What is Powerflushing?
Powerflushing is the fastest and most effective way to flush heating
systems with minimal disruption and dismantling. It is the process
which is used to clean heating systems using water at high velocity,
but low pressure. It usually involves the addition into the system of
powerful cleansing chemicals and mobilising agents. These chemicals and
agents clean heating systems by removing flux, sludge and other debris
which has collected in the heating system over the years.
How is Power flushing carried out?
The power flushing pump is connected to the system across the flow and
return pipework. All debris and corrosion is then dislodged by the flow
generated by the pump. The dislodged debris and corrosion is then
flushed through the pump’s drain. At the same time, the pump fills the
system with fresh water from the connection to the cold water main.
When should I Powerflush?
- Prior to fitting a new boiler
- Cold or partially cold radiators
- Radiators that need to be bled regularly
- When radiator water is dirty
- Kettling noises from boilers
- Noises in pipes
- When you start experiencing pump failure
There are thousands of ageing central heating systems with circulation
and boiler noise problems caused by accumulations of sludge, corrosion,
debris and scale. Some clients try to remove sludge by installing
chemical mobilising agents directly into the system and then repeating
the process some weeks later. This is fine for systems that only have a
minimal amount of debris. However, for systems that are suffering from
sludge, it really is best to get your system power flushed. Power
flushing will cure most circulation problems.
Boiler manufacturers recommend that a heating system should be power
flushed immediately before a new boiler is fitted to an existing
system. Some manufacturers even make the boiler’s warranty conditional
on this. When a new boiler is fitted, the system alterations and high
efficiency of the new boiler can dislodge accumulated debris which has
been in the system for years. This is why boiler manufacturers are
reluctant to carry out warranty repairs where it is suspected that the
fault has been caused by debris and sludge in the system. Only by power
flushing can you be sure that a system really is clean to the standards
demanded by modern high efficiency boilers and heat exchangers.
Radiators that are cold or partially cold are often this way because
there is sludge trapped in them. The sludge tends to sink to the bottom
of the radiator. This is why radiators can sometimes feel cold at the
bottom and hot at the top. If the sludge is removed by power flushing,
then the water is able to circulate around the whole radiator rather
than just the top part of that radiator.
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