Vokera Linea 28 boiler

[jem16]

I wouldn't buy another Vokera unless a customer insisted on one.

So what would you recommend these days?

Vokera CS is apalling these days as is thier Tech support. Most boilers are really a bit of a lottery to be honest but you have to take CS and Tech support into consideration when buying.

At the time Vokera was thought of as being one of the best. One of the selling points was that they had a main depot at Maryhill.

There is a thread on here about a six month old Baxi Duotech that has gone toes up and baxi can't get someone out until next Monday,that is shockingly bad service and,sadly,all to common.

One of the reasons I took out the BG contract. I did at least have them out the same day. I did have a bit of a problem to begin with but they have been good with visits since.

I do find it ridiculous that you can't seem to get good customer service on after sales though. I would be very unhappy at a 6 month old boiler having a problem and having to wait a week before anyone looks at it!

 

[tonybhoy]

So what would you recommend these days?

These days are very difficult to be honest. Customers are,IMO,afraid given the current economic climate so price is the most important thing to them and with that in mind you can't really beat Vokeras however I like WB CDis and as an approved installer I can currently offer customers five years warranty and four years WB servicing but your talking the best part of a grand for the extra warranty,better boiler and WB servicing vs a Vokera Compact HE,for example.

However you are currently paying BG £218 a year so X 3 that comes to about £650 (WB boilers come with two years warranty out of the box for non approved WB installers) less the cost of servicing the boiler which is inlcuded in your BG contract for three years which is about £200 so longer term the WB boilers are more attractive price wise.

You just have to decide which is better for you. Pay up front for the five years or pay by installments as in the boiler change then a BG service contract.


At the time Vokera was thought of as being one of the best. One of the selling points was that they had a main depot at Maryhill.

Well that is really moot to be honest. Yes they had great customer service because of the local thing but when I started fitting them 20 years ago almost 50% of the boilers I fitted failed on start up so you had to have a good back up before you got paid.

Once I had a Vokera engineer attend a breakdown on a new boiler withing two hours on New Years eve,try getting that sort of service these days with any boiler manufacturer never mind Vokera.

You could argue that if the boilers had been better made then you wopudn't have need the excellent back up provided at the time by Vokera.


One of the reasons I took out the BG contract. I did at least have them out the same day. I did have a bit of a problem to begin with but they have been good with visits since.

You need a contract with someone wether that is with BG or the manufacturer,personally I would always go with the manufacturer cause thier guys only work on thier boilers and carry about 95% of the boiler in spare parts in the van.

I do find it ridiculous that you can't seem to get good customer service on after sales though. I would be very unhappy at a 6 month old boiler having a problem and having to wait a week before anyone looks at it!

That is just terrible service (if true) and actually I'm quite surprised cause baxi tech is very good actually.

Tony.

 

[jem16]

You need a contract with someone wether that is with BG or the manufacturer,personally I would always go with the manufacturer cause thier guys only work on thier boilers and carry about 95% of the boiler in spare parts in the van.

I did look into Vokera providing the contract. However they would only cover the boiler whereas BG covered the whole system for much the same price.

For the first three years I got it serviced by the installer who put it in. However after that the installer seemed to be very difficult to get hold of and did not turn up so I went with BG for peace of mind. It's really difficult to make the best decision sometimes.

 

[nickso]

WRT Linea boiler. The fan will not run if flow switch not operated. Venturi fault would only occur AFTER fan is running. I thought the fault was present on the boiler. If that is correct surely excellent flowchart back of manual would have assisted fault location and successful repair.

Fault was present when I first called out BG. Error 03 code and would not reset.

Since then they have replaced fan but boiler would not reset. They then replaced pcb and got boiler going again. Less than two weeks later same error code. This time it would reset. Engineer called and cleaned venturi and adjusted soft-light.

10 days later same fault again - error 03. Reset has worked.

Of course now they say that as fault is not there and boiler is working they cannot locate the fault. Obviously there is a fault as it should be cutting out every 10/14 days.

hmm think the BG boys are getting a bad name for a fairly intermittant fault.

another possible cause after the APS is changed is the wiring to the APS. its a rare fault that ive only seen twice and is difficult to confirm due to the intermittant nature of it.

 

[jem16]

hmm think the BG boys are getting a bad name for a fairly intermittant fault.

My complaint with BG is not with how they are now handling it. It was how they initially handled it with parts not being ordered, the engineer not turning up when scheduled and a possible wrong diagnosis in the first place (2nd engineer said that there was no power getting to the fan and that the fan was probably alright in the first place) which was the problem. BG have accepted that there were problems initially and have now gone about sorting it the correct way.

In the first instance boiler was out of action for 5 days before they got it up and running again.

I appreciate that it is an intermittent fault now and therefore difficult to find. However it doesn't help me either as I wonder each day if it's going to work or fail.

another possible cause after the APS is changed is the wiring to the APS. its a rare fault that ive only seen twice and is difficult to confirm due to the intermittant nature of it.

BG don't seem to think the aps could have an intermittent fault though.

Still we'll see what the tsm has to say.

 

[nickso]

hmm think the BG boys are getting a bad name for a fairly intermittant fault.

