Over time magnetite builds-up within your radiators and pipework causing blockages which then reduce the performance of your central heating. Magnetite is a sludge that is made up of a combination of dirt, scale, mites and rust from corroded metals.

Magnitite not only creates cold spots within your radiators, but if left untreated can also create blockages. More importantly, it is corrosive, so it may cause the aluminum heat exchanges, which are common place within modern boilers, to become damaged. This can mean replacing them, which is an expense that can be avoided, and is why when installing a new boiler, we usually insist on performing a power flush as part of the process.

One of the easiest ways to tell if a heating system needs a power flush is that the system becomes noisy. Obvious signs are noisy pipes and radiators. Another common sign is that your radiators do not heat up properly and you find cold spots on them when your heating is on.

We use a power flushing machine, which is essentially a device with a pump that is then attached to the central heating system at a particular point. Once connected, the machine is used to pump fresh water and cleaning chemicals (Fernox) through the whole central heating system to clean and flush all the dirt and debris out of the pipes and radiators and released out of the system. Depending on the condition of your heating system, a power flush may need to be performed several times to thoroughly clean the system throughout. Finally, once the heating system and boiler are cleaned, we then fill the system up again introducing Neutralising crystals and Inhibitor to protect your central heating system for the long term.

At AA Plumbing and Heating a power flush is a typical power flush process usually takes between 4 and 8 hours to do, and there is absolutely no mess.

In certain situations it might not be suitable for a Power flush to be carried out. If, for example, the pipework, the radiator valves and/ or the radiators are so old that performing a  power flush might lead to potential leaking issues. In this event a chemical flush (without the pump machine) and the installation of a Magnaclean unit might be more sensible. Our plumbing and heating engineers will advise when this is deemed necessary.