BOILER SERVICING -- Cleaning.

[slpjslpj]

Hi all,

Can a registered heating engineer perhaps chip in on this as well?

I found an older thread on this, but it's closed for discussion.

I fully understand that a safety inspection and a safety check certificate, is an entirely separate thing, and does not involve maintenance or repair of the boiler, unless something must be done to the boiler, in order to make it safe and operate properly. Rather, I am talking about an annual maintenance and service, separate to a safety inspection, that aims to ensure as much as possible that the boiler works properly, and as much as it is possible to do so, aims to prevent faults before they occur, or prevent them developing and getting worse, to the extent that the boiler finally stops working.

From my reading it seems that the word "service", can mean different things, depending who you ask. I assumed that it would always include cleaning, when the annual service is carried out. However I'm struggling to find a definitive answer.

My question is, ---
Should a combination boiler be cleaned internally, when it is 'serviced'? What should be cleaned, and why?

And I am referring to the boiler itself and it's wiring, not the internal pipework or plumbing.

Thank you all in advance.

 

[Octopus]

Best you post this on the plumbers forum!

 

[slpjslpj]

Hi Murdoch,

It's more of an electrical question than a plumbing question.

 

[davesparks]

Is it a gas, oil or electric boiler?

 

[snowhead]

My question is, ---
Should a combination boiler be cleaned internally, when it is 'serviced'? What should be cleaned, and why?

And I am referring to the boiler itself and it's wiring, not the internal pipework or plumbing.

The answer to that question is easy.
The minimum that should be done by the person carrying out the service on a gas appliance is to follow the manufacturers specific instructions for the model of boiler concerned.
Anything they do above and beyond that is for them to decide at the time.

As an example a random boiler manual, servicing starts at section 10;
https://www.baxi.co.uk/-/media/webs...mbi_installation_and_service_manual.pdf?la=en

 

[The Ghost]

Look at your contract. As for cleaning, what is there to clean? Why is it you ask anyway? An electrician can't go inside a boiler unless he is gas safe. The only thing you may be able to clean is a magnafilter or some similar item. But not usually included with a service. As I understand it, the annual service is to ensure safety.

 

[slpjslpj]

Hi,
The boiler is gas fired.

Thanks for that link to the Baxi instructions Snowhead, and for the answer that the manufactures instructions should be followed.

Very few service routines that I've looked at from a number of companies, seem to mention cleaning at all, and some engineers don't even think the burners should be cleaned every year.

There is a specific reason I'm asking. Electronics are sensitive to very small current flows. Excessive dust build up (dust that itself can become damp via condendsation) on the wiring and components on the circuit boards in the boiler, can cause the boiler exhibit faults. And as far as I can find, I'm yet to find a service engineer that thinks this dust should be removed during a service.

So I thought I'd ask on here to see what others think, particularly with respect to cleaning dust off the circuit boards and associated wiring.

 

[slpjslpj]

Actually it is my understanding that an electrician can do certain work inside a boiler cover, but NOT anything that involves gas, and they can't change the main circuit board, because that would involve checking/resetting the gas burner pressure. And that comes from the GasSafe Register website. "who-can-legally-work-on-a-gas-appliance-factsheet".

But I'm not asking about that. I assume that a Gas service engineer these days is also qualified in Electrics and to some extent electronics too.

Yes, I have indeed read the service contracts, and they are vaugue to say the least.

Also, an annual service, is a distinct item separate to a safety check. One is a safety inspection, and one is service.

It may be the case that a certificate can't be granted because the appliance isn't safe, because it requires a service or a repair. But if on inspection only, all the test results are as they should be, then there won't be a requirement for a service, in order to issue a pass for safety. But that does not mean the boiler does not need a service.
I thought servicing is as much about prevention as it is about fixing faults, and that's certainly how they are advertised and sold.

 

[davesparks]

I assume that a Gas service engineer these days is also qualified in Electrics and to some extent electronics too.

The person who services a domestic boiler almost definitely won’t be an engineer, they’ll be a plumber who is qualified and registered to do gas work. They will probably advertise themselves as being engineers as it’s not a protected title so anyone can call themselves such.
And they are very rarely qualified in electrics and quite often haven’t got a clue about even the very basics of electrical work.

 

[slpjslpj]

Hi davesparks,

I confess I haven't followed what qualifications someone registered to service a boiler has to have. I know they have to have gas qualifications. But I assumed --- ( especially with all the latest fairly strict regulations around electrical installation, electrical regulations for secial situations such as a gas appliance(boiler) installed in a bathroom for example, and with modern applicances having so much more sophistacted electrical wiring, control, and electronics built into then ), ---- that the 'engineer' would have a pretty good knowledge of the electrical side of things too in order to be able to service it properly.

I guess that's a pretty bad assumption to make then. It's depressing to think some of the people servicing things like modern central heating boilers, don't actually understand fully how they work.

 

[PEG]

Hi,i agree with Daves sad assessment,and i am,an engineer (getting all Sparticus,now...)

Almost all gas boilers,will require at least an inspection,if not a physical cleaning,of the burner chamber,which will require careful removal,and careful and certified re-fitting,of sealing plates.