My complaint with BG is not with how they are now handling it. It was how they initially handled it with parts not being ordered, the engineer not turning up when scheduled and a possible wrong diagnosis in the first place (2nd engineer said that there was no power getting to the fan and that the fan was probably alright in the first place) which was the problem. BG have accepted that there were problems initially and have now gone about sorting it the correct way.

In the first instance boiler was out of action for 5 days before they got it up and running again.

er yes but thats why i said they were getting a bad name for the intermittent fault.

not turning up is inexcusable, as is not ordering parts if they were required and promised.

I appreciate that it is an intermittent fault now and therefore difficult to find. However it doesn't help me either as I wonder each day if it's going to work or fail.

fair enough its frustrating but expecting someone to pull a guess out of thin air and get it right isnt helping either.

BG don't seem to think the aps could have an intermittent fault though.

that engineer needs to get a bit of an education. pretty much anything can be intermittently faulty in the right circumstances. its only switch after all.

 

[jem16]

er yes but thats why i said they were getting a bad name for the intermittent fault.

You've lost me now. I'm not blaming them for the intermittent fault. The seem to be trying their best by at least coming out to check it over.

not turning up is inexcusable, as is not ordering parts if they were required and promised.

At least we agree here. That is my complaint.

fair enough its frustrating but expecting someone to pull a guess out of thin air and get it right isnt helping either.

They had five days when the boiler did not work to get it right. So far their guesses at fan and pcb haven't worked.

that engineer needs to get a bit of an education. pretty much anything can be intermittently faulty in the right circumstances. its only switch after all.

True but as you say it's only a guess that this might be the fault.

I have also told them that prior to the last lockout hot water was taking longer than normal to come through. Does that tell you anything or not? It suggets to me that the boiler has not ignited rigjht away but that doesn't seem related to the error code.

 

[DP]

Idea of replacing the boiler is lost on me. Boiler is starting to give trouble (I believe due to lack of proper attention and care). I do not understand why it cannot be serviced to restore it to reliable operation again.

Have in the past carried out Vokera repairs on Turbo (very old) Flowmatics (15 years old now) and Excel which is around 10years old that often are earmarked for replacement by the 'change it' brigade.

By all means, replace it if it is going to cost a packet. Be warned though, modern boilers are a lot more complex and rely on technology your average repair person is not familiar with. For goodness sake, some guys cannot repair ordinary boilers- what chance when they meet a singing dancing steamer that needs a bit of thought and ingenuity to repair.

 

[gaspro1981]

this boiler has 3 pcb's
you need to get them to change the ignition pcb and main control pcb i have never expierenced any problems with the display pcb's so that board will be ok for sure
get those parts changed and your boiler will be fine

 

[jem16]

Idea of replacing the boiler is lost on me. Boiler is starting to give trouble (I believe due to lack of proper attention and care). I do not understand why it cannot be serviced to restore it to reliable operation again.

I would hope it would be able to be fixed too. As I said this is the first time it has had any trouble in 9 years. It doesn't strike me as unreliable.

For goodness sake, some guys cannot repair ordinary boilers- what chance when they meet a singing dancing steamer that needs a bit of thought and ingenuity to repair.

Perhaps if BG call in Vokera it might have a better chance.

Although sounds like you know what you are talking about with Vokera boilers.

 

[jem16]

this boiler has 3 pcb's

I do believe the BG engineer brought all three when he called. Only fitted one as far as I know but i don't know which one. I shall ask tomorrow.

get those parts changed and your boiler will be fine

That would be nice.

 

[johnfox]

ok with all the replys here it seems like the venturi is partilly blocked,which can be cleaned (usually done when fan is changed).
or aps is sometimes sticking,hard to prove.buy your own and ask bg to fit it when they next visit.
opps also many gas company visits and they have adjusted the gas valve softlight for some unknown reason,reminds me of posts here.oxford powermax.
is your flue an extended flue,any blockage in flue,all clamps correct.

 

[nickso]

er yes but thats why i said they were getting a bad name for the intermittent fault.

You've lost me now. I'm not blaming them for the intermittent fault. The seem to be trying their best by at least coming out to check it over.

the thread was descending into the usual "BG are ****e but we have no answers ourselves" mentality.

They had five days when the boiler did not work to get it right. So far their guesses at fan and pcb haven't worked.

no point in guessing then.

True but as you say it's only a guess that this might be the fault.

he may be guessing or bullshitting but i am using prior experience. doesnt matter what the appliance is an intermittent APS is not unusual, although its not too common on a linea.

when it gets down to it sometimes a guess is all you have, a lot on here wont admit they take guesses, im quite happy to admit i do albeit educated ones.

 

[nickso]

this boiler has 3 pcb's
you need to get them to change the ignition pcb and main control pcb i have never expierenced any problems with the display pcb's so that board will be ok for sure
get those parts changed and your boiler will be fine

quality fault finding here, i recommend this clown comes round and makes an arse of your boiler.

 

[nickso]

Idea of replacing the boiler is lost on me. Boiler is starting to give trouble (I believe due to lack of proper attention and care). I do not understand why it cannot be serviced to restore it to reliable operation again.

I would hope it would be able to be fixed too. As I said this is the first time it has had any trouble in 9 years. It doesn't strike me as unreliable.

the linea is the best non condensing combi ever made, a 9 year old model is certainly repairable.