Your central heating boiler efficiency is affected by where you are
Your central heating boiler efficiency is affected by where you are
You can find a number of products that can be added to your central heating system to help it run smoother as well as some products that can take care of themselves. In either case, your system will be well-prepared to work efficiently if you take the time to maintain it. We have all heard the advice from the Government and environmental agents telling us to turn off our lights, turn off televisions and not leaving them on standby, and reducing our washing machine temperature and room thermostats. All the above enlisted ways effectively save energy, protect the environment and bring down the electricity bill. What is the best way to get your central heating system to work more economically? With the accumulation of the likes of limescale and gunk in your system will make it less efficient.
Whether your water is hard or soft can play a crucial role in the life of your central heating system and water treatment can help here – to extend the healthy working of your system with products such as Fernox.
The lifeblood of your heating system is the water that runs through it – Water Treatment maintains that water at an optimal quality to prevent damage and breakdown of the heating system. Magnetic/electronic lime fighters, scale reducers/inhibitors, sludge reducers, noise reducers and anti-freeze are examples of the type of water treatment products that are available to you.
Living in the UK means that depending on whereabouts you are in the country, your water can range from hard to soft. If you are living in hard water region, then you will be more susceptible to limescale attacks; you can notice deposits in your kettle, tap and shower head. Limescale deposits inside boiler parts, pipework and radiators increases energy consumption and can lead to banging and bumping in the pipework. A thin layer of limescale can increase your fuel bills by 40 percent. Limescale is nothing, but calcium deposits in your central heating system. Soft water which contains less calcium salts is less prone to this scale formation, however it is advisable to test the water and take precautions.
The water treatment options work by changing water’s molecular structure, it changes the way water behaves. Some methods change one structure into another; a few others, remove the interfering structure; and the remaining, prevent the formation of limescale.
If you want to determine the corrosion rate inside your heating system, you can do so by using these chemical kits which measure the chloride, copper and iron levels and measure the pH.
To begin with, you should make certain that your system has been assembled by a qualified individual, for example it’s important to have the simple knowledge that connecting aluminum and copper or brass triggers a corrosive reaction because that’s what happens when different metals are joined. The gas connections should be made only by a trades person, who is Gas Safe registered (with CORGI).
You should decide about the water treatment well in advance, especially when you are installing a new heating system. If you are updating your existing system you would be looking at flushing the whole system before adding any water treatment solutions.
Products added to the mains supply can soften hard water and improve the quality of water for domestic use, but they do not prevent or remedy deterioration of the central heating system. These water softening chemicals can produce better lather and are good for your skin, but they cannot reverse the choking and pitting inside the heating system.
The three main things that you need to prevent are corrosion, limescale and biological growth.
Corrosion will begin as soon as the tank is filled with water. Corrosion produces gunk and this prevents free circulation, this can eventually lead to formation of cold spots on radiators. It can cause pinholes in the radiators and if left can cause the boiler to become noisy.
Hard water contains magnesium and calcium and these minerals deposit as limescale in the system. Once the water is heated it leaves deposits of these minerals which form a hard crust, building up over time and blocking pipes etc. This can also make the system noisy and inefficient, you will be paying for gas that does not heat your house.
Biological growth in the system is another one to avoid. This problem occurs when tanks are open as they are in certain types of central heating system. It establishes itself in the system and then produces sludge and slime. This sludge stagnates in the plumbing and slows down the flow of hot water.
You can find a lot of information and advice on how to deal with these problems on the internet and in this site. Please spare some time and go through this or read the other informative articles in this site. Producers of water treatment products provide detailed data and user references on their websites. Below is a list of manufacturers and some of the popular products they have available. You can also gain additional information and seek advice through different blogs or forums, some may be run by the manufacturers.
All the best with your water treatment, let energy conserving central heating and hot water with lower home bills rule.