Page 1 of 1

Expansion tank cleaning

Posted: Fri Sep 10, 2021 2:56 pm
by BillMartin
My gas central heating/hot water system was making a lot of noise in the area of the pump and diverter valve and sometimes the radiators were hot when the heating was off. It was due a service but I could not get hold of the engineer so paid £102 for a weekend call-out to another. He could find no problem at the time and even took a picture of the expansion tank to show that it was clear. The service engineer came a couple of days later, immediately diagnosed the problem and replaced the diverter valve, cleared the T-junction above and cleaned out the expansion tank, showing me 3 buckets of very muddy water. He also took a picture of the then empty tank to show the muck in the bottom. On contacting the first engineer, they said that there is a tendency now for some engineers to clean the tanks but there is no need. So, who is to be believed?

Re: Expansion tank cleaning

Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2021 10:08 pm
by stoneyboy
Hi billmartin
A lot will depend on how much debris there is in the tank.
It is very seldom that the ET is clean and in some cases there can be an accumulation of sludge. Removing a layer of sludge is always a good move especially if it reaches the outlet tapping.
Regards S