British Gas cover/noisy pump - what to do?

[Mr Smyth]

I suspect the engineer is pushing the Powerflush as he is under pressure to sell upgrades. This sort of sales pressure is why many very good BG engineers leave. We do get a commission of sorts for selling things which is fine so long as the selling is right.

As previously advised they don't cover sludge etc.

As for saying that your cover is pretty much null & void that's BS.

Call back BG get them to sort out the noise (request a different engineer if you wish)
Ask them to take a water sample and get it tested and then you can act upon the info. Make sure the don't just drain a small amount off a rad. Let the water drain for a while before the sample is taken.

The Magna Booster product we promote is probably a good idea and probably all you need (if anything)

If you had rads pin-holing I would change that one and explain that further rads would not be covered unless the sys was flushed. But not just because the water that I drained off was black.

The pot with a magnet sounds like the Magnaclean demonstrator that we have. I use it to show how the thing works. I don't sneek it in and then claim that its your water.

Hope this helps

 

[petit_pablo]

I love jobs like this! Couldn't give a fook what the waters like I will still repair it. I will recommend a flush but if they don't want it doing then so be it.

 

[mickyg]

easy just cancel the contract. Within a year you'll have enough money for a pump change by an independant. Within 5-6 years you'll have enough money for a powerflush a few services and an all inclusive holiday in spain.

 

[chris765]

Just to update.

The BG man has been out, unfortunately the same one as before. He went to the pump, turned the speed down to 1 and said done.
I wasn't as impressed as he was, I like to fix a problem, not cover it up.

He decided to conduct an experiment. We would turn all the radiators on (with the pump on setting 1) if they all worked then we would deem it fixed. If not then he would have to take the pump off, of course if 'sludge' was the cause then we would have to foot the bill for the pump (approx £70).

So while the radiators were warming up, he went off to do another job.

In the mean time I rung up BG head office. I asked them:
1. Was the engineer correct in saying that if we had a 3rd party contractor to flush the system then you would no longer cover it. He said not really, as long as they didn't damage the system then it would still be covered.

2. I also asked if we could get a water test and a second opinion on this sludge. He said he couldn't see a problem with that but would speak to his boss to check and call me back (although I managed to miss his call - so will phone him tomorrow).


Soon after I hang up with BG Head office the engineer calls (approx 30mins after heating is turned on). Asking me if the radiators were all heated up. Some weren't on at all and some didn't seem as hot as usual. I got this "okay sounds like the pump on setting 1 isn't enough, but the radiators that aren't working, I bet I know what that is." You can guess it, "Sludge".
I asked him not to return pending a conversation with head office. So he insisted on booking for another day, so we've gone for Friday afternoon.


Apparently it's up to the engineers experience to decide if the sludge is causing the trouble. I asked where he drained the water from last time. He told me he 'caught it' when he took the valve out last time.
If I were to describe the water I saw, it was brown and murky, of a watery consistency. Sludge to me sounds thick and gloopy? I'm happy to stand corrected though.

If we genuinely have got a sludge issue then a powerflush will be what we need, but there's something just a bit too pushy with this chap.


Thanks for following.

 

[gas_man_gaz]

if ya don't trust him get a local rgi to check what he is saying. ya wouldn't get sludge from where he caught the water to replace the zone valve, just mucky water n a bit of magnetite normally. the sludge is normally in the downstairs rads and ya can normally tell by feeling the rads in the centre towards the bottom, i norm confirm it by draining 1rad. personally i wouldn't class turning the pump down as a repair tho.

as for what you are covered for we have already told ya, they can refuse to repair any faults due to sludge if ya don't do anything. they wont correct any faults caused by a 3rd party flushing the sys such as a radiator/valves leaking, blockages left, cold rads etc. if ya get someone in and they do a good job then there is no probs.

 

[petit_pablo]

Ask for another engineer to attend and moan like fook when he arrives! Works on me, i cant be bothered to argue with the customers.

 

[boabcelt]

Pretty much agree with all the advice you have received so far. Disregard what Axel said about the pump direction. From the pic there is no way of discerning the direction of water flow. The only thing which determines direction on that type of pump is the orientation of the body. There will be a directional arrow cast on the side.

 

[nickso]

Ask for another engineer to attend and moan like fook when he arrives! Works on me, i cant be bothered to argue with the customers.

i can.

 

[Nige F]

Thanks for replying.

We weren't expecting BG to do the flush for free, rather give us the choice of letting another contractor do it. Tbh, the chap seemed to give a lot of BS, I saw him bringing the 'jar' of water from his van upstairs for which I dont have an explanation to why.


?

Was the jar full when he carried it upstairs or empty . It should have been empty then he drew some water into it from the heating system . I cannot believe BG would indulge in any skullduggery.

 

[gas_man_gaz]

Ask for another engineer to attend and moan like fook when he arrives! Works on me, i cant be bothered to argue with the customers.

i can.

i would n all

 

[Nige F]

Just to update.



2is causing the trouble. I asked where he drained the water from last time. He told me he 'caught it' when he took the valve out last time.
If I were to describe the water I saw, it was brown and murky, of a watery consistency. Sludge to me sounds thick and gloopy? I'm happy to stand corrected though.


.

if it`s in suspension it will be as you describe If it`s flocculated it will be gloopy - I really cannot believe BG is employing skullduggery

 

[ollski]

I usually carry my magnaclean demo jar in with me in my bucket and fill it with some water I lose to make the bung, I carry it in full of water as I haven't bothered to change it from the last job but I empty into my bucket.

 

[Mr Smyth]

Call BG and request that they don't send the same engineer. This happens quite often. Clearly he has made his mind up about your system. Whether he is right or wrong you want a second opinion.

This all stems from a zone valve letting by..... this happens on the cleanest of systems.

We have been told that nobody is to recommend/quote a powerflush without first doing things like changing the pump. This is a local policy not nationwide. We have also been told to leave a quote for a Magnatech filter whenever we do 'wet' work and see dirty water.

Ask for a water test to be carried out.

If sludge is a problem in your system then the Feed & Expansion tank in the loft will probably have have an inch of sludge in the bottom of it. Go have a look. It's probably next to the larger Cold Water Storage Tank.

Hope this helps