Potterton Puma 100

[mr.bodgit]

Hot Water works fine but no central heating. Occasionally the boiler will fire up but shuts off after approx 20 secs.
Help required urgently please.

 

[corgiman]

diverter valve (wax capsule head) has failed most probably

 

[corgigazza]

A dripping tap will stop the heating from working

 

[corgiman]

mm forgot that

 

[mr.bodgit]

Thanks for the replys

I left the boiler switched onto constant, couldn't believe it when I later went into the kitchen and it had fired into life and was okay. This morning the boiler switched on straightaway and we had no problems.

No leaking taps. Do you still think it is the Wax valve assembly.

thanks mr.bodgit

 

[ChrisR]

Do you still think it is the Wax valve assembly.

Yes.

 

[KevinfromBaxiPotterton]

I very much doubt if the wax capsule is at fault as they are very reliable, if heating fails again turn off cold mains to boiler, can be done on isolation valve on cold mains inlet to boiler, then fire heating again, this will prove, or disprove, the possibility of a dripping tap, leak, ect.

 

[corgiman]

Really kevfrombaxipotterton, my experiance says otherwise, I must have changed hundreds of them, its usually them and the main pcb that goes wrong with em

 

[KevinfromBaxiPotterton]

If you have changed lots of the wax capsules I suggest Mr Corgiman you are mis-diagnosing the faults as in all my years with potterton I have changed only a handful, there are other reasons that the wax capsule will not open diverter valve, it is very very rarely the wax capsule itself.

 

[corgiman]

Well Excuse me Mr kevinfrombaxipotterton but I have not

Never once have i change a wax capsule and had the client ring to say the boiler is still faulty, I have returned to boilers which i have changed the wax capsule a year later to service them and the client has nnot had a moments trouble since i changed the wax capsule.

could it be that working for potterton for years and years means that you are attending to relatively young boilers, and maybe just maybe (lawks i am upsetting myself a little bit here at the thought that a potterton engineer may not be all knowing) that clients call the likes of us non potterton engineers to older applainces cos they dont want to pay 250 for your lot to fix it???? and because of that I am going to the older boilers?.

I have done my time and made my cock ups and if you think that after twenty plus years on the tools I have been running around mis diagnosing something as straight forward as a buggered diverter valve that i would still get work you are very sadly mistaken.

put that in yer pipe you pompous git

 

[DP]

I think Corgiman is upset.

Not without reason me thinks. I have also ended up holding dirty end of the stick after manufacturer's engineer mouthed off to the client about the procedures of testing I had employed, and unavailabilty of parts (when I was assured these were available). I wonder what the Potty man has to say about Suprima PCBs.

 

[corgiman]

thanks dp

 

[daved1]

check for dry joint on the circuit boards sounds to me to be the most likley cause.

Look mainly around the connectors try not to pull on the wires that go into the flame housing as the flame sensors break.

 

[engineer]

it will be the wax stat if taps are all ok. also check for dry joint on netural pin top left of main board

 

[boilingmad]

My Potterton Puma is driving me mad. I had it serviced before Christmas as pressure dropping was causing the heating to go off all the time. The plumber did not like servicing Pumas and said something about the wax valves. Since then we have had a loss of pressure almost every day and the heating does not come on until I add water to top up the system pressure ( red light goes off green light comes on). Then hot water gets excessively hot ( temp set quite low on boiler) and heating takes some time to come. Occasionally I see the hot water being discharged through the safety pipe outside.

Can anyone suggest anything to help ? Apologies for the terminology I'm a knitwear designer not a plumber. Much appreciated.