Dreaded Boilermate 2000

[Scott M]

Hi,
I have a Gledhill Boilermate 2000 system installed in my house which seems to have a fault. The local plumber that I have looking at it is wanting to replace the whole system which I am not sure is necessary. He has suggested that I contact Gledhill Technical support but at £1.50 per minute to speak to them I would rather not! I was hoping someone here could could suggest a possible cause of the issues so that I can point him in the right direction.

The heating is working fine, the issue is with the hot water. There are 2 showers and a bath in the property and the hot water from all of them turns cold briefly regularly during use.

With the shower running what is happening is the DHW pump in the Boilermate 2000 is turning off briefly every couple of minutes (or less). With the front panel off of the Boilermate 2000 I can hear the pump turn off, the LED bar 3 on the display turns off briefly (a few seconds) then the pump starts again. That bar on the LED display indicates if the pump is running or not.

Pressing SW2 on the control board so the display show the DHW Outlet temperature, it rises up to between 50-55 degrees, the pump stops, temperature drops and then the pump starts and temperature rises again. Occasionally what happens is the display reads around 52 degrees, the pump stops and the temperature on the display jumps to 85 degrees and then immediately back down to 52 and drops before the pump starts again.

There are occasionally times where it just works normally, when it does then the temperature of the DHW outlet is a steady 54 degrees and the pump keeps running.

Can you offer any suggestions as the where the problem is ie Faulty control board, pump, temperature sensor or heat exchanger?

Thanks in advance!

 

[SimonG]

Gledhill tech support.

 

[townfanjon]

Sorry not what you want to hear ...
Horrible things . Sorry.

 

[Scott M]

Thanks anyway, worth a shot!

 

[dan_the_plumber]

TBH...If the plumber can’t fault find on his own , without asking you to phone tech support on his behalf...You need to get a better plumber!

 

[Scott M]

I think the problem was he didn't want me to have the expense of replacing parts randomly without knowing what part was faulty. Apparently it could be a number of things.

 

[dan_the_plumber]

I think the problem was he didn't want me to have the expense of replacing parts randomly without knowing what part was faulty. Apparently it could be a number of things.

Only if he doesn’t know how to test it though

 

[Scott M]

Better plumber it is!

 

[dan_the_plumber]

Better plumber it is!

Honestly mate...Fault finding is my thing! I can tell you I have absolutely no idea about boiler mates, but if I came to look at yours it would be fixed in 2 visits.
It’s knowing what to test, how to test it, reading and understanding the manual and speaking to manufacturer.
Of course once you identify what your fault actually is you need to work out if it’s financially worth while to fix.
Good luck my friend 🙂

 

[Harvest Fields]

You need an engineer that has worked on gledhill before mate. Google it. There should be some out there somewhere.

 

[Harvest Fields]

Honestly mate...Fault finding is my thing! I can tell you I have absolutely no idea about boiler mates, but if I came to look at yours it would be fixed in 2 visits.
It’s knowing what to test, how to test it, reading and understanding the manual and speaking to manufacturer.
Of course once you identify what your fault actually is you need to work out if it’s financially worth while to fix.
Good luck my friend 🙂

Just remember to turn off the 2nd live if it has one.😉😉

 

[Scott M]

Thanks for the advice.

 

[townfanjon]

I can tell you I have absolutely no idea about boiler mates, but if I came to look at yours it would be fixed in 2 visits.
🙂

Lol , erm thats quite a statement Dan.

 

[Harvest Fields]

Lol , erm thats quite a statement Dan.

I didn’t want to say anything 😛😛😛😛

 

[dan_the_plumber]

I’m quite a plumber! Lol

 

[dan_the_plumber]

No seriously in this case my guess would be limescale in the DHW heat ex/coil....If that’s the case rip it out and start again would be best 🙂

 

[Riley]

Lol , erm thats quite a statement Dan.

