Combi boiler installation

[Chalked]

That waste pipe could be an old terrain pipe with crap on it. Just the photo making the colour look off so it gives the impression it's copper. But if it IS copper then WTF?!
Looks like he's just stuck 22mm on the old existing 15mm for the last stretch. I'd have been inclined to replace whole gas pipe with 22mm if at all practical.
Whilst no one is perfect it's not best pipework with burn marks on walls which is sloppy. I've taken to polishing up my pipework afterwards with Brasso. Only takes a minute and leaves a good impression if pipes are gleaming when jobs finished.
If this was a cheap quote then I'm afraid you get what you pay for.

Good spot. That could be old brown waste pipe.

 

[jtsplumbing]

Dark grey waste Proberly Key-Terrain or Hunter, is the small gas pipe accessible on the other side of the wall ? Pipe work is something of a mess, but at the end of the day its down to what you have paid, can't expect top quality work for low cost price, but get the gas re-checked not much you can do about the rest

 

[oz-plumber]

In fairness to the owner and the installer...

When you quote for a boiler replacement, how much do you consider to replace existing pipework.
From the pics, where do you start and where do you finish?
You are dealing with an old system with pre-existing pipe work.

Fair enough, the gas line looks undersized, but..can we judge?
Might be OK - some pertain to this, no proof of testing of appliance.
Condensate - to me and my experience, the fittings on the pipe don't look like copper fittings, so from pics, should assume not copper pipe.

It's a dilemma we all face. How much of the pipework do we upgrade, re-assemble when changing a boiler, considering all the unseen pipework will be done to the standard of the visible pipework or worse.

The Plumber has installed a Magna Clean filter, that shows something.
From my depiction of the pics- gas line pipe sizing ?, the rest of the install he has made the best out of a previously installed boiler, without going over the top on replacing existing visible pipe work/

As for the cheapest quote scenario, it is the customers choice of whom they choose.
As for the plumber, I think he has done a neat enough job for the situation he was presented with.
He may have done the minimal required, but that's his judgment on how much t replace.

 

[Scott_D]

I agree with the 'how far do you go' but this guy must have turned up with 2 pipe clips and no level.
He hasn't scrimped on the filter, boiler and lime fighter but took no pride in the work. Maybe as it was done on the cheap, maybe not.

 

[spanner]

I'm assuming the 15mm pipe is coming from the meter and the pipe to the biliiler is a 22mm connector??

 

[Sonia Muss]

In an ideal world there'd be 22mm all the way. You can get away with 15mm for about 7-8m for that boiler size. I assume the installer did a pressure drop test and any drop was within acceptable limits.
All those burn marks on the wall tho', didn't he hear of solder mats?

Thanks, the engineer said the pressure drop is within limits, 21 I think he said, the pipe to the gas meter is a straight line of maybe 4 or 5m, and we only have the hot water and central heating running on gas, so he said it should be ok, which matches your answer. It all works fine so far so I guess it's ok. Thanks
I didn't know about solder mats but he should have known! Anyway it will be enclosed in a cupboard and I'll try to paint over it. Thanks for your answer

 

[Sonia Muss]

Hi guys, thank you all for your replies. The job is done and works. I just wanted to know it was safe. The 15mm pipe goes under ground and I think he should have cut it and replace with one parallel to the wall, but he should Have had to cut on a straight line through 2 walls. I guess he didn't want the extra work! Tune main thing is that the 15mm pipe is safe considering the state it is in, all rusty and dirty. I'll clean it with Brasso, as per of you suggested, and see how it looks.
Job done by British Gas engineer, so not cheap

 

[jtsplumbing]

You say done by a BG engineer ! was it done by BG or some one that works for them as a private job, For a BG guy this is a poor standard of work ! Did you know that if he is employed by BG that he is not coverd by gas safe out side of working hrs, but loads of their guys do jobs on the side, for cash,

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Hope he didn't do it on the side as he's not qualified out of work time

 

[spanner]

That's the BG umbrella

 

[Harvest Fields]

Hope he didn't do it on the side as he's not qualified out of work time

Unless he is a contractor!

 

[Scott_D]

Has the benchmark sheet been filled out (back of the book)?
Has it been registered with Worcester and Gas safe?

 

[Dave54]

What type of boiler make is it? I know the logics only need a 15mm gas run. I'm assuming it was gas rated and had all the pressures taken when it was commissioned.

Pipework isn't great but depends what was on the quote to start with, sometimes I would like to repipe everything in properties but you can only do so
ipe to the biliiler is a 22mm connector??

What type of boiler make is it? I know the logics only need a 15mm gas run. I'm assuming it was gas rated and had all the pressures taken when it was commissioned.

Pipework isn't great but depends what was on the quote to start with, sometimes I would like to repipe everything in properties but you can only do so much.

 

[Dave54]

All combi boilers 22mm from meter if 15mm connection on comb then 22mm to within 300mm of connection

 

[John Harwood]

I'm no plumber, but I have been on a course to learn the basics. This work is a perfect example of "bodge-it-and-scarper". I would have produced much tidier work, and as I said, I'm a happy handyman. My limited experience of gas regulations tells me that 22mm pipe is preferred in these situations, right back to the meter. I'd say that installing 22mm for the last foot or so is just taking the Sod. The burnt paint on the wall is atrocious. It tells the story of the plumber's incompetence. There are far too many of these "heating engineers" out there who don't have a clue.

 

[Scott_1979]

All combi boilers 22mm from meter if 15mm connection on comb then 22mm to within 300mm of connection

Just not true. You can work out the size of the gas run and sometimes 15mm will suffice. Although blindly putting in 22mm will cover yourself most of the time.

 

[John Harwood]

Just not true. You can work out the size of the gas run and sometimes 15mm will suffice. Although blindly putting in 22mm will cover yourself most of the time.

I bow to your superior knowledge, because it makes sense. The "Gas Safe engineer" who told me 22mm back to the meter was spouting Rubbish, then. No surprises there. I didn't employ him as he seemed only to be interested in spending as much time and money on the installation as possible.