How your localised water can shrink your energy economy and harm your boiler
How your localised water can shrink your energy economy and harm your boiler
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. Irregardless of which you choose, you should take proper care of your central heating system, only then can it perform efficiently. 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 these habits will result in lower household bills in addition to protecting the environment through energy saving. So how to make your central heating system run efficiently and reduce carbon dioxide? Your gas central heating’s efficacy decreases when limescale deposits and sludge accumulate in it.
You should be thinking about water treatment to stop this accumulation of gunk and limescale, especially if you live in a hard water area.
Water treatment is a term used to cover many different ways of looking after your system. A wide assortment of water treatment products is easily available like sludge remover, scale reducer, anti-freeze, magnetic scale fighter, noise reducer, electronic scale inhibitor, and the like.
You can either get hard or soft water in UK, depending on the area you live in. Limescale deposits are common in areas that get hard water, and these deposits are first seen on kettles, taps and shower heads. Limescale reduces efficiency and adds to heating bills. You may be surprised to hear that you bills can increase by as much as forty percent with just a thin layer of limescale in your hot water cylinder. These are basically calcium deposits solidifying from the water. If you live in a soft water region, then you need not worry about limescale that much; however, if you are unsure about the water quality, then without any hesitation seek advice.
The water treatment options work by changing water’s molecular structure, it changes the way water behaves. Water treatment works in different ways, it can change the structure or prevent the formation of solid or remove the offending particle altogether.
There are different types of chemical test kits available that can help you to ascertain the corrosion potential of water by measuring the pH, chloride, iron and copper levels.
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. You must get your gas connections done by a person registered with CORGI as the law requires this.
You should decide about the water treatment well in advance, especially when you are installing a new heating system. If you are upgrading your current system, you must cleanse your whole system before any water treatment chemicals are added.
It is worth noting that mains water supplies heating systems, but that any system you use to soften water will not help with any central heating problems that you may be having. You will be able to make lather with detergents and soaps more easily but your heating system will still have problems with efficiency.
The three main things that you need to prevent are corrosion, limescale and biological growth.
The first problem that you may have to face is corrosion, it can start as soon as the system is installed and filled with water. One of the symptoms of corrosion is cold spots in your radiators because gunk in the system prevents the water circulating properly. Gradual pitting can perforate the metal piping, causing the boiler or radiators to rattle.
In hard water areas the calcium and magnesium in the water causes limescale. When the water is heated, these minerals deposit, forming a hard crust that grows with time and blocks the pipes. This can be another cause of the central heating boiler making strange noises.
Biological growth is another thing that should be avoided at all costs. They gets into the heating system through open tanks. After the biological matter gets into the tank it begins to breed and produces gunk and slime. It can also cover the inside of the pipework resulting in clogs and negatively affecting the operation of the whole system.
You can learn more about these problems on the internet. Please spare some time and go through this or read the other informative articles in this web site. Producers of water treatment products provide detailed data and user references on their web sites. Below is a list of manufacturers and some of the popular products they have available. Besides inquiring for information with company sources, you should also read opinions on specialised blogs.
All the best with your water treatment, let energy conserving heating and hot water with lower home bills rule.