My boiler is an old Worm Hot Water Express 80, the hot water or centra heating don't work. I don't have any of the original documentation so would be greatfull if anyone who has some could either send me it o point me in the right direction...
At first the pilot light wouldn't light, so I assumed it may be th Thermocouple so I have changed this. I can not relaiably relight th pilot without it going out. The pilot light stays on for at least tw hours so I suspect the thermocouple etc is now ok.
When I turn the tap hot water on the main burner turns on but withi about 5 seconds the main burner goes out and also the pilot light. Th thermocouple cooks and there is a click which I suspect is the pilo gas been cut off? I then have to wait 5 mins until I can relight th pilot.
Does anyone have any ideas as to what this could be.... Could it be ventelation problem or something over heating? .... I've tried to clea the inside of the boiler with a vacume but that didn't help.
Almost certainly. The boiler is over heating. This is due to something stopping the flow of water through the main heat exchanger, of which there are upteen possible internal and external causes.
Before I call an expensive plumber I would like to get to the bottom o this myself!!! :)
Running the ho****er tap when the boiler is on starts the burner an as I've stated warm water runs until it turns it's self completley of therefore I can assume for sure that any valves are open and water i free to flow? Also running the water really slowly also increases th time the boiler remains lit
Could the possability be a duff temperature sensor?
If some one could give me a list of the possabilites I'd like to have go.
Although I'm not familiar with this precise model - boilers which turn off the pilot light to 'lock-out' are almost certain to have a simple normally-closed fixed temperature thermostat in series with the thermocouple.
You need to really work out if the boiler is over heating or not. There might be quite a number of things that could cause the symptoms. The fact that it takes longer before tripping when you run the water slowly might means something. This is one of those problems that quite likely means there is no substitute for experience and 'being there'. Sorry to sound so dismissive.
I'm fairly sure the one things it's not is the thermocouple.
I've now managed to get the boiler to work, for just over 3 weeks!.. The problem was the fan, it wasn't going round. I got the old fan to g with a little push to start it off and the hot water worked, so changed the fan thinking this would solve the problem.... It the turned out that the pump had gone, I had a plumber round (friend of friend) and he told me to replace it so I did... Every thing worked o for about 3 weeks, when all of a sudden the boiler started to kind o make a clicking sound, fire up for about a minute and then fire off After a cpl of days it don't fire up any more!....
I've found there was a small leak and over three weeks the syste depressurized from 1.5 to under 1. I remember when it gets to 1 it aut cuts off. I've repressurized the system but not hot water or heating Pilot stays lit, I think the pump is going round as if a place a scre driver to it I can hear the pump make a wizing noise. The boiler n longer fires up, the pump gets hot, though I can touch it. I guess thi is heat from the pilot been transfered via the pipes etc. The pipe coming from the pump though are no way as hot as the pump itself!... .
bout 5 months down the line I think I've got this thing fixed an living with hot water is wonderfull, guess it's the small things i life that you take for granted, hot water being one of those....
Thank you to everyone who posted in response to my question and all th other problems, by reading all of the posts I kind of worked out how t fix the boiler, ok 5 months was a long time but it's finally working The thing for me was been a tight person I wanted to save some mone (nowt wrong with that, well I do come from Yorkshire - bah-tat) an most importantly I saw it as a challenge.
Just in case anyone has similar problems these are some tips I learn' in no particular order, some are common sense (guess I lacked a bit o this)
Thermocouples - B&Q stock a universal one's but there half price at th local plumbers merchant and I even got the specfic thermocouple for th boiler! It took me 3 attempts to fix a new one and about 3 days!
If the boiler fires up but then cuts out check the fan (i.e it goe round) Sounds simple but it took me a month to work this bit out! I the fan works check the pump, I eventually worked up the courge t unscrew the end and stick a screw driver in. Water came out, but no too much but at least it proved that there was water in the pump Sounds daft but I wasn't sure at one stage. Also you should be able t hear of feel the vibs from the pump spinning...
I should have done this step at the start, contact the manufacture an ask them for technical documentation. Glow worm didn't have an literature for my stone age boiler on their website so I emailed the and they posted it 1st class in the post to me, it took 3 days fro email to getting it... This included loads of fault finding flo charts, which eventually led me to work out the problem
Parts - You can get lots of working 2nd hand parts on ebay. I'm technie by trade but forgot about ebay until I need a circuit board where I got one for 15 quid, 135 cheaper than the shop price!
I'm not 100% sure on this but it seemed because the boiler wasn' working for such a long time things started to break through lack o use. Fan broke, then the pump failed and finally a circuit board!
Pub - Go a tell everyone at the pub your boiler is knackered, someone' bound to have an idea of the problem! - I've fixed mine now (touch wood and got a plumber m8 to check it over and no problems!
Trade - In the pub find a plumber and trade your skills for his!.. I've now a computer down stairs that needs fixing ! lol
Ok.. enough of that... The above are my experiences.. I don't hold an prof qualification in anything to do with boilers, so take them as yo will........ It's all light hearted etc, but you've for to have a sens of humor having no or little hot water for 5 months
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