oil heating just stopped working.

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 7:28pm #1

Hi.

I have a house with oil central heating.
last week we refilled the tank with fuel (it was about 33% full prior to the refueling.)

Anyway the heating worked fine for about 2 days which leads me to believe it had nothing to do with the refueling...

Anyway I switched on the heating and the light came on as usual... After about 3 minutes the boiler cut out and there was nothing. Tried turning it off and on and nothing.
An hour later I tried it again and it came on for about 3 mins again and cut out.

I believed it was the thermostat and rang a plumber.

The plumber arrived and then said it was the circulation pump which he then changed. He explained he couldn't do the electric part of the procedure. He charged 120 euro for the pump and labour.

My dad finished the 5 minute of electrics but we are now back to square 1...

It comes on for about 3 minutes and then cuts out.

Anybody have any idea what this could be??

Thanks

Billy Bunting · 15-11-2013 7:47pm

your so called plumber sounds like a donkey, I wonder if he opened the isolation valves after changing the pump ?

any pictures ??

jimf · 15-11-2013 7:55pm

Billy Bunting wrote: »

your so called plumber sounds like a donkey, I wonder if he opened the isolation valves after changing the pump ?

any pictures ??

that's if it was the pump in the first place get the plumber back after all he was paid he knows how to charge he should know how to do the job not saying 120 is excessive for pump change

but the least you would expect is he would make sure all is good before leaving site

agusta · 15-11-2013 7:57pm

Richard88 wrote: »

Hi.

I have a house with oil central heating.
last week we refilled the tank with fuel (it was about 33% full prior to the refueling.)

Anyway the heating worked fine for about 2 days which leads me to believe it had nothing to do with the refueling...

Anyway I switched on the heating and the light came on as usual... After about 3 minutes the boiler cut out and there was nothing. Tried turning it off and on and nothing.
An hour later I tried it again and it came on for about 3 mins again and cut out.

I believed it was the thermostat and rang a plumber.

The plumber arrived and then said it was the circulation pump which he then changed. He explained he couldn't do the electric part of the procedure. He charged 120 euro for the pump and labour.

My dad finished the 5 minute of electrics but we are now back to square 1...

It comes on for about 3 minutes and then cuts out.

Anybody have any idea what this could be??

Thanks

Hi,do you press the reset button on the burner or the on/off switch on the timer clock to restart boiler..Im presuming your using the on/off switch.What you can do is set the thermostat to minimum when the boiler is cold and start boiler,after 3 mins when the boiler cuts out turn up the thermostat to max,If the boiler restarts you have a circulation problem.either the pump is not wired correctly or fuse gone, or no water in the system

Wearb · 15-11-2013 7:59pm

jimf wrote: »

that's if it was the pump in the first place get the plumber back after all he was paid he knows how to charge he should know how to do the job not saying 120 is excessive for pump change

but the least you would expect is he would make sure all is good before leaving site

He didn't wire the pump in Jim. Nice one.
OP. stick with checking the circulating pump to rule that out before going further with it.

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 8:00pm

I wouldn't know much about plumbing. Have no idea what isolation chambers are.

Do you want a picture of the interior of the boiler.

The plumber said the fault could be the wiring between the switch and boiler. Although that's fine for the past 15 years.

Thanks for your reply

agusta · 15-11-2013 8:02pm

Billy Bunting wrote: »

your so called plumber sounds like a donkey, I wonder if he opened the isolation valves after changing the pump ?

any pictures ??

I didnt think of that.this might well be the case

Wearb · 15-11-2013 8:02pm

Richard88 wrote: »

Hi.

I have a house with oil central heating.
last week we refilled the tank with fuel (it was about 33% full prior to the refueling.)

Anyway the heating worked fine for about 2 days which leads me to believe it had nothing to do with the refueling...

Anyway I switched on the heating and the light came on as usual... After about 3 minutes the boiler cut out and there was nothing. Tried turning it off and on and nothing.
An hour later I tried it again and it came on for about 3 mins again and cut out.

I believed it was the thermostat and rang a plumber.

