Dear DIY experts,
I currently have an in-line scale inhibitor on a pipe running into a Worcester Heatslave 9-24 combi boiler. It was installed by the house builder 15 years ago. The scale inhibitor is also made by Worcester. It does not seem to have been topped up with crystals regularly. The scale inhibitor is a heavy copper capsule with a cap at the top which you are supposed to unscrew to top up with polyphosphate crystals. But it is jammed tight. I have tried removing the unit, and tried my best to unscrew the cap using an adjustable spanner, but i couldn't budge the thing. I tried heating up the cap end of the caspule over a gas hob, then cooling it in water, but it didn't help. Tapping the cap with a hammer also no good.
I can't tell if the unit still has crystals in it, or if there is something else in there, but after I screwed it back into the plumbing after my unsuccessful top-up attemp, it seems to be restricting the flow of water into the boiler. The hot water flow rate is about only a third of what it used to be, barely enough to shower with... What would you do if you were in my shoes?
-aniseed