Worcester Heatslave 15/19 - How to increase water pressure?

[kona_chris99]

Hi - 6 months ago I moved into my property fitted with a Worcester Heatslave 15/19 boiler, fed by kerosene. The boiler's water pressure gauge has always shown 0.4 Bar, which I believe is too low? Previously I've had a couple of combi-boilers and simply put the plastic key in, rotated 90 degrees then opened a small valve to allow water pressure to increase to about 1 Bar. Unfortunately I cannot see a similar filling loop on my current Worcester Heatslave.

So my question is how do I increase the water pressure?

There is a cold water storage tank in the loft, but should the pressure gauge still be at about 1 bar? Or is my boiler simply fed by gravity? In which case, is 0.4 Bar normal?

I'm concerned the boiler isn't operating as efficiently as it should be, i.e. does the low pressure mean my boiler is having to work extra hard to pump warm water around the radiators, or provide hot water?

The reason I ask is because in August 2010 I filled my oil tank with 500 litres of kerosene. A couple of weeks ago I ordered another 500 litres which fingers crossed will be delivered by the end of December 2010 as promised (...or we'll be in for a cold few days!). I live in a 2-bedroomed detached bungalow, with only myself and my partner having daily showers, and the central heating being turned on for a maximum of 2 hours each day. Should I have used 500 litres of kerosene in only 4 months?

I've posted a couple of photos of my boiler, with covers removed:
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ImageShack® - Online Photo and Video Hosting

Many thanks for any replies.

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

this is normal,your boilers fed by the small tank,its not pressurised,possibly the kit was fitted to your boiler but not utilised

 

[ecowarm]

I can't see one on your pics but some where you have a filling loop, may not be near boiler. Just seen your reply Gasman these boilers are normally pressurised but I suppose it could have a f+e tank

J

 

[kona_chris99]

Thanks gas man & ecowarm. So the cold water tank in the loft simply feeds water to my boiler by gravity? Does this have any impact further down the line compared to a pressurised system? i.e. is it much less efficient and slower at circulating hot water around? At present it takes about 30 minutes for the radiators to begin to warm up after turning the central heating on (...all radiators have been bled).

Again, with my previous combi-boilers the hot water heated on demand to a high temperature, and for as long as there was demand. My Heatslave heats up on demand, but it soon loses temperature when having a shower and becomes luke warm. To overcome this I turn the hot water on to 'constant' at the electronic controller for 20 minutes before hand, which seems to provide enough hot water for the duration of the shower.

From experience, do you happen to know if my boiler is using an average amount of kerosene at 500 litres in 4 months, or is this way too much? I'm wondering if I should bite the bullet and invest in a new, more modern gas-fed condensing boiler.

Many thanks.

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

regards to kerosene i dont know dont do oil,30 mins is not bad to get up to temp depends on the size of the property,with pressurised systems you compress water so it does warm up quicker but it can also put old systems/boilers under strain

 

[ecowarm]

Your combi has a store of water to heat before it switches to heat the rads so it could take 20mins to do so. If you take a shower turn the flow down a bit and you will get a hotter, longer shower, I know I lived with one of these for 8yrs.

Using about right amount of fuel but it is expensive to run, If you have the option to change to gas go for it! If you dont have gas to your house but locally it can still be a big outlay to get it to your house,,,,,,,Thousands ££££££

 

[kona_chris99]

Thanks chaps. At least I know my boiler is working as it should now. I'll have to enquire with the local gas board, see how many £££'s it may cost to get a supply in.

Thanks again.