The plumber arrived and then said it was the circulation pump which he then changed. He explained he couldn't do the electric part of the procedure. He charged 120 euro for the pump and labour.

My dad finished the 5 minute of electrics but we are now back to square 1...

It comes on for about 3 minutes and then cuts out.

Anybody have any idea what this could be??

Thanks

Next time it cuts out after 3 minutes turn the boiler stat up all the way to see if it starts up again. Then report back here. Don't forget to turn stat back to where it was after this test

jimf · 15-11-2013 8:04pm

Wearb wrote: »

He didn't wire the pump in Jim. Nice one.
OP. stick with checking the circulating pump to rule that out before going further with it.

nice one is right wearb

that's the same as us saying we service boilers
but we don't run them after to do our usual checks sur if it works good if it don't call somebody else

.jacksparrow. · 15-11-2013 8:05pm

Wasn't Shane having problems with a bumper locking out after exactly 3 mins!?

Wearb · 15-11-2013 8:07pm

jimf wrote: »

nice one is right wearb

that's the same as us saying we service boilers
but we don't run them after to do our usual checks sur if it works good if it don't call somebody else

Yeah. All fixed now mrs. Don't turn it on until I'm paid and gone!

jimf · 15-11-2013 8:08pm

.jacksparrow. wrote: »

Wasn't Shane having problems with a bumper locking out after exactly 3 mins!?

he was for sure jack he found a remote acting fv on his second visit he posted back here on Tuesday I think

agusta · 15-11-2013 8:10pm

.jacksparrow. wrote: »

Wasn't Shane having problems with a bumper locking out after exactly 3 mins!?

Ya,it didnt get the better of him though

jimf · 15-11-2013 9:04pm

agusta wrote: »

Ya,it didnt get the better of him though

youd kinda get the impression he knows what hes at alright

:D

Billy Bunting · 15-11-2013 9:09pm

Richard88 wrote: »

I wouldn't know much about plumbing. Have no idea what isolation chambers are.

Do you want a picture of the interior of the boiler.

The plumber said the fault could be the wiring between the switch and boiler. Although that's fine for the past 15 years.

Thanks for your reply

your plumber is no plumber. never in my life have I heard of a plumber fit a pump but not wire it. :eek: (lack of little [EMAIL="wan@er"]wan@er[/EMAIL] smilie)

picture of the pump and fittings please.

jimf · 15-11-2013 9:12pm

Billy Bunting wrote: »

your plumber is no plumber. never in my life have I heard of a plumber fit a pump but not wire it. :eek: (lack of little wan@er smilie)

picture of the pump and fittings please.

a come on billy them 3 wires can be a bit confusing now

runawaybishop · 15-11-2013 9:14pm

Richard88 wrote: »

The plumber arrived and then said it was the circulation pump which he then changed. He explained he couldn't do the electric part of the procedure.

Was he registered? Sounds like he isn't, or was taking the p1ss as he should have finished the job. Get on the phone to him.

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 9:19pm

Thanks for the replies lads.
I'm not at home at the moment to get a pic of it or try the suggestions ye gave me yet.

My dad was saying he disconnected the wiring and connected it to an extension lead and then plugged it into a different socket and it worked fine.
He reckons that the pump may have burned out because of this. (He's not a plumber or electrician tho) I'm waiting for a phone call to say he got blown away.

Although this theory also sounds a bit strange as even when it's plugged into the original socket it the boiler has power going to it.

Billy Bunting · 15-11-2013 9:20pm

jimf wrote: »

a come on billy them 3 wires can be a bit confusing now

think we'll need to get shane out to this one.

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 9:20pm

runawaybishop wrote: »

Was he registered? Sounds like he isn't, or was taking the p1ss as he should have finished the job. Get on the phone to him.

I have no idea. It was one of these ones where he got a number off the neighbour. Sound enough bloke but unfortunately didn't solve the problem

shane0007 · 15-11-2013 9:26pm

Which button are you pressing exactly to restart the burner, the red lock out button on the burner itself or removing the black cap beside the temperature dial of the boiler & pressing the button behind it?