This is what puts it out of reach,of a DIY exercise,multiply that for a another party,multiply again,for payment.

Try and source a registered heating engiperson,who is familiar with your model of boiler,that way it will quicker,and he won't bend your panels,and shear off 3 screws,he didn't have to remove anyway...

 

[slpjslpj]

Hi peg,

Ok, thanks for that. Sounds like good advice.

 

[telectrix]

"engiperson"? .......is that a gender neutral engineer/engineeress?

 

[chris murphy]

Hi all,

Can a registered heating engineer perhaps chip in on this as well?

I found an older thread on this, but it's closed for discussion.

I fully understand that a safety inspection and a safety check certificate, is an entirely separate thing, and does not involve maintenance or repair of the boiler, unless something must be done to the boiler, in order to make it safe and operate properly. Rather, I am talking about an annual maintenance and service, separate to a safety inspection, that aims to ensure as much as possible that the boiler works properly, and as much as it is possible to do so, aims to prevent faults before they occur, or prevent them developing and getting worse, to the extent that the boiler finally stops working.

From my reading it seems that the word "service", can mean different things, depending who you ask. I assumed that it would always include cleaning, when the annual service is carried out. However I'm struggling to find a definitive answer.

My question is, ---
Should a combination boiler be cleaned internally, when it is 'serviced'? What should be cleaned, and why?

And I am referring to the boiler itself and it's wiring, not the internal pipework or plumbing.

Thank you all in advance.

Hello slpjslpj,

As other Members have stated the Servicing procedure for gas Boilers is specified in detail within the Manufacturers Installation and Servicing Instructions and in every case the Servicing details should include instructions for Cleaning both the Heat Exchanger and the Main Burner.

However I have never seen any mention of what You described regarding removal of dust from PCB`s etc. and unless there was an obvious `build up` of dust on the PCB etc. no Heating Engineer / Gas Engineer would ever even look at `Cleaning` the Electrical components.

IF You have a build up of dust on items such as the PCB and associated wiring on you Boiler I can only guess that you [or a previous owner] might have had some major Building works carried out in your Home which produced the dust that has permeated your Boiler `Electrics` which are within the Boiler casing but not in the Room Sealed [Combustion Chamber] area.

Boilers should always be covered up as much as possible with something like poly sheeting when Building work is being carried out [Boiler NOT used while covered] - especially if Angle Grinders / Disc Cutters / Kango`s etc. are being used as those Tools produce `excessive dust` - the Disc Cutters for example are not often used with Dust Extraction in my experience.


I have been a Heating Engineer / Gas Engineer for over 44 years and the only times that I have come across `Dust on the PCB` / `Boiler Electrics` was after Building works which had involved the use of the Tools described above.

As anyone who has ever had Building work done has experienced - Dust gets everywhere`.

If You do have `excessive / noticeable dust` on the Boiler PCB and associated Electrics You definitely should arrange for a Gas Safe Registered Gas Engineer / Heating Engineer to remove / vacuum it away as you are correct in thinking that `excessive dust` should not be covering the Boiler PCB and associated Electrics.

Under normal circumstances one would NOT find `excessive dust` on Boiler PCB`s and associated Electrics so a Boiler Service would not require `dust removal from the PCB and associated Electrics`.

Unless You ask for this dust removal from the Boiler PCB and `Electrics` it would never be an automatic part of the Boiler Servicing.

I hope that my comments are helpful.

Regards,

Chris

 

[slpjslpj]

Hi Chris,
Thanks for that answer, the comments are indeed helpful.

The boiler is in a bathroom, in a vented cupboard. It's been there for a considerable time, over 20 years. The inside of cupboard also gets what appears to be the same dust in it, and as you describe, I think this must have found it's way into interior of the casing. The inside of the cupboard is cleaned fairly regularly I believe, as the bottom half below the boiler is used for towels etc. The door to the cupboard is a full length louvered door, and there are side vents on cupboard wall, which allow for additional ventilation, but also make it easy for dust to enter too.

It's a very light-ish grey in colour, and definitely isnt building dust of any kind, as there hasn't been any building work or decorating of any kind done for over 10 years. My best guess now is that it's possibly talcum powder mixed with just regular house dust.

Anyway, my conern was that the dust being there indicated that the boiler may not have been serviced properly. My thinking was, if the pcb dust wasn't removed, then maybe other things weren't done either. And as I have no way of knowing how long the dust has been there, or how long it took to collect, I have no way of knowing if other aspects of the servicing haven't been done for the same length of time.

The other thread that I referenced in my first post in this thread, refers to a Survey that found a number of big name companies weren't doing boiler services properly. So me being a bit of an old cynic anyway, ----- :-

My background is electrical/electronic. If I opened up any electrical/electronic device and saw that kind and amount of dust, I'd automatically remove it, because over time, dust finds it's way into pot's and non soldered connections causing resistance, and/or if it gets damp, causes shorts.

But if as you say pcb dust removal is never usually done anyway, then I will do as you suggest, and ask specifically for it to be removed when the service is done.

Thanks again.