Was called by a gentleman today who I had done work for in his previous house. He had moved to a new property but had been having trouble with the boiler and thought it needed servicing. I visited to service the boiler and look into any issues he was having with the boiler.
The boiler was a Potterton Suprima and the gentleman was regularly having to press the reset button as the red light was often flashing and the boiler was not running. The fault had been happening for the past six months but was gradually worsening. There didn't appear to be any set pattern as to when the boiler would lock-out and the red light would start flashing.
Pressing the reset button would get the boiler going again and it would carry on working for a few days without issue. However, being the winter, the problem was getting more of an issue as the gentleman would get up to find he had no heating or hot water just when he needed it.
I looked over the boiler and serviced it at the same time. The electrode looked to be clean and have the correct spark gap. The ceramic on the electrode looked to be in good condition. The ignition lead was not the original and it may have been that both the electrode and lead had been replaced in the past. The old electrode lead were prone to breaking down and causing ignition problems, they are sheathed with red insulation. The new electrode leads are sleeved in clear plastic, and thicker black plastc where the lead passes through the case.
It is a possibility that the boiler was overheating due to a fault with the thermistor and/or overheat thermostat but in my experience these generally fail and the boiler will lockout every time it runs. I have also experienced the gas valve failing to open which prevents the boiler from lighting. Again, I have found that this usually fails and cannot be resolved through pressing the reset button.
I dropped the panel down to reveal the PCB and could see that there was some signs of scorching to the PCB near the centre of the board. This is common on these PCBs and I expect is related to the lockout issue. There is usually a manufacturer's sticker on the PCB either on a relay or a semiconductor chip which has a sate code on it. This particular PCB was made in 1998 and has lasted well. There is also a date code in the bottom right-hand corner of the data plate, which again was 98, indicating that it was the original PCB.
I replaced the PCB with the new upgraded PCB kit, 5111603. This comes with a new PCB, housing, wiring loom and ignition leads. After fitting this part the boiler has been working well with no issue for the past fortnight.
Showing posts with label Potterton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Potterton. Show all posts
Friday, 14 December 2012
Friday, 16 November 2012
Potterton Flamingo No Heating Downstairs
I received a call from a customer today that was worried about her heating. The radiators upstairs appeared to be working fine, but there was no heat at any of the radiators downstairs. It didn't matter that she turned the room thermostat right up they were not getting hot and when the boiler did come on it was only for a short period.
The programmer was set to constant for both heating and hot water, and the room thermostat was turned up high enough that the central heating should be on. Checking up in the airing cupboard the hot water was up to temperature and the motorised valve had moved over fully to the central heating position. The pump was also running although it didn't quite sound right. I thought that the cold feed may have been blocked but I felt the feed and vent and they both felt hot quite a way above where they tee in.
Pausing the rotation of the pump by moving the speed selector switch to a position between speeds didn't cause any gurgling which would suggest air or a lack of water preventing circulation. I also checked that the pump valves were both fully open. As everything seemed to be as it should I assumed that the pump was not spinning at the required velocity even though it did not look that old. I replaced the pump and switched the system back on and soon enough the radiators downstairs began to get warm.
The programmer was set to constant for both heating and hot water, and the room thermostat was turned up high enough that the central heating should be on. Checking up in the airing cupboard the hot water was up to temperature and the motorised valve had moved over fully to the central heating position. The pump was also running although it didn't quite sound right. I thought that the cold feed may have been blocked but I felt the feed and vent and they both felt hot quite a way above where they tee in.
Pausing the rotation of the pump by moving the speed selector switch to a position between speeds didn't cause any gurgling which would suggest air or a lack of water preventing circulation. I also checked that the pump valves were both fully open. As everything seemed to be as it should I assumed that the pump was not spinning at the required velocity even though it did not look that old. I replaced the pump and switched the system back on and soon enough the radiators downstairs began to get warm.
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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.
|
Friday, 9 November 2012
Potterton Promax Combi HE Low And High Pressure, Poor Hot Water
I was asked to service a Potterton Promax Combi HE as it had not been serviced since it had been installed. It was not that old but should have been serviced annually. When I arrived the customer had a list of issues with the boiler which also required investigation.
- The boiler keeps losing pressure
- The water pressure in the system keeps going into the red
- The hot water keeps going hot and cold
- One or two of the radiators were getting hot even though the heating was off
I looked over the boiler and asked if they had noticed any water leaks, which they hadn't. I looked at where the Pressure Relief Valve is terminated outside and could see that there was signs of it having let water out of the system. Having been leaking for while the PRV would require replacing as it was fouled with scale and debris from the system.
