Vaillant Ecotec Plus 824 Combi

[willing2learn]

Called to this job last week. Some downstairs rads not getting any heat, but others are and all upstairs hot. Customer has had someone fit a new pump to boiler and power flush system. I took a cold rad off and flushed it out with a hose, quite a bit of sludge came out. I then attached a hose to the flow and return tails from in turn and flushed a lot of water through, this all came out clean.

Put rad back on, still cold. I'd tried shutting all rads down as well and just leaving cold one open, that didn't do it, so not a balancing issue.

he has a magnaclean fitted, cleaned that out, only a small amount of crud in there. I put the boiler in chimney sweep mode and it did seem to 'kettle' a bit, like it was struggling to push the heat round quick enough, and would then cut out, i gave the main heat exchanger a few taps with rubber mallet, this seemed to cure the kettling, but still no heat to cold rads.

are there any filters that could be potentially blocked in boiler? Toying with the idea of power flushing just the boiler to see if that cures it.

any advice greatly received.

 

[TBServices]

My money would be on the powerflush not being done right. Sounds like he's shifted the sludge from one place to another rather than dump it all. Vaillant heatex's are notoriously easy to block up.

 

[willing2learn]

My money would be on the powerflush not being done right. Sounds like he's shifted the sludge from one place to another rather than dump it all. Vaillant heatex's are notoriously easy to block up.

This is what I was thinking, quote for a full flush it is then!

 

[arran197]

Had something similar recently that got worse and worse. My supervisor ordered the main heat ex, which I fitted and didn't make any difference, it was found that the powerflush which had been done previously wasn't done properly and had caused the blockage to worsen further, to the point that nothing would work.

 

[lame plumber]

my first thought is a failing pump and gravity circulation is warming rads upstairs and returning via some downstairs rads to boiler, common problem when pump fails, even used to happen before power flushing invented 🙂

 

[willing2learn]

my first thought is a failing pump and gravity circulation is warming rads upstairs and returning via some downstairs rads to boiler, common problem when pump fails, even used to happen before power flushing invented 🙂

Pump is brand new, and a few of the downstairs rads are getting hot, so I ruled that out.

 

[lame plumber]

not being cynical did you put the pump in or did the customer say it was new, have had this problem in the past and been told the pump was new but 5 years old, but it didnt seem that long they say!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[moogwai]

Has the boiler got the crappy rubber hoses inside??? Those always get blocked up..... If it has take em out and give em a clean as well as cleanin out the filter in the flow manifold.

 

[willing2learn]

not being cynical did you put the pump in or did the customer say it was new, have had this problem in the past and been told the pump was new but 5 years old, but it didnt seem that long they say!!!!!!!!!!!

i did the incredibly accurate test of trying to stop the pump spinning and was satisfied with the results. I didn't fit pump

Has the boiler got the crappy rubber hoses inside??? Those always get blocked up..... If it has take em out and give em a clean as well as cleanin out the filter in the flow manifold.

I'll check this when I return.

thanks everyone for your replies.