Central heating pump always on and noisy

[Ross87]

Hello,

I had an engineer out recently to fix a leak coming from one of these (not exactly this but very close) - apparently the pin in it was shot or something, he managed to stop the leak without fitting a new one:

Drayton ZA5/679-2 2-Port Motorised Valve

Since he left our central heating pump seems to always be on and louder than it was. It may have always been on before but quieter so I didn’t hear it? Should it always be running even if the boilers not firing? I’ve attached an image of the pump.

Also, it may be my imagination but the little thermostat looking thing on my water tank (image also attached) now has a red light on it all the time - I don’t think it did before... what is it??

Many thanks for any help!

Ross

 

[Ross87]

Forgot to mention, it’s a Scottish Gas 330 boiler if that makes a difference...

 

[king of pipes]

The pump should not be on all the time the fault points to a faulty valve that should in my opion been replaced not repaired you will need a G3 enginneer as you have unvented cylinder . cheers kop

 

[Ross87]

Thanks, would that be this valve that was originally leaking?

 

[Ross87]

Also the guy charged £350 for repairing that valve, it took him the best part of an hour over two visits (15m diagnose then 45m to fit replacement part) - was that reasonable? I think I’ll go for British Gas boiler cover now as they should repair for £99 fixed if you sign up for 12 months...

 

[firemant]

Have you spoke to the guy who "repaired" it?
On the face of it, he he seems to have charged a lot, but everyone is free to set their own rates, and we don't know how far he travelled.
Did you ask him how he charged when engaging him? Customers often walk into their own aggravation by not asking the obvious questions.

All that said, yuo appear to have hired the wrong guy. These guys are those that drive our clients into the arms of the "big boys", who then often subby the work to the idiots who let the punter down in the first place.
The actual problem is probably a stuck valve or microswitch. You can can change just the head on these, or the complete valve if it is jammed. It looks straightforward as far as access is concerned, and if I was doing this reasonably locally, I would be well less than £300 for a complete valve replacement.

As far as BG is concerned, they repair ONE fault, the first they find, for the FPR. You then pay their monthly fee. So it works out at more than £99. Plus any further calls often have an "excess" of £50 or £99, depending on the particular deal / contract. So read the T&C's carefully.

And if you think you will get a BG "expert" to service and adjust your system every year, then think again. A huge proportion of BG "services" (known in the trade as "poke and go") are subbed out at £20 a go to RGI's who have to pay all their own expenses. Go figure.

 

[Ross87]

Thanks for the info - it was done through our home emergency cover so I didn’t hire the guy we just got who we were given... I’ll try calling them up to get a breakdown of the work.

Will the pump take any harm being on constantly for the next week or so until I can get it looked at? Also should I be concerned that the cylinder thermostat’s red light is always on? Reading the manual that means it’s constantly calling for hot water, which doesn’t seem right?

http://www.esicontrols.co.uk/assets/esctdeb-instructions.pdf

Thanks again!

 

[firemant]

Okay, fair enough. Get in touch with the provider and tell them that he has charge significant fees and not repaired the problem.

I had missed the photo of the 'stat. Normally, the red light is a "calling" indicator, as you suggest. So it may be that which is the problem. But it should not be getting power in the first place, unless the programmer is calling.
Is the water hotter than normal? If the system is continually running in response to a faulty (continual on) HW stat, then the water would eventually reach the same temp as the boiler setting, which is HOT. If the water is np hotter than previously, then there could be an electrical fault,back feeding to the neon.

If you look at the label above, it says the digital stat (which you have) is NOT suitable for a 3 port valve - which you have. I don't, TBH, immediately know why that is the case, but it may be (as you implied is possible) that the light has always been on, and that is because of the basic mismatch of the controls.

Is your repairman registered for Unvented (G3)?

 

[Gasmk1]

it may be the wrong stat read the bottom line above th ethermostat it says digital stat for s plan only if y plan used standard stat your system is a y plan

 

[ShaunCorbs]

I don't know how no one has picked up on the 3 port feeding an unvented cylinder

 

[SimonG]

Or the unwired immersion. Like to see a picture of the whole cylinder and controls.

 

[Michael1960]

Hello,

I had an engineer out recently to fix a leak coming from one of these (not exactly this but very close) - apparently the pin in it was shot or something, he managed to stop the leak without fitting a new one:

Drayton ZA5/679-2 2-Port Motorised Valve

Since he left our central heating pump seems to always be on and louder than it was. It may have always been on before but quieter so I didn’t hear it? Should it always be running even if the boilers not firing? I’ve attached an image of the pump.

Also, it may be my imagination but the little thermostat looking thing on my water tank (image also attached) now has a red light on it all the time - I don’t think it did before... what is it??

Many thanks for any help!

Ross

View attachment 32228

View attachment 32229

In addition to all the other excellent comments, which diagnose your problems I would turn the pump speed down from III to II, this may quieten things down slightly.