I topped up the water pressure to 1 1/2 bar and turned on the central heating system. It was not long before the water pressure in the system had risen and was close to the red. I turned off the heating and drained the pressure out of the heating system and checked the pressure in the pressure vessel. The pressure was low and with the drain point still open I increased the pressure in the vessel to the recommended amount through the schrader valve.
After setting the boiler back up I ran the hot tap and after running off the cold water in the leg of pipework it began to come through reasonably hot, and then cold, and then hot again and kept cycling like this without getting up to a satisfactory temperature. Watching the boiler I could see that it was rapidly getting up to temperature before cutting out, and was not transferring this heat to the hot water. When the boiler got up to it's maximum temperature it would send hot water out to the radiators explaining why a couple of the radiators had been hot at times through the summer. I removed the hot water plate heat exchanger and could see that it was quite badly blocked with debris and sludge from the system.
I replaced the PRV, plate heat exchanger and fitted a Adey Magnaclean filter to the system to protect the boiler from getting blocked again in the future. The system was only three years old and had been completely repiped with new radiators and treated with chemicals and yet surprisingly was in quite a bad state. I believe that some of the old pipework must have been re-used under the floor which was already fouled with scale and debris and not cleaned sufficiently when the new system was installed. Hopefully the Magnaclean will pick up the worst of the debris and keep it working as it should be.
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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.
|
Thursday, 25 October 2012
Potterton Suprima Flashing Red Lockout Light
A customer asked me to look at his Potterton Suprima because on a number of occasions over the last fortnight he had been running out of hot water and going to the boiler to find that the red light was flashing. He would reset the boiler and it would continue working for a couple of days before it required resetting again.
The boiler had the earlier 407750 style PCB which are renowned for their tendency to lockout for no good reason. I suspected that the circuit board would probably be at fault but as always looked over the boiler to see if their was any other obvious faults which would cause the boiler to lockout. My first port of call was to look at the ignition of the boiler and it's associated parts. The ignition leads can often break down through age and repeated servicing, but the lead looked to be in good condition and not the original lead.
I then looked at the ignition electrode to see if it was fouled or distorted. The gap from the electrode to the burner is usually the same as the thickness of a pound coin but looked less. I touched the electrode with my finger to find that it seemed loose and would rotate within the ceramic. I replaced the electrode, 8407754, and the boiler has been working fault free for the last couple of weeks.
The boiler had the earlier 407750 style PCB which are renowned for their tendency to lockout for no good reason. I suspected that the circuit board would probably be at fault but as always looked over the boiler to see if their was any other obvious faults which would cause the boiler to lockout. My first port of call was to look at the ignition of the boiler and it's associated parts. The ignition leads can often break down through age and repeated servicing, but the lead looked to be in good condition and not the original lead.
I then looked at the ignition electrode to see if it was fouled or distorted. The gap from the electrode to the burner is usually the same as the thickness of a pound coin but looked less. I touched the electrode with my finger to find that it seemed loose and would rotate within the ceramic. I replaced the electrode, 8407754, and the boiler has been working fault free for the last couple of weeks.
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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.
|
Friday, 13 July 2012
Potterton Suprima Not Lighting
A customer of our was having trouble with his Potterton Suprima not lighting. Another engineer looked at it and when it was attempting to light it would go through the ignition sequence as normal but was sparking slowly. The green light on the PCB was flahing quickly as it does during ignition but it may have only sparked once a second when the gas valve opens. He changed the ignition lead as they often break down. The original ignition leads had a red silicon sleeve and were quite vulnerable to breaking near the electrode. There is now a replacement lead which has a black 'heat shrink' style sleeving where it passes through the case and connects onto the electrode. After replacing the electrode lead the boiler was lighting well.
This was fine for about 24 hours before I was called out there and the boiler was displaying the same symptoms. The boiler was fitted with the original PCB which I replaced like-for-like. Testing the ignition the spark was occurring much more rapidly. The boiler was a little slow to cross light but checking the burner, injector and gas pressures everything was as it should be.
This was fine for about 24 hours before I was called out there and the boiler was displaying the same symptoms. The boiler was fitted with the original PCB which I replaced like-for-like. Testing the ignition the spark was occurring much more rapidly. The boiler was a little slow to cross light but checking the burner, injector and gas pressures everything was as it should be.
