Gas central heating new boiler or flush or both?

[buswheels]

Asking advice for my elderly Mum please.

Gas central heating system radiators at least 30 years old, boiler 18 years old is apparently playing up. She has a maintenance contract with British Gas and they have told her she needs a new boiler and to flush the system, moving everything to get to all the radiators for her is a huge mission (she would need to pay someone to come and do it and then to undo it) system is noisy with the odd bang/click when it starts.

Our question is how important do you all think the flushing is?

I had a new boiler last year and I think I was told it wasn’t worth flushing the system you were just postponing the problem but I have no idea whether the guy did any flushing when he put the new boiler in or not!

Thanks

You don't need to get to the rads to flush the system. Although being able to get to the bleed valve at the top is useful.

I suspect that getting the system flushed won't do much and it will need to be done when the boiler is replaced anyway. Probably better to just go for a new boiler. 30years is pretty good for a boiler. You can get a magnetic filter installed when the new boiler is put in, to stop crap building up in the new system.

I'd put in the new boiler in the summer and do a flush at that point. But get some quotes from plumbers rather than just taking the BG quote.

What is in front of all the radiators? Is that stopping the heat getting into the rooms?

Rads are 30, boiler is 16-18 roughly

why on earth are they asking for everything to be moved away from radiators then so they have clear access?

A bed in a box room, a desk are the main ones then there is a room full of general crap but the big thing is the bed.

Mum is almost 90, small lots of arthritis!

it’s not easy when you are older.

It's probably just a standard thing they ask for all work so that they can get to them regardless of what they are actually doing.

Thanks we will call Monday and clarify with them.

Glad I asked if they don’t need moving you could have saved her quite a bit of money never mind stress and time.

We had a new boiler and flush in the summer and I recall all the radiator valves having to be fully open then.

Oh... Yes, the valves will need to be open. Apologies. Am not awake this morning.

Thank you we will ring them tomorrow and discuss this

I believe it's always recommended to flush the system when you get a new boiler. Clearing areas around the rads will be so they can check for any leaks as the flush is quite high powered and we were warned odd leaks can happen when ours was done (many years ago).

As above you won’t need to turn the house upside down to do a power flush, they will just need to be able to access the radiator valves. If British Gas insisting on this then get some quotes from a sole trader / local independent as it’s probably down to someone in a British Gas call centre having a script that they read off regardless of the need.

I would agree with them that 16-18 years is a good innings for a boiler and I’d definitely be looking to get that replaced. As some have said a flush might be included in the price of this though it’s not always - ours wasn’t when we had it done a few years back but I was replacing a load of the existing radiators anyway with column ones so didn’t bother me.

I had to have the boiler replaced for an borderline hoarder recently. The fitter from British Gas just climbed over the pile of crap that was blocking access to the radiators. He didn't flush the system but had to drain it and refill it. The radiators are from the 70s and the boiler was almost 30 - British Gas had been saying for years it needed replacing but had been ignored....

I doubt whether the flush would be free. It involves time, equipment and chemicals. I think they normally leave the chemicals in for a day or so to dissolve the crap which means repeat visits. I guess you could get a boiler replacement "deal" where you might get it at a reduced price.

I was quoted £750 by a well known business to do mine. Do you really need it doing ? I guess it depends on how sludged up your radiators are and whether they have been properly maintained with inhibitor and whether you have a magnetic trap.

I have looked at mine and there doesn't appear to be a hell of a lot in there, although there is a fair bit of magnetite particles at the bottom. I guess these don't move much and the ones that do get filtered out via the trap.

These days a lot of boilers they will insist you fit a magnetic trap as a matter of course to protect the pump and keep the warranty. This will only stop iron particles though, not other stuff.