could not access it safely. If I should not have done it then I will not touch it again.

Based on the picture is the condition it is in caused by the trap itself, i.e. does it need to be replaced? Or is it just a normal build up of stuff that can be cleaned?

Depending on your answer I will then ask a professional to either clean or replace the trap? If that does not fix the issue get them to fix/replace the PCB or ignition electrode.

I am only trying to make sure I have enough information so that I can talk to whoever comes in with more knowledge than I did the last time to make sure I am not being conned into buying something that is not needed.

If there was a "Clean trap" button and you said I could press it then I would but I have no desire at all to do anything more complicated than that.

 

[stoker122]

I wouldn't be looking at changing the trap unless it was damaged.
It can be cleaned.
Is the boiler due a service? I would look to service it before randomly changing components.
Have you asked on here if anyone is local to you?

 

[JohnBristol]

It was serviced last year and then maybe 1-2 a month it might not start but would always fire on a reset. The boiler guy said he could not diagnose it easily as it was intermittent and was not happening when he was there.

I think next service is about July maybe August.

I will put a thread up in a moment for someone local

 

[Howsie]

Condense trap is usually cleaned as part of a service.

 

[Mike Jackson]

Condense trap is usually cleaned as part of a service.

No, you mean it should be cleaned as part of a service. I've come across plenty that haven't been on a "service".

 

[JohnBristol]

Have not had any takers on my advert yet so what is generally the best way to find a decent plumber? Is there an association or group or something that the best ones are members of?

Might it also be more cost effective to get the boiler serviced now(if I get them to agree that the trap should be cleaned in the service) rather than pay a callout fee and then get it serviced in a month or 2 anyway?

 

[chris watkins]

[DLMURL="http://www.ciphe.org.uk/Find-a-Plumber/About-Find-a-Plumber/"]About 'Find a Plumber' - CIPHE[/DLMURL]

 

[JohnBristol]

Excellent found 3 on there that are just around the corner!

Thanks

 

[JohnBristol]

I spoke to the person closest to me unfortunately he is in the process of retiring and did not renew his gas safe last year but has thankfully recommended someone who he thinks could help.

Fingers crossed

 

[JohnBristol]

I am sure you are all desperate to see how my little adventure finished.

In short I eventually managed to get a decent plumber in. He cleaned the trap, did notice a tiny crack on the corner of it but not enough for it to drip. Then checked the probe and rods, which both seemed to be fine and in the right position.

Meaning the only thing really left is the PCB. The problem though was how inconsistent it was being. Sometimes firing straight away, sometimes after a short wait and sometimes not at all.

In the end he tried a fresh PCB and it instantly became much more consistent and fingers crossed has been working really well for a week or so now.

So all of this including a service was £330 inc VAT. Which I thought was pretty good. If it isn't please don't tell me

Thanks for the help in working out the previous person was trying to make me buy stuff I did not need and also helping me find a decent one to do a proper job.

 

[chris watkins]

Hi John
Thanks for letting us know & glad all is now sorted, hang on to that plumbers number & pass it around, good plumbers & heating engineers are very hard to find. (any one can call themselves one)
Hopefully you want need him for a while.