gPower Flush / Protecting Your Investment

With new high efficiency boilers, manufacturers can cancel the warranty if they see that the central heating system has not been flushed to the current standard. This is because the new, super efficient heat exchangers are affected by sludge, dirt and magnetite left from the old system. The best way to protect your boiler warranty and to extend the life of your boiler is to have a power flush.

Chemical water treatment is a fast growing sector of the heating product market and it has been accepted that chemical treatment increases the efficiency of most A Rated boilers by up to 6%. While this may not seem like a particularly huge figure, a 6% loss in efficiency is enough to knock the efficiency level of most A rated boilers down to the level of a SEDBUK B rated appliance.

Without water treatment, the system will be affected by black oxide sludge as well as limescale deposition that causes further efficiency losses. It has been proven that without inhibitor, a new boiler can lose it's efficiency within just 3 weeks.

Poorly treated systems cause efficiency levels to drop and can therefore disappoint as far as fuel bills not reducing significantly. Manufacturers are also playing their part in encouraging installers as the typical lifespan of a domestic boiler can be shortened dramatically if water treatment is not carried out on the entire system, since the magnetite build up can cause irriparable corrosion to the internal parts of the boiler such as the heat exchanger.

If these products go wrong they expect the home owner to prove that the correct preventative measures were taken to protect the boiler after it was installed. If they can't do that then the boiler warranty could be invalidated, meaning they are left to pay for any necessay repairs.

In short, cutting corners leads to problems further down the line and spending a little extra at the installation stage is a sound option for the longevity of the boiler. Putting on a filter device on the return pipe to the boiler will protect the appliance even further.

Protection Devices

In our experience, when installing a new boiler or upgrading the central heating system it is essential that the installation is done properly. If you cut corners you are likely to have problems further down the line, when there is no reason why a boiler should not last 15 years, of even longer. With high efficiency boilers there has never been a greater need to safeguard what amounts to be one of the the most important and most expensive investments in the modern home - the central heating system.

Modern central heating systems with high efficiency boilers are clean, efficient and economical, but ONLY if operating at their peak performance. The natural process of iron oxide build up soon impairs performance and eventually clogs up the boiler and radiators. The majority of systems suffer from the black iron oxide contamination. This creates thick black sludge deposits that are the result of corrosion taking place within radiators and other metallic components. The particles bond to all components causing premature failure of pumps and valves.

Even a small amount of build up of iron oxide deposit in a standard or modern efficiency boiler results in substantial efficiency loss and fuel wastage, So, not only does the system perform inadequately, it also costs more to run and maintain.

There are a number of products to protect new and existing systems. The most well known is the Magnaclean, with similar products such as the Fernox Total Filter (TF1) as well as the Spirotrap Magna booster by Spirotech. They are all high efficiency, full flow, magnetic filters designed to tackle all central heating systems, removing virtually 100 % of suspended black iron oxide .

The benefits of these new technologies are

• Simple installation
• Simple servicing
• Immediate results and system protection
• No ongoing running costs
• Quick and easy chemical dosing
• Long operational life and guaranteed for 2 years

Tests have shown that even a minimal build up of iron oxide deposits results in a serious drop in boiler efficiency. In fact, tests have shown that if inhibitor is not used in the system, the efficiency of the boiler reduces in 2 - 3 weeks.

The filters provide many years of protection, maintaining the high operational efficiency of the heating system, resulting in financial benefit and increased reliability.

We recommend to fit a filter on every new installation, on the basis that prevention is better than cure. We also recommend installation after a powerflush. The benefits to you, the customer is clear - a more efficient central heating system, a warmer home and a longer operational life.