Flue at back of house leaking water | Bathroom Advice | Plumbers Forums

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Usernamehere

Hi,

I'm hoping somebody can help me (apologies if I have used the wrong forum, I wasn't sure if this was general or plumbing - please move if it's in the wrong place). Apologies in advance for the long rambling post.

I have noticed there is a flue coming out of the back of my house, I've never noticed it is there before and the only reason I've noticed it is because it is constantly leaking water.
I'm assuming it is for the back boiler, as it is situated between the ground and first floor of my house, in the middle of the wall.

I have the kitchen (downstairs) and bathrooms (upstairs) at the front of my house, with the lounge/dining room (downstairs) and bedrooms (upstairs) being at the back of the house.

The chimney is inbetween the lounge and dining room making the rooms at the back of the house U shaped, The bottom of the U being against the back wall (I hope this makes sense).

The back boiler is in the chimney downstairs, behind a gas fire. The hot water tank is upstairs in a cupboard in the centre of the house adjecent to the chimney.

I never use the gas fire as the knob is broken, so it is permenantly switched off.
The back boiler although at least 25 years old works well (although in order to have hot water the heating has to come on as the radiators do not have on/off switches due to their age - I think it is a Gloworm, but could be wrong).

Does anybody have any ideas why this flue could be leaking? I rarely venture into the back garden, but it would appear it has been leaking for some time given how wet the wall is.

There was nothing wrong when the boiler was last serviced last year, British Gas said it wouldn't confirm to new build standards but didn't comdemn it or say it has to be replaced or anything.

Obviously I don't want to die of carbon monoxide poisoning, but I'd like to know if anyone knows what the leak could be before I call British Gas out. I don't want them lying to me and condeming the boiler telling me I have to have a whole new central heating system installed at considerable cost if it's something that is easily fixed. At the same time, if the leaking flue means the boiler is dangerous then I don't want the house blowing up or anybody getting poisoned!

Thanks in advance for any replies.
 
We need lots more info here mate. Combi's can and do drip but not sure what you've got here. Can you post up some pics of your installation please?

And your gas fire should certainly be replaced. Yes it might be difficult to turn on but what if you manage to and can't turn it off?

And welcome to the forum btw!

I meant condensing. I was also looking at summat else!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi,

Thanks for your quick reply. It's definitely not a combi boiler, it's in the chimney behind the gas fire so not too sure how I could take a picture of it.
The instructions for turning the boiler on are on a piece of wood at the bottom of the gas fire and the controls are underneath the gas fire hidden by the wood. According to the piece of wood the model is Gloworm MAJORCA 346 (or could be a MAJORCA 346N because there was instructions for both on there - maybe one is the gas fire and one is the boiler?). A quick google of this model tells me the following:

Boiler Model:Majorca 346
Brand: Glow-worm
Manufacturer: Glow-worm
Boiler Type: Regular
SEDBUK Efficiency Rating: Not Rated
Seasonal Efficiency: 65%
Fuel Type: Gas
First Manufactured:
Last Manufactured: 1982
Mounting Position: 0
Condensing: Unknown
Flue Type: Open
Fan Type: No Fan


With regards to gas fire - I don't use it as I know full well if I turn it on there's no way I can turn it off, so I might ask for it to be disconnected next time it is serviced.

Apologies, but I really am clueless when it comes to this kind of thing, what else would you like to know?
 

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