Your heating boiler wishes its water supply to be treated
Your heating boiler wishes its water supply to be treated
There are many optional products that are available to add to your heating system to keep it running on a regular basis, and there are others that you can install and let them do the work for you day by day. Either way, a well looked after heating system will run more efficiently for you. 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. By doing all this, you not only cut down on the electricity account, but also protect the environment. But, how will you make sure that your central heating system works efficiently? As the layers of sludge and limescale starts piling up, the efficiency of the system starts dwindling increasing your energy costs.
If you live in a region where hard water is being supplied, then you should look for water treatment methods to prevent sludge and limescale from damaging your central heating system.
The term ‘water treatment’ is one that is used to describe various methods of taking care of your system. Many types of water treatment products such as scale reducers and inhibitors, magnetic and electronic anti-lime mechanisms, sludge destroyers, noise reducers and anti-freeze can be used for water treatment.
Your location in the UK caninfluence the extent of your water’s hardness or softness. Limescale deposits are common in areas that get hard water, and these deposits are first seen on kettles, taps and shower heads. Limescale deposits inside boiler parts, pipework and radiators increases energy consumption and can lead to banging and bumping in the pipework. Just a small, thin layer of scale in your hot water cylinder can increase your fuel bills by as much as forty percent. Limescale deposits are simply composed of calcium. Although those living in soft water areas will not have to take as many provisions, if you are unsure you should still get professional advice.
Most water treatments act by altering the molecular structure of the water and the particles therein and changing the way it behaves. Water treatment works in different ways, it can change the structure or prevent the formation of solid or remove the offending particle altogether.
If you want to determine the corrosion rate inside your heating system, you can do so by using these chemical kits which measure the chloride, copper and iron levels and measure the pH.
Remember that when two different metals are connected (for example- aluminium and brass), an anode and cathode polarity is created thus starting the process of corrosion; this is something that a competent technician should watch out for when installing your system. The service technician fitting your gas connections should possess CORGI certification, this is now called Gas Safe and is a legal requirement.
If you anticipate hard water problems, you can fit out your new central heating system with a suitable water treatment attachment. Before using a water treatment remedy on your present system, ensure that the entire heating system is completely flushed out.
Products added to the mains supply can soften hard water and improve the quality of water for domestic use, but they do not prevent or remedy deterioration of the central heating system. They will not have any effect on how efficiently your system works, but they will make detergents and soaps lather up more easily.
You basically need to prevent your system from three things, limescale deposits, biological growth and corrosion.
Corrosion will begin as soon as the tank is filled with water. Your radiators can suffer from cold spots caused by restricted circulation as a result of gunk created in the system by corrosion. It can cause pinholes in the radiators and if left can cause the boiler to become noisy.
The calcium and magnesium present in hard water is responsible for limescale deposits. When the water is heated, these minerals deposit, forming a hard crust that grows with time and blocks the pipes. Limescale can again make the central heating system noisy.
You should also be wary of biological growth. This tends to get into the system by open tanks. After managing to enter the system, it spreads by creating slime and gunk. This material can really make your system under perform by clogging up the pipework.
You can find a lot of information and advice on how to deal with these problems on the internet and in this site. Please spare some time and go through this or read the other informative articles in this web site. Kick-start with the manufacturers and their web sites. You can find a list manufacturers and the popular items they carry in this site. Forums and Blogs are another good source of free advice and wholesome information; you can also use these to directly get in touch with the suppliers.
In order to ensure that your central heating system works efficiently and your household bills are also decreased, find out the best water treatment method and apply the recommended treatments every year.