If you are pressing the red reset button, then it is absolutely nothing to do with your circulating pump as this is a flame failure reset. It will be a burner or fuel issue.
If the latter, generally a circulation issue as the boiler has experienced an overheat situation, but could also be trapped air within the boiler.

shane0007 · 15-11-2013 9:27pm

Absolutely ridiculous a plumber changed a pump without wiring it. I would not let anybody near my system that could not at least wire a three pin plug as the principles are identical!

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 9:38pm

shane0007 wrote: »

Which button are you pressing exactly to restart the burner, the red lock out button on the burner itself or removing the black cap beside the temperature dial of the boiler & pressing the button behind it?

If you are pressing the red reset button, then it is absolutely nothing to do with your circulating pump as this is a flame failure reset. It will be a burner or fuel issue.
If the latter, generally a circulation issue as the boiler has experienced an overheat situation, but could also be trapped air within the boiler.

The red button...
If the power cable for the pump is connected to an extension lead it kicks in and stays on.

If the power cable is cable is connected as it originally was the red button doesn't work (although it did earlier I think)

agusta · 15-11-2013 9:45pm

Richard88 wrote: »

The red button...
If the power cable for the pump is connected to an extension lead it kicks in and stays on.

If the power cable is cable is connected as it originally was the red button doesn't work (although it did earlier I think)

where was the cable connected to originally

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 9:46pm

agusta wrote: »

where was the cable connected to originally

It was coming into the house and into a socket under the timer switch

Just trying to upload photos

shane0007 · 15-11-2013 9:47pm

You have a flame failure.

First thing is to check whether you have oil in the tank. I understand you had it filled, but it is not unknown for tanks to be emptied (stolen) just after being filled.
If oil in the tank, check at the bleed screw of the burner to see you have oil at the burner under a gravity flow. Depeding which burner you actually have will determine where the bleed screw is.

shane0007 · 15-11-2013 9:48pm

Richard88 wrote: »

It was coming into the house and into a socket under the timer switch

Just trying to upload photos

Forget about cables for the moment. You have a flame failure lock out. Check the basics first.

agusta · 15-11-2013 9:48pm

Richard88 wrote: »

It was coming into the house and into a socket under the timer switch

Just trying to upload photos

could you plug something else into the socket when the timer switch is turned on and see if it works

shane0007 · 15-11-2013 9:49pm

When you depress the red button, does the burner motor start?

agusta · 15-11-2013 9:51pm

shane0007 wrote: »

Forget about cables for the moment. You have a flame failure lock out. Check the basics first.

I dont think so shane,i could be wrong but richard said the boiler is running when the pump is pluged into and extension lead..

agusta · 15-11-2013 9:53pm

richard is the boiler running when the pump is connected to an extension lead.just to be sure

Billy Bunting · 15-11-2013 9:56pm

shane0007 wrote: »

When you depress the red button, does the burner motor start?

lots of confusion and contradiction from op, need to read in a bit of engineers impression.

you can pick it up on the way to Longford. no thanks required, xmas box will do.

jimf · 15-11-2013 9:59pm

im starting to think the plumbers twin brother the electrician must have wired the boiler

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 10:02pm

This is the pic with the pump power lead connected to the original socket.
The heating dosnt work when it's like this.

This pic is where the power cable is connected to an extension lead and into a different socket in the house. The heating does work when it's like this.

The pix are sideways

shane0007 · 15-11-2013 10:02pm

Billy Bunting wrote: »

lots of confusion and contradiction from op, need to read in a bit of engineers impression.

you can pick it up on the way to Longford. no thanks required, xmas box will do.

I'm lost! I thought boiler is going to lock out after 3 minutes.

Hitchens · 15-11-2013 10:05pm

who is giving the finger in the 2nd photo? :eek:

and why did the plumber leave his lunch box behind?

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 10:07pm

Billy Bunting wrote: »

lots of confusion and contradiction from op, need to read in a bit of engineers impression.

you can pick it up on the way to Longford. no thanks required, xmas box will do.

Ya lads. Sorry about that. It's just I was trying to get pictures sorted and was been given further information on it as the minutes passed.

I don't really have a clue myself, never mind me trying to explain it to others.