Disclaimer:
The works described in this blog are a record of work undertaken and should not be taken as guaranteed to solve your problem.
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Saturday, 16 June 2012
Potterton Promax Heating Coming On With The Hot Water
A common complaint at the end of winter is that the heating keeps coming on with the hot water. I immediately went to the airing cupboard to look at the motorised valve with the hot water set to be on. I felt the lever which in the photo below is on the underside of the valve and could feel that it moved freely from left to right. When the valve is in the hot water only position there should be little or no movement on the lever without force.
It could either be that the motor inside the valve has seized, their is a fault with the electrics causing the valve to open or that the paddle is stuck in the wrong position. I checked the electrics to ensure that there was not 240 volts at the white or grey wires to the motorised valve, which there was not.
In the case of this older Honeywell 3-port valve the power head is not removable from the body. If you try to remove it from the body it actually opens up the body itself and you will have water coming out. If the problem is with the body you can actually strip them down and grease it up after draining the system but it's usually better just to replace the valve which I did in this case. To tell the difference between the two types of Honeywell valves you need to look for the dimple on the silver case which can be clearly seen in the photo on the right circled in red. This is the same for both 2-port and 3-port motorised valve head made by Honeywell.
It could either be that the motor inside the valve has seized, their is a fault with the electrics causing the valve to open or that the paddle is stuck in the wrong position. I checked the electrics to ensure that there was not 240 volts at the white or grey wires to the motorised valve, which there was not.
In the case of this older Honeywell 3-port valve the power head is not removable from the body. If you try to remove it from the body it actually opens up the body itself and you will have water coming out. If the problem is with the body you can actually strip them down and grease it up after draining the system but it's usually better just to replace the valve which I did in this case. To tell the difference between the two types of Honeywell valves you need to look for the dimple on the silver case which can be clearly seen in the photo on the right circled in red. This is the same for both 2-port and 3-port motorised valve head made by Honeywell.
Disclaimer:
The works described in this blog are a record of work undertaken and should not be taken as guaranteed to solve your problem.
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Friday, 15 June 2012
Potterton Prima Profile Bottom Tray Controls Cover
Quite a common problem on the Potterton Prima, Potterton Profile and Potterton Netaheat Profile boilers is the that the plastic controls cover at the bottom of the boiler goes brittle. Over the years more and more of it breaks off until it doesn't fit very well or at all.
The boiler my customer had was a Pottetton Prima 30f and the part number for the controls cover on the Partsarena website is 907706. This is the same part for the Profile 30-40, Netaheat Profile 30 -40 and Prima 30-60. However, when I opened the box there was only replacement stickers for the Profile 30e and 40e.
Disclaimer:
The works described in this blog are a record of work undertaken and should not be taken as guaranteed to solve your problem.
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Monday, 4 June 2012
Potterton Profile Not Lighting
Had a call to look at a Potterton Profile today which was not working properly. The customer said that the hot water was only lukewarm and the boiler was lighting but not staying lit for long, or not lighting at all. When I arrived the fan was running, but the boiler was not lit or trying to light. I reset the thermostat and it lit without any trouble and continued to run. I reset the thermostat a couple of times and again it lit and ran as it should. I opened the case and looked inside the boiler but there didn't look as if there was any issues. I checked the burner pressure which was correct. I lowered the controls cover and made sure that the air pressure switch tubes were connected properly and not kinked. All of the electrical connections looked good to.
I put the boiler back together and as I was screwing the screw that holds the grey bottom cover on it started playing up. The boiler was running but cut out and the fan continued to run but did not try to light. As I moved the screw the boiler was cutting in and out, making a sort of juddering noise. The customer said it had been making this noise for months and assumed it was limescale. I lowered the controls cover again to and the boiler cut out again, moving the connections to the PCB I could see a small spark due to a poor connection. There was a dry joint on the longer multi plug at the connection of the brown wire. The brown wire connects to the air pressure switch which explains why the boiler was not always trying to fire when the fa n was running. I replaced the PCB to solve the problem.
I put the boiler back together and as I was screwing the screw that holds the grey bottom cover on it started playing up. The boiler was running but cut out and the fan continued to run but did not try to light. As I moved the screw the boiler was cutting in and out, making a sort of juddering noise. The customer said it had been making this noise for months and assumed it was limescale. I lowered the controls cover again to and the boiler cut out again, moving the connections to the PCB I could see a small spark due to a poor connection. There was a dry joint on the longer multi plug at the connection of the brown wire. The brown wire connects to the air pressure switch which explains why the boiler was not always trying to fire when the fa n was running. I replaced the PCB to solve the problem.