Wow bold

 

[Scott M]

No seriously in this case my guess would be limescale in the DHW heat ex/coil....If that’s the case rip it out and start again would be best 🙂

I spoke to someone who seems to know a lot about this model. His thinking is if the temperature at the heat exchanger is occasionally saying 85 degrees which is not possible if the max temp of the store is 70 then it may be a faulty thermistor on the heat exchanger. It is only 20 quid and easy to replace so will give it a go and then maybe swap the heat exchanger or the main board if it doesn't fix it.
If it is reading 85 degrees then the controller would shut off the pump to let it cool down. Sounds plausible...

 

[Harvest Fields]

I spoke to someone who seems to know a lot about this model. His thinking is if the temperature at the heat exchanger is occasionally saying 85 degrees which is not possible if the max temp of the store is 70 then it may be a faulty thermistor on the heat exchanger. It is only 20 quid and easy to replace so will give it a go and then maybe swap the heat exchanger or the main board if it doesn't fix it.
If it is reading 85 degrees then the controller would shut off the pump to let it cool down. Sounds plausible...

Tell him to change both.

Edit as this should have said both sensors. It sounded like I meant all parts mentioned, but I didn’t.

 

[dan_the_plumber]

For the cost of thermistors it’s worth a bash I’d say 🙂

 

[garygvl]

if you're getting a good flow out the hot taps the plate aint scaled. if as you said you follow the logic diagram using sw1 and sw2 you can bring up the hot water flow temp as the thermistor is reading it. if you, re getting intermittant 85c readout its more than likely a thermistor fault which is common on boilermates. changed loads of these

 

[Harvest Fields]

@garygvl so you wouldn’t do both together whist on site ? You would charge the customer another call out when the other one goes?

I’m talking about both sensor by the way not the heat exchanger. My first post sounds confusing. My bad. I deserve the dislike for not explaining.

 

[garygvl]

@garygvl so you wouldn’t do both together whist on site ? You would charge the customer another call out when the other one goes?

asked the question do you have a good flow rate from hot taps. if you have wouldnt change the plate. from previous on these use the readouts when running the hot tap its more than likely the thm. why would i charge them for a plate thats not needed. if i was stood in front of it i would know

 

[Harvest Fields]

asked the question do you have a good flow rate from hot taps. if you have wouldnt change the plate. from previous on these use the readouts when running the hot tap its more than likely the thm. why would i charge them for a plate thats not needed. if i was stood in front of it i would know

I didn’t mean the plate mate. I meant both sensors.

 

[garygvl]

I didn’t mean the plate mate. I meant both sensors.

why you changing two sensors

 

[Harvest Fields]

The PHE and DHW sensors. Have always done them together.

why you changing two sensors

I’m not. The OP said for £20.00 a thermista he was going to get it changed. I didn’t suggest changing it at all. All I said was I would do the DHW and PHE sensor at the same time if you are doing the one.

 

[garygvl]

The PHE and DHW sensors. Have always done them together.

I’m not. The OP said for £20.00 a thermista he was going to get it changed. I didn’t suggest changing it at all. All I said was I would do the DHW and PHE sensor at the same time if you are doing the one.

phe and dhw are both the same sensor so you could just buy one and watch the sensor readouts to determine which one is faulty. never had to change two before

 

[Harvest Fields]

phe and dhw are both the same sensor so you could just buy one and watch the sensor readouts to determine which one is faulty. never had to change two before

As I say it was only a suggestion. I always do them both.

 

[garygvl]

As I say it was only a suggestion. I always do them both.

nowt wrong with a bit of belt and braces just never believed in changin parts for parts sake

 

[Harvest Fields]

nowt wrong with a bit of belt and braces just never believed in changin parts for parts sake

Fully agree. If I am honest it is only because we had a massive estate in Telford that had 100s of them when I was on the books with a company and that is what they requested we did. The main problem we had was with these sensors. Just think it was a piece of mind thing for them and it has stuck with me.

 

[dan_the_plumber]

The PHE and DHW sensors. Have always done them together.

I’m not. The OP said for £20.00 a thermista he was going to get it changed. I didn’t suggest changing it at all. All I said was I would do the DHW and PHE sensor at the same time if you are doing the one.

