TAKE STEPS NOW TO AVOID CONDENSING BOILER BREAKDOWNS IN COLD WEATHER
In the past three years thousands of homeowners have discovered that their condensing boiler has suddenly shut down in extremely cold weather – the Heating Helpline explains why this occurs and what steps homeowners can take to avoid this.
5 December 2012 – In the past three years the UK has experienced extended periods of extremely cold weather with sub-zero temperatures. Will this winter be any different? No one knows, but one of the unforeseen developments of these extreme temperatures has been the widespread breakdown of modern condensing boilers. Since 2005 it has been mandatory for households to have condensing gas boilers installed both in new build situations and when replacing or upgrading their boiler. Now it is estimated there are eight million condensing boilers in homes across Britain and that tens of thousands of these homes have been left without heating over the last three winters as these boilers have shut down without warning.
Blane Judd, Chief Executive of B&ES (the Building & Engineering Services Association) who operate the free consumer advice service the Heating Helpline, comments, “Condensing boilers recover a great deal more of the heat produced when gas is burned with the result that some of the by-products of combustion – water vapour – condense inside the boiler and have to be disposed of, typically through an extra pipe linked to the property’s waste water drainage system. In some cases it has been necessary to route this pipe along an outside wall of the property.
“The design of such modern condensing boilers includes a safety system which shuts down the boiler in the event that the condensed water starts to ‘back-up’ inside the appliance. What has happened during the extreme sub-zero weather the UK has experienced over the past few winters is that the condensed water has frozen in the external pipework, stopping the flow, and the safety systems within the appliance have then shut the boiler down.
“It is fair to say that when condensing boilers were being developed in the 1980s the heating industry believed that it was entering a world where winter temperatures were rising and expected to rise still further. It had been many years since the last seriously cold winter and the weather experts were warning of global temperature increases and certainly not predicting the long periods of sub-zero winter temperatures we in the UK have endured recently. External pipework routes were therefore considered acceptable as it enabled more installation options, particularly when retrofitting in existing properties.
“Of course there is nothing worse than being in the middle of a period of sub-zero temperatures with a central heating system that doesn’t work. If these extreme winters are here to stay the best advice we can give is to take preventative measures. We recommend that any household that has a condensing boiler seeks professional advice from a local Gas Safe Registered installer. The favoured options the heating engineer is likely to take will be:
- Where possible, have the condensate pipework re-routed inside the property and connected to the property’s internal drainage system.
- Have “trace heating” fitted to the external pipework to keep it warm.
- Change the external pipework to one with a larger diameter – some research suggests this can reduce the risk of freezing and pipe blockage.
“Some proprietary products have also come onto the market specifically designed to overcome the problem”.
An easy way to locate a qualified, reputable gas installer is to use the Heating Helpline website at: http://www.heatinghelpline.org.uk or call them on 0800 840 4069.
Ends
Issued on behalf of the Building & Engineering Services Association (B&ES) by Next Step Marketing Ltd
Media enquiries to: Heather Lambert. Tel: 44(0)1256 472020;
Fax: 44(0)1256 471010; E-mail: heather@nextstepmarketing.co.uk
Notes to editors
Since its formation in 1904, B&ES, the Building & Engineering Services Association (formerly the HVCA) has represented the interests of companies engaged in a wide range of building and engineering services including domestic heating and renewable technologies.
B&ES members are subject to regular, third-party inspection and assessment of their technical competence and commercial capability, carried out by an independent certification body at least every three years.
B&ES members who undertake gas installations are registered with Gas Safe – the gas safety watchdog body – and are also members of TrustMark, the Government-endorsed scheme designed to direct customers towards reliable tradespeople.
B&ES operates the Heating Helpline (http://www.heatinghelpline.org.uk) to provide consumers with free, impartial advice on every aspect of home heating.
Caption for Picture:
“Acclaimed as the modern, clean and green way to heat your home, no one foresaw that condensing boilers would be prone to breakdown in extremely cold weather.”
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