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Disclaimer:
The works
described in this blog are a record of work undertaken and should
not be taken as guaranteed to solve your problem.
|
Wednesday, 30 May 2012
Potterton Promax System HE Plus E133 Error
Went to loot at a Potterton Promax System boiler which had gone to lockout and was displaying the error code E133. "Interruption of gas supply or flame failure."
Assumeing the gas supply had not been interrupted, I removed the ignition electrodes to find that the two probes were almost touching each other, and there was a bit of carbon bridging the gap. They had obviously bent together with their prolonged exposure to high temperatures. Bending them back to their correct gap would have been a wast of time, as they would soon bend in the heat again. Replacing the electrodes was the only long-term solution to the problem.
Assumeing the gas supply had not been interrupted, I removed the ignition electrodes to find that the two probes were almost touching each other, and there was a bit of carbon bridging the gap. They had obviously bent together with their prolonged exposure to high temperatures. Bending them back to their correct gap would have been a wast of time, as they would soon bend in the heat again. Replacing the electrodes was the only long-term solution to the problem.
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Disclaimer:
The works
described in this blog are a record of work undertaken and should
not be taken as guaranteed to solve your problem.
|
Myson Apollo 30Si Not Lighting
Had to look at a Myson Apollo 30Si that was not always lighting. Another engineer had looked at the boiler and replaced the PCB and sleeving to the spark electrode lead but this had not solved the problem.
The boiler was lighting intermittently. Sometimes it was lighting within a few sparks other times it would spark for ages before lighting if it lit at all. When the pilot flame lit it looked adequate but maybe a little on the small side. I stripped the pilot assembly down and cleaned the pilot injector out as thoroughly as possible as I could not remove the injector from the pilot assembly.
I re-assembled the boiler and the pilot flame was larger and lighting quicker which looks like it solved the problem.
The boiler was lighting intermittently. Sometimes it was lighting within a few sparks other times it would spark for ages before lighting if it lit at all. When the pilot flame lit it looked adequate but maybe a little on the small side. I stripped the pilot assembly down and cleaned the pilot injector out as thoroughly as possible as I could not remove the injector from the pilot assembly.
I re-assembled the boiler and the pilot flame was larger and lighting quicker which looks like it solved the problem.
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Disclaimer:
The works
described in this blog are a record of work undertaken and should
not be taken as guaranteed to solve your problem.
|
Saturday, 19 May 2012
Potterton Suprima Orange Light Flashing
My sister asked me to look at her boiler, a Potterton Suprima, because it had been clicking on and off frequently and failed to heat the house properly on one day.
The boiler is the earlier Potterton Suprima but had the PCB upgrade kit 5111603 which replaces part number 407750 the troublesome PCB found on most Potterton Suprimas. The original PCB had two LEDs (red and green) which could be used to diagnose faults. The new PCB has a single LED which is able to produce three colours (Green, orange and red) and will flash various colours at various rates depending upon the boilers status.
The boiler was set to be on when I arrived, and had been on as the radiators were warm. When I looked at the boiler the orange light was coming on, there would be a click, the light would go out and kept cycling in this fashion at a slow pace. I checked the voltage at live and switched live which were both at 240v and steady. Looking at the fault finding guide which comes with the PCB upgrade kit, a flashing orange light on the PCB indicates that there is a problem with the temperature control and suggests to check the temperature control on the boiler is switched up which it was.
I checked the resistance of the thermistor on the yellow wires and it was within the range of 20k ohms to 4M ohms after unplugging it from the PCB. Testing it at the connector to the PCB tests the resistance of both the component and the cable at the same time. I wanted to check the resistance of the yellow wires as when the PCB was upgraded the engineer neglected to run the cables to the thermistor and overheat thermostat through the hole behind the fan housing which keeps them off any hot surfaces.
The flashing combined with the clicking from the PCB had led me to assume that the PCB was at fault rather than any other component, but wanted to check everything to be sure as they are not cheap. Replacing the PCB has solved the problem.
The boiler is the earlier Potterton Suprima but had the PCB upgrade kit 5111603 which replaces part number 407750 the troublesome PCB found on most Potterton Suprimas. The original PCB had two LEDs (red and green) which could be used to diagnose faults. The new PCB has a single LED which is able to produce three colours (Green, orange and red) and will flash various colours at various rates depending upon the boilers status.The boiler was set to be on when I arrived, and had been on as the radiators were warm. When I looked at the boiler the orange light was coming on, there would be a click, the light would go out and kept cycling in this fashion at a slow pace. I checked the voltage at live and switched live which were both at 240v and steady. Looking at the fault finding guide which comes with the PCB upgrade kit, a flashing orange light on the PCB indicates that there is a problem with the temperature control and suggests to check the temperature control on the boiler is switched up which it was.
