View the thread, titled "Problem getting hot water only" which is posted in Plumbing Advice for Any Other Country on UK Plumbers Forums.

T

texasjim

Hi guys thanks in advance. ive just moved into semi detached bungalow and the heating system is an open fire with back boiler and a recently fitted (3 months) grants vortex oil condensing boiler. Ive tried to call for hot water only from the timer on the wall so i can heat the power shower. my boiler isnt firing up, so i had a look at the hot water tank upstairs. i do not see any two port valves and no thermostat at all on the tank. My question is, is it a simple matter of fitting two port valves on the pipe work and a feed back to the boiler/timer? or is it more complicated that the pipework will need reconfigured on the heating system? thanks in advance jim

 
If I fire up the boiler on the timer for heating theirs no problem. The boiler will heat the rads and put hot water in the hot water tank. The problem seems to persist wen I switch on the timer for hot water only.
 
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If it is designed for heating hot water separately from the rads, then you really shouldn't be getting hot water when the heating only is on.
Sounds like you could have a basic system that heats rads & hot tank together & perhaps incorrectly a timer that has hot water facility.
If that is what you have then it depends what way the pipes are done. If the flow & return from oil boiler go first to the hot tank & then to rads then no bother at all to have valves fitted, but they are more likely to do some rads first & this would mean one or two extra pipes taken from boiler to cylinder.
 
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So are you saying that both boilers are connected to the same hot water cylinder ?? or has the back boiler been disconnected ?
 
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Yes back boiler still connected. Flow looks like it enters house and heats downstairs rads first. Sorry can't post pics as I'm on iPad and don't know how to.
 
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Sounds like you have gravity hot water from the boiler . It would be best to fit an S plan for the boiler and I would get rid of the back boiler. A job for someone who knows what they are doing.
 
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Sounds to me like something hasn't been plumbed in properly.

Is your hot water cylinder a thermal store, a twin coil vented cylinder or single coil vented cyliner with direct heating from the back boiler, or something else altogether.

I would suggest you get an expert in solid fuel to look at it (i.e. a long established soild fuel company with a good local reputation) to look at it.
 
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I agree with WHPES, don't attempt to make changes if you don't fully understand the system.

I reckon there is a very good reason why the oil boiler is not set up to heat the water on its own, unfortunately it would be wrong of me to post my reason as with dual fuel systems a little knowledge can be very dangerous.
 
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