Curse of the Frozen Condense

What causes a condense pipe to freeze and my boiler to lockout I hear you ask…

Standard efficiency boilers lose roughly 25% of the heat they product through steam and CO² whereas a high efficiency/condensing boiler converts the hot exhaust gases into water and reclaims around 20% of the heat energy back. This slightly acidic water is called condense and is discharged through a plastic pipe and taken away from the boiler to a waste pipe.

The problem with this, like any slow running or stagnant water is that in cold temperatures, it is prone to freezing. When the dreaded freeze occurs, the water can back up into your boiler and shut down the ignition process. Aside from the inconvenience of having a broken down boiler, this can also be very damaging to internal components.

There are a number of ways to combat this - ideally, when your boiler installation is carried out, this plastic condense pipe will be run to an internal waste point and so not exposed to the elements.

Condense discharge pipework should be run in a minimum of 32mm diameter - (more and more this is proving to not be a great solution as many are still freezing given colder temperatures for longer periods of time in the UK nowadays).

Condense pipes should be insulated with foam or other suitable insulation, again, not a fail safe method and very often not sufficient to stop pipes freezing.

Heat Trace Condense Pipe Kits, to put it in its simplest terms, a wire/element of sorts that runs against the pipework that heats the pipe and thawing out any potential ice blockages. (This method would need a power source).

In an emergency, it’s advisable to pour warm water along the pipe run, where accessible, (ground floor level, externally) and then wrap the pipe in towels/blankets. In my experience, this is a very temporary, inefficient fix which will require constant attention - also, pouring more water along the pipe has the potential to freeze aswell and so can in some cases make matters worse.

If you’re experiencing the treacherous weather conditions of South London, Surrey and West Sussex, call or email RJ Heating NOW to assess the situation and offer the best solution to get you up and running again!