At the moment we're convinced it's a problem with the wiring / the lead between the timer switch and the boiler or the socket under the timer switch.

agusta · 15-11-2013 10:07pm

It would be interesting to wire you old pump to a socket and see if it works..,my bet your old pump is perfect!,could you post a picture of your time clock and socket.is the fuse gone in the original plug as i had said in my first post

Wearb · 15-11-2013 10:08pm

Richard88 wrote: »

This is the pic with the pump power lead connected to the original socket.
The heating dosnt work when it's like this.

This pic is where the power cable is connected to an extension lead and into a different socket in the house. The heating does work when it's like this.

The pix are sideways

Whatever sort of setup that you have it seems that when you are calling for heat, the power is not going to the pump. It is a simple problem to solve if somebody was there to see how it is wired. Makes me think that the pump may not have been broken in the beginning.

Bruthal · 15-11-2013 10:09pm

Richard88 wrote: »

This pic is where the power cable is connected to an extension lead and into a different socket in the house. The heating does work when it's like this.

The pix are sideways

Are you using a different plug for plugging into original socket? Fuse checked?

It would seem a very simple problem to trace for anyone competent in such matters anyway.

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 10:11pm

agusta wrote: »

It would be interesting to wire you old pump to a socket and see if it works..,my bet your old pump is perfect!,could you post a picture of your time clock and socket.is the fuse gone in the original plug as i had said in my first post

It really would be interesting to see that alright.
ya we checked the fuse in the plug and it's fine.

Pic of switch

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 10:14pm

Yup, my conclusion:

There's is some problem with the lead / plug going from the socket to the pump.

As an above poster stated, it would be interesting to see if the old pump works when this is sorted.

I may just leave it alone tho

Hitchens · 15-11-2013 10:14pm

Richard88 wrote: »

Hi.

He explained he couldn't do the electric part of the procedure.

is this a result of the Pat Rabbitte brainstorm?

Bruthal · 15-11-2013 10:16pm

Swap plugs around there in the pic, see does pump work then. Socket internal contacts might be faulty or bad.

Bruthal · 15-11-2013 10:16pm

Hitchens wrote: »

is this a result of the Pat Rabbitte brainstorm?

Well that wouldnt include connecting a new pump to a plug.

agusta · 15-11-2013 10:17pm

Ok,it seems like the plug on the right is for your pump,could you plug your extension lead into this one and see if the boiler works,this will tell you if it is the socket or the cable..

Richard88 · 15-11-2013 10:21pm

Right so. I'll try switching the plugs amd later ill try plugging the extension lead into that socket.

Final question : when I plug it out and it switches off, should it take a while for the boiler to fire back up when I plug it back in?

Because it does. I'm guessing this is supposed to happen as it's fairly warm

Hitchens · 15-11-2013 10:21pm

Bruthal wrote: »

Well that wouldnt include connecting a new pump to a plug.

it might suit a dodgy 'plumber' to use it as an excuse though

Bruthal · 15-11-2013 10:24pm

Hitchens wrote: »

it might suit a dodgy 'plumber' to use it as an excuse though

O yea there is that alright.

After all, our great leaders are putting out ads saying any electrical work requires a registered contractor, which is untrue.

agusta · 15-11-2013 10:25pm

Richard88 wrote: »

Right so. I'll try switching the plugs amd later ill try plugging the extension lead into that socket.

Final question : when I plug it out and it switches off, should it take a while for the boiler to fire back up when I plug it back in?

Because it does. I'm guessing this is supposed to happen as it's fairly warm

Plug in the extension lead into the plug where the pump lead was and then turn up thermostat on boiler for a few seconds and it will fire straight away if the socket is working,

Billy Bunting · 15-11-2013 10:33pm

Richard88 wrote: »

Ya lads. Sorry about that. It's just I was trying to get pictures sorted and was been given further information on it as the minutes passed.

I don't really have a clue myself, never mind me trying to explain it to others.

At the moment we're convinced it's a problem with the wiring / the lead between the timer switch and the boiler or the socket under the timer switch.

not having a pop at you, your the customer you shouldn't have a clue, your doing ok.

oil heating just stopped working.

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