I checked the resistance of the thermistor on the yellow wires and it was within the range of 20k ohms to 4M ohms after unplugging it from the PCB. Testing it at the connector to the PCB tests the resistance of both the component and the cable at the same time. I wanted to check the resistance of the yellow wires as when the PCB was upgraded the engineer neglected to run the cables to the thermistor and overheat thermostat through the hole behind the fan housing which keeps them off any hot surfaces.
The flashing combined with the clicking from the PCB had led me to assume that the PCB was at fault rather than any other component, but wanted to check everything to be sure as they are not cheap. Replacing the PCB has solved the problem.
| LED Indication Status | LED |
| Mains Off | Off |
| Mains On No Ext. Call for Heat | Continuous Orange |
| Ext. Call for Heat ( Temp. Control set to Off) | Flashing Orange |
| Air Proving & Ignition | Flashing Orange/Green |
| Burner On | Continuous Green |
| Boiler Temperature Control Satisfied | Flashing Green |
| LED Indicators Fault Modes Status | LED |
| Thermister Fault | Flashing Red every 5 sec |
| Wiring Harness Fault | Flashing Red/Orange 3 times/sec |
| Incoming Voltage <180V | Flashing Red/Orange once/sec |
| False Flame | Flashing Red/Orange every 5 sec |
| APS or Flow Switch Fault | Flashing Red 3 times/sec |
| PCB Fault | Continuous Red |
| Lockout | Flashing Red once/sec 5 flashes = Overheat 2 flashes = Ignition Failure |
| To establish cause press reset button for more | |
| than 10 seconds. LED will flash Orange | |
| once then Red, count number of Red flashes | |
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Disclaimer:
The works
described in this blog are a record of work undertaken and should
not be taken as guaranteed to solve your problem.
|
Wednesday, 18 April 2012
Potterton Flamingo no heating or hot water
So my brother sends me a text message: "Are you available in an afternoon some time to look at our heating? Pilot light is on but the boiler is not kicking in."
I go round and the pilot is lit. I switch the timer on for heating and hot water, and the boiler lights. I put my hand on the pump and I cannot feel it vibrating. I check to make sure there is power to the pump live, which there is. I switch the pump valves off, and attempt to undo the pump nuts but they won't budge. I try penetrating oil, bigger tools and a little chisel to get them moving but after 30 years they are seized on. I loosen the four allen bolts securing the pump head to the housing and separate them gently to ensure the valves have switched off stopping the water fully. A cups worth of water comes out but no more thankfully. I remove the pump head and use a junior hacksaw to cut a slice in the pump nuts. Inserting suitably sized screwdriver into the new slit I tap it with a hammer to split the brass nut. I hit it in the direction to undo the nut and it starts to come loose so I can put my grips on them and remove the pump body. Now the nuts are no good, but fortunately I have saved some nuts off of pump valves in the past, they are manufactured with cut outs, allowing me to slip them onto the old pump valves. I can now fit the new pump and washers, and successfully heat test the system.
I go round and the pilot is lit. I switch the timer on for heating and hot water, and the boiler lights. I put my hand on the pump and I cannot feel it vibrating. I check to make sure there is power to the pump live, which there is. I switch the pump valves off, and attempt to undo the pump nuts but they won't budge. I try penetrating oil, bigger tools and a little chisel to get them moving but after 30 years they are seized on. I loosen the four allen bolts securing the pump head to the housing and separate them gently to ensure the valves have switched off stopping the water fully. A cups worth of water comes out but no more thankfully. I remove the pump head and use a junior hacksaw to cut a slice in the pump nuts. Inserting suitably sized screwdriver into the new slit I tap it with a hammer to split the brass nut. I hit it in the direction to undo the nut and it starts to come loose so I can put my grips on them and remove the pump body. Now the nuts are no good, but fortunately I have saved some nuts off of pump valves in the past, they are manufactured with cut outs, allowing me to slip them onto the old pump valves. I can now fit the new pump and washers, and successfully heat test the system.
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Disclaimer:
The works
described in this blog are a record of work undertaken and should
not be taken as guaranteed to solve your problem.
|
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