Combi boiler sounds like an aeroplane !! chocks away !!

[fned]

Firstly a big howdy to everyone 🙂
My problem is with a 2 1/2 yr old Vaillant Ecotec 837 combi, when the heating starts from a low temp or when I put any hot water tap on the combi boiler starts makin a loud noise. The boiler is located upstairs in a cubby hole so from downstairs I can only describe the noise identical to when you hear a plane coming over your house , like a loud humming noise.

I have added a Fernox cleaner to the system about a week ago but its still the same. It also has a Fernox TF1 magnetizer. At the time the combi was installed the rads were new and the pipe work was the old pipe work but they were flushed clean.

A central heating guy (friend of a friend) called a few days back and said he didn't think it was the fan and he couldn't be sure so he would ring Vaillant be he never got back to me.
I can't post a link but if you go to youtube and paste in this it will show you a vid of my boiler taking off from runway 2
KWkJv1HK0J8


any one help fellas ?

 

[Anton]

This could well be a combustion problem making this noise. You would need a GSR engineer with an FGA to check CO/CO2 and diagnose. It is not something you can do yourself.

 

[jam1979]

may need power flushing or pump could be on its way out

 

[fned]

may need power flushing or pump could be on its way out

I hope not and I wont be too impressed with Vaillant if it is , the boiler is under 3 yr old from new.

 

[stevetheplumber]

so its had at least 2 services already?id find a plumber who owns a heat mat
hard to id the noise from the clip but pump or fan sounds possible

 

[lame plumber]

sounds like crud jamming in the pump to me, a good flush may be needed to clear things out and whip out the pump , to check the impellor isnt damaged. if inhibitor wasnt added on installation, rads etc will be corroding away as per normal and especially so if flux and debris was left in the system

 

[fned]

I'll get someone in take a look, I thought I's ask just so I've a little knowledge as to why. thanks for the advise fella's, I'm preying the sludge cleaner and a flush out in a few weeks does the trick.

 

[village idiot]

how long do you intend to leave the 'sludge cleaner' in the system? A week?

 

[Mickyplumb]

Ah, the aeroplane noise.

 

[mountainman]

only asking but is this something only a gas engineer can sort ?

Correct!

 

[hammers4spanner]

keep yourself and family safe by getting a gsr repair man in

 

[fned]

I'm on the hunt now for one, there's a couple of guys I know but, one is totally snowed in with work and another person is working away.
I did have one guy call, While I showing showing him the problem his mobile was ringing. Now I know if your busy you leave it but he decided to take the call and for 10 minutes he's stood chatting in mine at the top of the stairs running over another job with a work colleague.
He then said to me to stick some sludge cleaner in it should be right, if not ring me back. I told him it already had cleaner in he said , I'll ring Vaillant and see what they say.

I asked him to kindly leave and told him that if he couldn't be harsed I couldnt be harsed hiring him.

 

[fned]

This morning things have changed and It seems to have started doing the noise on the heating. I have the temp set quite low in the day with the thermo timer VRT 392f and then heat back up in the evening but his morning I've noticed a change.

With the heating set low every so often the boiler kicks in with the whirling noise and the rads go mad hot to the point you can't touch them then a few minutes later the whirling noise stops and they cool. This is chewing up gas something awful.

I've now tried 4-5 local heating engineers and non can take a look till late next week , is it safe to use or shall I turn rads off at the boiler and use it for water only ?

 

[jam1979]

if u have trvs on ur system just use them for controlling your heating in your rooms for the time being till you can get it sorted

 

[fned]

OK will do , I've managed to sort an engineer to call after the weekend.

 

[breakdown]

Had a similar noise on a vaillant Eco tech pro tried flushing ended up replacing main heat ex, noise gone. Not sure how much warranty you get on vaillant main heat ex.

 

[fned]

Had a similar noise on a vaillant Eco tech pro tried flushing ended up replacing main heat ex, noise gone. Not sure how much warranty you get on vaillant main heat ex.

none 🙁

 

[winqbear]

This could well be a combustion problem making this noise. You would need a GSR engineer with an FGA to check CO/CO2 and diagnose. It is not something you can do yourself.

I've just had this problem on a. New lpgcombi it was the gas air ratio said it had been. Altered atfactory but it had not poor old analsyer nearly went pop but once I had got it too readings required boiler sounded perfect

 

[fned]

I think I sorted the problem with some advise from a heating engineer who popped round and gave me some free advise so big thanks goes out to him ....

Firstly , the boiler is situated upstairs and I had no drain valve on any of the 4 rads downstairs so I added one to the small loo rad. I had a problem with the new valve been shorter and I had no play with the piping so I went to a heating firm and they dug out a clever telescopic type adapter you pull to the correct length, an absolute god send.
Once I had a drain point I drained the system down and added some more X400 .I left this for about 2 hrs on hot , turned the system off and drained down.

This time I took off the hallway rad off the wall and flushed it out outside with a hosepipe and did the same with the loo rad.

There was some serious crud in both rads so it was worth doing. I then added more X400 and filled the system and bled the TF1 and all rads. My system has a Fernox TF1 , this can act like a pot to add your cleaner without messing around trying to fill a rad.

For people who are new to it all like me you just isolate the TF1 with both valves top and bottom of it and empty the cleaner into the pot then screw it back up. Don't forget to clean the magnet holder inside the TF1.Once back on undo the valve's and bleed the TF1 it from the top bleed nipple, this should give a flush direct to the boiler.

[FONT=verdana, geneva, lucida, lucida grande, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]When I kicked the boiler up it made one racket banging and coughing and splirting, now I don't know why but after the noise I filled the boiler to 1.5-1.8 pressure and bled all the rads and the system is now back to normal , as quite as a mouse.[/FONT]

[FONT=verdana, geneva, lucida, lucida grande, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]I would have thought that the cleaner alone would have sorted it but it seems all the crud and muck needed to be washed out and these 2 rads seemed to be holding the sludge.[/FONT]

[FONT=verdana, geneva, lucida, lucida grande, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]My explanation might be easy enough for an engineer but I thought I would post up for people like myself who only have a basic now how with heating but if I can , believe you me !! ,,,,you can.
Thanks to all for the replies to this thread [/FONT]