Boilermate II Tripping Electrics

I received a call from a customer to say that his fusebox kept tripping out when the heating and hot water circuit was on and therefore didn't have any heating or hot water. There was also a leak in the airing cupboard.

The first thing I looked at was the airing cupboard which housed a Boilermate II. As water and electricity don't mix I assumed that the leak in the airing cupboard was related to the tripping electrics. I correctly guessed that the water was leaking from the thermal store. It is quite common for the small header tank on the top to perish and start leaking onto the top of the main cylinder, this water then runs down inside the controls cover and onto the electrics.

In this case, the leak was due to the ball valve failing. The ball valve inlet and overflow outlet were at similar heights so when the water filled to overflow there was some minor escape from the hole for the ball valve. The ball valves fitted to these thermal stores is different to the standard ball valve in that the float arm is a different length to enable you to install it through the hole in the header tank. If you are unable to purchase one swiftly you should be able to swap the float arms over by removing the split pin.

Disclaimer: The works described in this blog are a record of work undertaken and should not be taken as guaranteed to solve your problem. Work should only be carried out by persons qualified and competent to do so.