Glow Worm heat exchanger

[bengasman]

Oops, I think that was an 8-count.

 

[imtaylor]

The combination of being poor, and the statement including " all my properties" leads to the conclusion that you can't be that poor.
It sounds more like the typical kind of LL that doesn't care about anything other than making money. ( unless you want to add: not getting caught )

I'm not sure i should be dragging myself down to the level of a discussion where (or even trying to justify myself), quite clearly, a number of you have made your minds up about my business, how i run the portfolio or how many of my tenants are quite happy with me as a Landlord. It seems abundantly clear that a number of you have preconceived ideas of what a "typical" Landlord I am - based on what appears to be, nothing. I'm inclined to say I'd be interested to hear the rationale of how you've jumped to the conclusion that I am wealthy, tight, or only care about money, but I'm not.

Sufficed to say, I have a large number of tenants who've been with me for over 5 years (when I started the business) and any of you who know anything about running a residential portfolio will know that the overheads grow disproportionately to the size of the portfolio, hence why in cashflow terms, I most certainly am not, by any stretch of the imagination, wealthy! If I sold every property today, I'd be lucky to break even (given the fall in property values over the last two years) so neither am I equity or capital wealthy either.

What is very clear from this thread (and I hasten to add) disappointing, is as one of your colleagues have pointed out, that you seem to have preconceived ideas and alterior motives clouding what could have been, an otherwise useful and helpful discussion.

Since i posted this thread, another plumber I use has contacted me to say that he could clean the HE with some water and a wire brush and is due to do the job this week.

Thanks for your rather disappointing input.

 

[bengasman]

...you seem to have preconceived ideas and alterior motives clouding what could have been, an otherwise useful and helpful discussion. ...

Leaving heating systems with an overall efficiency of around 50% ( if not less ) clearly shows that you don't particularly care if your tenants waste their money by paying almost twice as much as necessary. Fact.

Clogged up heat exchangers are always a result of either poor installation, or inadequate maintenance, further reducing the efficiency, and possibly even putting your tenants health and/or safety at risk. Fact.

Your own words:
“I don't want to spend the fortune to have the whole boiler replaced. “ Fact.

I would not call that preconceived ideas, I call that facts.

 

[thegasengineer]

These units are completely obsolete, and although I can see where your coming from, the inevitable truth is that you should upgrade your system to a new boiler. You may find that any Gas Safe Engineer would quote a price that makes the repair un-economical...not for rip-off purposes, but because the job would be a real sh**!!.
Add the price onto your flat when selling. I'm sure the new boiler will enhance its sellability.

 

[imtaylor]

Leaving heating systems with an overall efficiency of around 50% ( if not less ) clearly shows that you don't particularly care if your tenants waste their money by paying almost twice as much as necessary. Fact.

Thanks for the business advice - so my priority should be to save all of my tenants 30 - 50% on their heating bills?

Clogged up heat exchangers are always a result of either poor installation, or inadequate maintenance, further reducing the efficiency, and possibly even putting your tenants health and/or safety at risk. Fact.

Previous engineer has been sacked and reported to Gas Safe and HSE.

Your own words:
“I don't want to spend the fortune to have the whole boiler replaced. “ Fact.

Your own website...
http://www.*************.co.uk/

"Boiler Breakdown Repair London knows that nine out of ten boiler replacements are unnecessary. ONLY about one out of a hundred broken boilers need replacing; the rest can be repaired.

Save yourself the expense of a new boiler and the inconvenience. I guarantee results! I promise I solve the problem and do not charge for failure.

Your engineer may believe your boiler needs replacing. But Boiler Breakdown Repair London knows perfectly adequate boilers are being replaced.

I know this because I am a boiler expert. I am often called out to advise on and repair boiler breakdowns or condemned boilers.

If you want to avoid paying for a new boiler you don’t need, please read on or call me on ***********.

Or in an emergency **********if you’re experiencing a boiler breakdown or need a boiler repair in South London, right now.

Boilers aren’t cheap. Incorrect fault finding whether deliberate or not, is a serious problem for unsuspecting consumers.

To avoid being misled, or plainly ripped off, you must choose your boiler repair company with care: Boiler Breakdown Repair London specialises in repairs and actually wants to get your current boiler working.

Seems to me that you don't practice what you preach?

I would not call that preconceived ideas, I call that facts.

As i said, preconceived ideas, based on your own assumptions, having not seen the boiler or the HE. [/u]

 

[bengasman]

There is a rather significant difference between having a boiler condemned because the “engineer” can not establish that only the diverter is broken ( last one ) or he does not understand how to shift a blockage ( tomorrow's job ), and doing substandard maintenance on your tenant's boiler.

