Vaillant EcoTec 831 Diverter Valve - Can’t replace it?

[Jaunty]

Hi all. Happy Friday.

Our EcoTec 831 is 10 years old. After 4 1/2 years the diverter valve was replaced under warranty as it was leaking.

It is leaking again but our engineer (same one through out) has advised it is rusted on. He can’t get the screws out or drill them out and the plate has rusted together. I’ve seen the damage and there is rust.

The upshot is that we are advised we need a new boiler (reading around I’m looking at an Intergas Xclusive 30).

Our engineer has generally been great and I’ve no reason to not trust him. But a £2000 boiler fit vs a £200 or so repair is quite a difference. Is the situation described if not common then possible, might it be worth getting a second opinion? I’m not suggesting anything underhand is going on, just maybe someone else might be able to do the repair where our man is struggling.

edit - Vaillant offer a fixed price repair service for £295. £95 charge if not repairable. That seems worth a shot at least?


Cheers all.

 

[Deleted member 267285]

Fixed price repair might be worth it. I think it’s do able.

 

[muggles]

I'd definitely advise a fixed price repair as the first option.

 

[Jaunty]

Thanks seems to make sense to me too. Worse case I'm £95 out but best case, well, it's worth exploring. They can come Monday. Cheers again.

 

[Jaunty]

The online booking didn't go through, when I dialled up to book I got an offer of fixed price repair at £311.88 payable in 6 instalments that includes all parts (the £285 / £95 if not repairable option excluded expansion vessel & heat exchanger), with a 6 month guarantee or Nil to pay if they can't repair. Booked in for Monday.

 

[Deleted member 267285]

I know you've done it now, but it might have been worth getting an independent gas man in who specialises in vaillant. Hindsight is a wonderful thing.

 

[Jaunty]

My independent Gas Registered gas man that works on Vaillant doesn't think it is repairable, this is a effectively a free second opinion (or he was wrong an it is repairable).

 

[ianmcd]

never seen one that cant be replaced, they are made of either Brass or Plastic, depending on age, so cant rust, the screws that hold them in place can rust but can be replaced, if the boilers chassis is rusting then you have bigger problems than the diverter valve

 

[Jaunty]

Thanks Ian. Definitely seems worth a second look then.

 

[Deleted member 267285]

My independent Gas Registered gas man that works on Vaillant doesn't think it is repairable, this is a effectively a free second opinion (or he was wrong an it is repairable).

Yes I work on EcoTEC pro’s almost everyday (same layout as 831) and changed many a diverter Both brass and plastic, and like @ianmcd said, not seen one that can’t be replaced. The backrail (holds all bottom parts together) can be renewed, but any screw that’s rusted on I use either a screwdriver and gently tap with hammer to get a bite or my impact screwdriver. Screws can be rounded off, but can be drilled out and renewed.

Hopefully Vaillant will sort it for you

 

[Jaunty]

Yes I work on EcoTEC pro’s almost everyday (same layout as 831) and changed many a diverter Both brass and plastic, and like @ianmcd said, not seen one that can’t be replaced. The backrail (holds all bottom parts together) can be renewed, but any screw that’s rusted on I use either a screwdriver and gently tap with hammer to get a bite or my impact screwdriver. Screws can be rounded off, but can be drilled out and renewed.

Hopefully Vaillant will sort it for you

Cheers all. A new brass diverter and repair is probably around £250 so £311 plus fixing anything thing else that comes up, but nil cost if they can't do it, doesn't seem bad to me. I'll post an update.

 

[ianmcd]

yes fixed price repair is definately your best option and you will get anything else fixed at the same time and get a years warranty on it, good boilers, definately worth repairing

 

[Jaunty]

Update. Vaillant engineer came Monday. Said job was longer than time allocated for a first visit. Partly as screws damaged by prior engineer.

A different person came back Wednesday, I am away for 5 nights but wife handled appointment. We now have hot water but still no central heating. Apparently the Netatmo control box we have ‘is not supported’ and he couldn’t get it to turn on. So he left.

I’m not back home until Monday but if we have hot water presumably we can’t be far away from having heating too? I’ve said to other half to call Vaillant and argue that it was a fixed price to get us going again and no heating is not exactly that. Even if not supported, Netatmo is going to be similar to Hive or Nest so I can’t see what the issue is??

Thanks for any feed back on behalf of a chilly other half.

 

[Deleted member 267285]

Vaillant engineer could and should have at least put a link in pcb for heating imo

 

[ianmcd]

As @The Novice , I am not familiar with your Netamo, I have read about them but never seen one in the flesh, some manus do not support third party controls , but if this was the case they should have removed the external controls and returned the boiler to factory settings , restoring heat and HW, it is then up to you to sort that from there on , it is simply a matter of removing two wires isolating them and fitting a link, ten mins job at most