How to Power Flush Central Heating

Power flushing works by removing the build up of sludge, limescale and corrosive deposits that accumulate in a central heating system naturally over time, these build up due to the constant flow of water through the system, causing rusting.

A power flushing machine is connected to the central heating at a convenient point for you (usually at the tails of a radiator), which pumps water through the system at high velocity, dislodging the build up of unwanted materials. To prevent damage to the system, the water is pumped through at low pressure. Cleaning chemicals are added to the water to improve effectiveness; how these work, is by eating away at the unwanted materials, which then flow out to a filter attached to the power flushing machine. Once the all of the unwanted materials have been cleared out, clean water, with no cleaning chemicals, is pumped through, until only clean pH neutral water is left in the system.

How long it takes to flush the system out will depend on the size and condition of the system, but it is usually between 4 and 8 hours.

Bleeding a radiator as the easiest way to check if the central heating needs to be flushed out. Dirty or cloudy water indicates the build up of unwanted materials and a power flush is recommended.

If you are experiencing any problems such as strange boiler noises, the boiler or radiators becoming slow to warm up, radiator cold spots or fluctuating hot water temperature, there is likely to be a build up of unwanted materials in the system. Also, if your central heating is 10 or more years old and has not been flushed out before, a lot of unwanted materials will have built up over this time, so a power flush is recommended.

If a new boiler is being fitted to an existing central heating system, a power flush of the existing system first is essential. This is because of how new boilers are designed to improve efficiency; new boilers have much narrower passageways then older models, this means they are more susceptible to the problems caused by the build up of unwanted materials. A new boilers warranty may be invalid if the existing system was not flushed out prior to its installation.

A power flush can save you money is by preventing problems with a central heating system, reducing the likelihood of a breakdown, which could cost a lot to repair. The system will be running to its top level of efficiency having been flushed out, reducing both carbon emissions and your energy bills.

Only a Gas Safe registered heating engineer should power flush gas central heating systems. How you can be sure is to ask to see an engineer's Gas Safe registration card before they begin.