Leak in E7 Ombination cylinder

[smudger]

Hi Folks

First experience of working on one of these (luckily its in my bathroom!). Its got a very slow leak, but very difiicult to identify exactly where it is coming from due to foam insulation. What is the general consensus here.. repair or replace (1500x450 is about 365 plus fittings which I could reuse some). Repair would obviously be cheaper..would I need to remove some of the insulation to identify the leak? All advice greatly received.

[steveb]

first thing to do is check all the fittings going into the cylinder possibly coming from one of them.

[smudger]

Will go and do it now (well, when I've had me coffee!)

[smudger]

Hi. Just had a look. The water is accumulating at the base of the cold water feed from the f&e tank, where it enters the cylinder. However, due to the insulation and awkward access I'm not certain whether it is coming from the joint at the f&e tank or from the joint into the cylinder. The pipe is wet for at least 100mm up from the joint which suggests it is running down. Both the joints are pre-fabricated. Is it possible to drain down and repair by resoldering the joints?

[AWheating]

remove the cylinder and take it from there.

[SafeGasInstall]

or get professional to have a look

[smudger]

Yes, thanks for that. I think the cylinder was installed then a cupboard built around it. The only way to get the cylinder out is to move the loo and dismantle the cupboards. Why can't anything ever be straight-forward!!

[smudger]

or get professional to have a look

Depends what you mean by professional really. I'm NVQ L2, water regs, unvented but lack experience on these. Hence the question. Many "professionals" with much more experience than me have said they can't be repaired and should just be replaced. We are intending to move bathroom in about 6 months and won't want combi-cylinder so would rather fix.

[BLOD]

As it's your own cylinder, cut off as much insulation as you can to get a good look and then cover where you think it's leaking from with lsx.
That might buy you a few months !

[smudger]

Great, thanx BLOD. Only need a couple of months and, as you say, its in my own house. However, as I'll have to demolish half the bathroom to get the little monkey out, may be worth putting in a new one as I don't fancy doing it again in a hurry. But thanks for the help.

[kirkgas]

first thing to check is the overflow connection to see if the ball valve is overflowing and the fitting leaking as it has never been tightened properly, quite a common fault and easy to fix

[Kimou]

Wrap the connection fittings in some tissue and see if they dampen. Start high work low. That doesn't mean have a joint and work on your knees.

[Ian10261]

Hi. Just had a look. The water is accumulating at the base of the cold water feed from the f&e tank, where it enters the cylinder. However, due to the insulation and awkward access I'm not certain whether it is coming from the joint at the f&e tank or from the joint into the cylinder. The pipe is wet for at least 100mm up from the joint which suggests it is running down. Both the joints are pre-fabricated. Is it possible to drain down and repair by resoldering the joints?

I've come across these cylinders where the water level in the F&E is too high and the overflow joint hasn't been made properly, water then runs down the inside of the lagging and collects at the base of the cylinder giving the impression the whole thing is shot.

[kirkgas]

I've come across these cylinders where the water level in the F&E is too high and the overflow joint hasn't been made properly, water then runs down the inside of the lagging and collects at the base of the cylinder giving the impression the whole thing is shot.

thats a top tip Ian

[Ian10261]

thats a top tip Ian

Sorry Kirkgas, only just noticed you said more or less the same thing at the top of this page.