Baxi HE133 Boiler Problem

n0chex

n0chex

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Hi, I have a Baxi HE133 boiler which is around 12 years old and over the past few years it has given me quite a lot of problems Motherboard/Fan/Ignitor/Flow Switch/Pump Housing/Burner/ expansion tank and many seals replaced.

Over the last few months it has began to make a strange noise what I can only describe as an aircraft drone noise it happens only on hot water not when we put the heating on.
I am thinking is it worth chucking more money into it or just get a Brand New boiler but most the parts that tend to go have been replaced as above in the past few years.

Anyone had anything similar , a small sound clip below.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/pg3afc9mj0a38g7/20190219_225246.m4a?dl=0
 
If it were me I just get rid and from my experience I'd go with a Worcester Greenstar.

We've got the 42CDi Classic which we had installed about 7 years ago by an approved Worcester Bosch engineer so it got a 10 year warranty, not that we've needed it because not a single thing has ever gone wrong, absolutely faultless and my bills dropped by a huge amount as well (although previous boiler wasn't a combi). We also have some Magnaflow thing installed which has the filter/unit replaced each year along with the annual boiler service. We have the house programmed at variable temperatures throughout the week to suit the coming and going of people, but it's never lower than 16 degrees even when on holiday. So it's in constant use, although perhaps that might actually be good for it?
 
I had our 8 year old valiant repaired a few months ago, a stuck valve and engineer said 10 years out of a bolier is good and time fr a replace as efficentcy moves on.
I would bin it and fit a bosch of a valiant.
 
I would like to find out what the cause is first before I potentially throw £1500 at a new boiler. If it's something expensive like heat exchanger then I would consider a new boiler but on the other hand if only a 10p washer I would be throwing money away.

I have been told it would no more efficient if i got a new boiler.
 
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I have a 12 yo Potterton boiler. It was making a noise like you describe when hot was demanded or when the CH started. It was quite loud. I recorded the noise in case it disappeared when the engineer attended.
I have a maintenance contract with BG. The engineer attended and I let him hear my recording. He went straight out to his van and brought in a new pump. Fitting did not take long and cured the problem. No idea of the cost because my contract covered the repair expence.
 
I was thinking bearings in the pump TBH and can get a replacement pretty cheap £50 ish.
 
n0chex said:
I would like to find out what the cause is first before I potentially throw £1500 at a new boiler. If it's something expensive like heat exchanger then I would consider a new boiler but on the other hand if only a 10p washer I would be throwing money away.

I have been told it would no more efficient if i got a new boiler.
Click to expand...

I was thinking more because of the constant problems you've been having but if it's a cheap fix (including engineer costs) on this occasion then if you don't mind all the potential future inconvenience then that would be the best way forward. :)
 
Mr Bump said:
I had our 8 year old valiant repaired a few months ago, a stuck valve and engineer said 10 years out of a bolier is good and time fr a replace as efficentcy moves on.
I would bin it and fit a bosch of a valiant.
Click to expand...
I certainly wouldn't be replacing a high efficiency boiler after 10 years unless it was unrepairable.
There's no reason why a decent boiler, well installed, shouldn't give in the region of 15 years good service.
 
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n0chex said:
Hi, I have a Baxi HE133 boiler which is around 12 years old and over the past few years it has given me quite a lot of problems Motherboard/Fan/Ignitor/Flow Switch/Pump Housing/Burner/ expansion tank and many seals replaced.

Over the last few months it has began to make a strange noise what I can only describe as an aircraft drone noise it happens only on hot water not when we put the heating on.
I am thinking is it worth chucking more money into it or just get a Brand New boiler but most the parts that tend to go have been replaced as above in the past few years.

Anyone had anything similar , a small sound clip below.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/pg3afc9mj0a38g7/20190219_225246.m4a?dl=0
Click to expand...
Given the parts that have already been replaced, I'd get a price for repair before deciding to replace it.
Some parts for that boiler are getting hard to find though.
If it can be repaired, you may get another few years out of it.
A new boiler would only be around 1-2% more efficient.
When replacing it, I'd definitely go for a Worcester Bosch.
A 34Cdi would be the current Worcester equivalent.
 
Quite probably a diverter valve or fan, definitely worth getting a price for repair as it could well have a few more years left in it. Reason it could be fan is I have an idea the fan runs faster on full demand (hot water) and the only other thing associated with a hot water only problem is diverter valve. Maybe even just a seal on it.
 
I had the fan replaced by British Gas Only last year including 2 main burners first one the engineer poked his finger through it ( Expensive £300 mistake! ).
I have read the diverter housing which connect to the pump are prone to crack as only plastic.

I will look at the online engineers manuals and see how the diverter valve works. Not sure if this would be the problem as it only opens and closes a valve does it not a little like a servo in a RC model?
 
I've never noticed that they do but they do take a while to heat up maybe because I have 14 rads in the house?
 
Baxi do a fixed price repair, about £20 a month for 12 months, includes fixing the initial issue, and anything else that goes wrong in those 12 months
 
I think it works out expensive as last time I wanted a Baxi call it was over £300 plus I would need to tell them the boiler already has a problem before I take the plan out which makes it expensive,
 
Good call.... hopefully it won’t have an age limit but well worth enquiring about.
 
It’s called repair and care.... it includes initial repair (labour and materials) and all subsequent repairs for 12 months. Worth getting another quote for repair first in case it is something small, if not then call baxi .
 
n0chex said:
I think it works out expensive as last time I wanted a Baxi call it was over £300 plus I would need to tell them the boiler already has a problem before I take the plan out which makes it expensive,
Click to expand...

Just checked my paperwork, it's £300 for a one off repair. Or £26.99 per month for the 12 months cover.

It's not insurance, so doesn't matter that you don't take it out until it breaks, we've done it twice now (with 3 years in between incident free). And our boiler is older than yours.
 
n0chex said:
I had the fan replaced by British Gas Only last year including 2 main burners first one the engineer poked his finger through it ( Expensive £300 mistake! ).
I have read the diverter housing which connect to the pump are prone to crack as only plastic.

I will look at the online engineers manuals and see how the diverter valve works. Not sure if this would be the problem as it only opens and closes a valve does it not a little like a servo in a RC model?
Click to expand...


LOL! first time I serviced a 133 I vacuum cleaned the burner....error! not done that since! With regards to plastic parts, most, if not all manufacturers use plastic parts, be they housings, internal hydraulic components ,brackets etc.

The diverter is a pain in the proverbial to get out and service, not done one yet without stripping the skin off my knuckles,the actuator head comes off easy enough, its getting at the 4 screws that hold the valve body in place thats awkward. As the noise is in hotwater mode only, take out the secondary (plate) heat exchanger and see if its full of crud, its fairly simple to remove it. As with any fault, it's nigh on impossible to diagnose accurately on a forum.
 
The secondary heat exchanger plate has been removed only last week as I needed to get at the flow switch which was leaking and replaced. I found the exchanger completely clean and free from crud. The seals was replaced ( 4 ) as they looked a little brittle. £18 for 4 small O rings GULP!!.
 
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