The previous engineer was “ sacked” for “ not doing a good job” presumably, and has suddenly been reported.


If your so concerned about quality, why are you here on a diy site? Why don't you simply find a better engineer who gets the remit: “ Safety first, what needs to be done, must get done”?
Do you really think you are the first dodgy LL who tries to find out what needs doing and then hires a handyman to do it?

If you hire a proper man at a normal price in stead of calling 20 people and taking the cheapest quote, you would not need to be asking how to clean a heatexchanger.
I bet ******************

 

[imtaylor]

There is a rather significant difference between having a boiler condemned because the “engineer” can not establish that only the diverter is broken ( last one ) or he does not understand how to shift a blockage ( tomorrow's job ), and doing substandard maintenance on your tenant's boiler.

..... and deciding that all Landlords are fabulously wealthy, crooks, leave their tenants living in squalor, or their priority should be to spend £100's of £k to replace all boilers to save all tenants some money on their heating bills, based on no site visit, no photos, no knowledge of the business, the satisfaction of the tenants is.. "Saving yourself the expense of a new boiler and the inconvenience. I guarantee results! I promise I solve the problem and do not charge for failure."

The previous engineer was “ sacked” for “ not doing a good job” presumably, and has suddenly been reported.

Like I said, you've made incorrect assumptions and don't know the circumstances.

If your so concerned about quality, why are you here on a diy site? Why don't you simply find a better engineer who gets the remit: “ Safety first, what needs to be done, must get done”?

because quite clearly, there are other options and as evidenced by the comments on this thread so far, other options other than replacing the whole? eg. oh, thats a dog of a job etc. etc.? There are evidently a number of you who would rather recommend a replacement boiler than put the elbow grease in and actually do the job?

Do you really think you are the first dodgy LL who tries to find out what needs doing and then hires a handyman to do it?

again, another incorrect assumption based on your own very, low standards.

If you hire a proper man at a normal price in stead of calling 20 people and taking the cheapest quote, you would not need to be asking how to clean a heatexchanger.

We seem to be going round in circles now. You don't know the circumstances but I'll humour you. I had a local firm of heating engineers, they started turning up and jobs and walking out because "there was no credit on the meter", or started charging for doing a quote etc. I changed engineers and the new guy says that he does a service as part of a gas cert. (previous guys didn't ever do a service - said it was an additional charge. Current guy says, he;s come across a number of substandard jobs and he's reported them to Gas Safe and HSE as a result of the sight of this HE. When he first looked at the job, he disconnected the boiler and said he's search for a replacement HE because the boiler was perfectly serviceable. Couldn't get hold of one but still trying. He recommended another guy who didn't have any availability due holiday (without even knowing what the job was but said in turn he'd get someone else to call me... and here we are.

I bet at least 20% of your properties ************.

. Speculation and conjecture based on nothing, as per previous posts.

 

[Agile]

all Landlords are fabulously wealthy, crooks, leave their tenants living in squalor, or their priority should be to spend £100's of £k to replace all boilers to save all tenants some money on their heating bills, based on no site visit, no

Since an average boiler replacement costs under £2000, if the costs of replacing your boilers would be so much then even if only £100k was involved that would be over 50 properties.

You remind me of one landlord who boasted owning 50 properties but then could not afford to pay our bill of less that £90 !

Thats why I dont do work for landlords unless paid in advance now! They have demonstrated that they cannot be trusted to pay!

 

[petit_pablo]

Landlords and RGI noobs giving it large, brilliant

No sympathy for any LL that cant afford to maintain a property they own.

 

[mehran]

i have no sympathy for cheap skate landlords.

 

[imtaylor]

ok, seems I was wrong to think that I could get help from some so called "experts" but unfortunately, envy, jealousy (or whatever it may be, I'm not quite sure) seem to have blinkered some of you into thinking that all Landlords are the same.

Show me a Landlord who's priority it is to replace all boilers to "add value" to the property or to save their tenants on their heating bills and I'll show you a thousand who's priority it is to have contented tenants paying rent so that the mortgages are paid each month.

Disappointed doesn't come close.

 

[ChrisR]

I agree with the landlord here - it's disappointing to see that there's more accusation as to his motives than informed boiler advice in the thread.
Being a landlord is a business like any other, it's not for us to preach how he should do it, as long as it's within the law.
It's a commercial not an altruistic arrangement.
For all we know the landlord may be in negative equity and not have enough rent to cover the mortgages - he wouldn't be the first. Running a business is not motivated by GREED, ffs.
Yes advise that the repair may be expensive and may leave future problems but suggesting it should be done for some imagined resale desirability is ridiculous.
The landlord will know about that, and not ask plumbers for their advice on it.