Your heating boiler likes its water to be treated
Your heating boiler likes its water to be treated
Manufacturers have made multiple products and services that you can add to your central heating system to help it to perform efficiently for a longer period of time. In either case, your system will be well-prepared to work efficiently if you take the time to maintain it. Environmental agencies and local authorities constantly advise us to economise our carbon footprint by switching off unneeded lights and electric devices and by setting our thermostats at lower temperatures. All of these are effective ways of saving energy which will not only help environmentally but also reduce many household energy bills. Are you paying the same attention to your central heating system? The heating system is also prone to reduced efficiency caused by corrosion, limescale formation and gunk buildup.
If you live in a region where hard water is being supplied, then you should look for water treatment methods to prevent gunk and limescale from damaging your central heating system.
The term water treatment encompasses many different remedies for the protection of your system. Various products of water treatment are available like electronic line and magnetic filters, noise reducers, sludge removers, anti-freeze and scale reducers and inhibitors.
If you are living in UK, you should first ascertain the hardness of the water you are getting. If you find a build up of limescale in your kettle and on your shower head you probable live in a hard water area. Any accumulation of limescale will make your system run less economically and therefore increase your heating bill. A thin layer of limescale can increase your fuel bills by 40 percent. These are basically calcium deposits solidifying from the water. 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.
Most water treatments act by altering the molecular structure of the water and the particles therein and changing the way it behaves. Some will change one structure for another, others remove the offending structure and another will stop them from being able to make a solid leaving them in suspension.
Chemical test kits are available that allow you to check the probability and speed of corrosion by gauging the levels of ph, chloride, iron and copper.
It is very important to make sure that your system is put in by someone who knows what they’re doing as they will be aware of things like not connecting aluminium to copper or brass, which can cause corrosion. You must get your gas connections done by a person registered with CORGI as the law requires this.
Always plan before getting the new system installed; for instance, you should know what water treatment method should be used. If you are revamping the old system, you should rinse out the whole system before adding the water treatment method.
Heating systems get their supply of water from the main water source of your household and many mechanisms can be connected to the main source to solve water issues, yet, you should keep in mind that water softening systems installed for your home are only meant to serve your household needs and will not help with the hard water problem affecting your 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.
You basically need to prevent your system from three things, limescale deposits, biological growth and corrosion.
From the very instant your heating system is in place corrosion can begin. Your radiators can suffer from cold spots caused by restricted circulation as a result of sludge created in the system by corrosion. Gradual pitting can perforate the metal piping, causing the boiler or radiators to rattle.
Limescale is caused by calcium and magnesium which is present in the water hard water areas having far more of these minerals than other parts of the country. The high temperature of the water causes these elements to become hard and crusty, leaving deposits behind that clog pipes etc. This can also make the system noisy and uneconomical, you will be paying for energy that does not heat your house.
The next problem to deal with is the biological growth. 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 material can really make your system under perform by clogging up the pipework.
There is a lot of free advice on the internet. Take a look at this for a few minutes to improve your awareness. I would start with the manufacturers themselves. This site contains a list of manufacturers, and the products that they produce and sell to help maintain your central heating. You can also gain additional information and seek advice through different blogs or forums, some may be run by the manufacturers.
Now you should be able to choose and install an effective heating system which is enjoyable, healthy and economical on both kinds of green!.