Grant Vortex experienced plumber required please

[Kit08]

Hi we have a grant vortex condensing oil boiler 58-70 utility. It's 6 years old and for the last few months losing half a bar a day. Plumber has changed a few radiator valves & poured a solutions into the rads to block any pin prick leaks. Unfortunately pipes are cemented in. How do I find out if its the expansion vessel? And is there any plumbers who is experienced with such boilers who will come out to fix? Many thanks

 

[sherbert]

Your not going to want to hear this

My gut feeling is that its the pipework in the floor has got pinhole in it somewhere

If it was the expansion vessel then top pressure up to 1bar when cold ....... turn heating on and see where pressure rises to should go up to about 1.5 bar ... ish

Have you also checked the blow off pipe from the safety valve ... is that dripping ........ thart will be a 15mm copper pipe going to outside from the boiler

But my gut feeling is the pipework buried in the screed

 

[Murf520970]

im in cheshire , the boiler will have a pipe leading from it & it will go through the wall to outside where it will terminate usually with it pointing back at the wall , place a bag on this firstly to collect any water to see if the pressure relief valves letting by . Also you can try closing the isolation valves at the boiler to isolate it from the radiator/ pipework .If it drops when its isolated the leaks in the boiler , if the pressure drops when you open them back up after 12 hrs or so then the leaks on the pipework . The only other suspect is a split/ leaking heat exchanger & its leaking through the condensate pipe

 

[Kit08]

Thank you both.

Murf, where abouts in Cheshire are you? We live in Sth Warrington just off j10. I've put a bag over the pipe outside to see if its collecting water. But as I'm not a diyer I don't know what the isolation valves look like. I will google. Would you call out to Stretton?

 

[Murf520970]

im in winsford , hold off using the isolation valves until last resort time as they can leak afterwards. If you get water in the bag on the prv pipe the pressure relief valves blowing of or leaking . What the pressure gauge read when heatings on , you need to check the pressures about 1 bar cold & no more & it rises slightly when the central heatings hot but not too high , it shouldnt go over 2 really . If it rises to more than 3 it will blow off water out the pipe outside. It will do this if the expansion vessels lost its charge/ faulty or the expansion vessels not big enough in comparison to the amount of radiators in the house. If its slowly losing pressure it will be a leak on pipework or leaking heatexchanger or leaking pressure relief valve or leaking auto ait vent . Check these out before isolating the boiler .Signs of leakage on the aav are water staining / white discharge on or near it on the pipes.

 

[dcawkwell]

Thank you both.

Murf, where abouts in Cheshire are you? We live in Sth Warrington just off j10. I've put a bag over the pipe outside to see if its collecting water. But as I'm not a diyer I don't know what the isolation valves look like. I will google. Would you call out to Stretton?

There aren't any isolation valves its an oil boiler. Unless the installer
was thoughtful enough to add them.

 

[Murf520970]

Thanks for the heads up on that , didnt know that but i only qualified on the oil side recently , why is that the case then ??

 

[Kit08]

Ok, I have now more or less determined that it is the underground pipes that are leaking. Can anybody recommend a way of tracing where the leak is as it is not obvious. There is a small warm patch when heating is on but could that be where the pipes join?

Is there any thermal imaging companies in Cheshire that can be recommended?

Many thanks