Yeah I’d change both, might as well for £15 or £20. Sounds like customer has pretty much had enough already 🙂

 

[Darren Jackson]

There are two big estates round my neck of the woods fitted with boiler mates, Around 250 of them in total. 8 times out of 10 it is the sensor which we find at fault. We also swap them both out at the same time and we change them routinely on its 5 year service as experience has taught us that they don't last much longer. We explain it to the customer as like changing their spark plugs on a car. They may still work ok for now but almost certainly are not performing at there best and may fail at any time. the next most common thing is the pump head needs changing. Also never had to change out the plate they are quite good with decent ports and good flow through and very rarely scale up. but I am in Yorkshire with lovey soft Dales filtered water so scale is hardly ever a problem around here.

 

[Darren Jackson]

Also forgot to mention that it is very important to bleed all three pumps and all the vents as air can cause intermittent lockouts and overheating problems they are very sensitive to trapped air in the unit.

 

[townfanjon]

@Darren , educated guess , Bingley top of the hill ??

 

[Darren Jackson]

@Darren , educated guess , Bingley top of the hill ??

Go t' top o class mate.

 

[Harvest Fields]

Also forgot to mention that it is very important to bleed all three pumps and all the vents as air can cause intermittent lockouts and overheating problems they are very sensitive to trapped air in the unit.

I’ve had this on one. Didn’t realise until the 3rd visit. So annoying.

 

[townfanjon]

Go t' top o class mate.

God , I am good .

 

[gmartine]

A Yorkshire luv-in ffs, get a room you two but mind his back.

 

[Darren Jackson]

God , I am good .

Not God no, but next best thing, a Yorkshire man 😉

 

[dan_the_plumber]

God , I am good .

Now that’s a strong statement! 😉

 

[townfanjon]

Now that’s a strong statement! 😉

Yes lol , its true

 

[Callumjb]

I had one of these in my own house and the house of my father in/law. Since have both been changed to a worcester 30si compact and a worcester 30RI heat only with a unvented cylinder. Price may seem costly but my it is worth the expense as gledhills are simply a pain in the arse!

 

[Scott M]

So, the Thermistor arrived on Friday, fitted it on Sunday and it is working again. All good except my wife hates me letting her live with hot/cold showers for 2 years when it was such an easy fix...

 

[Harvest Fields]

Glad that it worked mate. Thanks for the feed back.

 

[dan_the_plumber]

So, the Thermistor arrived on Friday, fitted it on Sunday and it is working again. All good except my wife hates me letting her live with hot/cold showers for 2 years when it was such an easy fix...

Why didn’t she fix it then?

 

[Hisham Al-Bizri]

I put my money on the board being at fault we replace Adair few on the states round where I live. Barring the odd pump going it’s the only thing we replace on them. But again I would 99 percent say it will be the board they are rubbish

 

[JCplumb]

I put my money on the board being at fault we replace Adair few on the states round where I live. Barring the odd pump going it’s the only thing we replace on them. But again I would 99 percent say it will be the board they are rubbish

It's already been fixed, it was the thermistor.

 

[JAKCoop]

I have exactly the same problem. I wondered if you ever got resolution?

 

[Scott M]

I have exactly the same problem. I wondered if you ever got resolution?

Yes I did, and fixed it. In my case it was a Thermistor on the heat exchanger that was faulty.

You can see if yours is faulty by checking the temp for the HW on the LED display when the water is running. Mine was jumping up to around 85 degrees and causing the pump to shut off temporarily and then going back to 60 degrees. 85 degrees should not be not possible.

This is a link to the repalcement Thermmistor:

Gledhill GT153 DHW Sensor

Keep The Heat On – Your trusted supplier of boiler and oil burner spares. Find high-quality replacement parts to keep your heating system running efficiently. Fast delivery and expert support – shop now!

www.keeptheheaton.com

Shut of the mains water, turn of the power to it, bit of PTFE round the thread and it was done.

 

[Scott M]

I have exactly the same problem. I wondered if you ever got resolution?

To see the HW temp, press SW2 Three times and the display will read HXX (xx it the temp)

SW2 is the second swich down below the LED display.

It is also possible that your main board is faulty, sensor is cheap to replace first though.