Pressure drop
It happens about twice a year, we are told. Possibly due to differential temperatures leading to vaporization of water from the sump1. It could as well be due to a leak in the radiator system2, you never know until you run a check.
Showers and washbasins run cold. Freezing cold. It wakes you up like no alarm has ever managed before, which is what happened when I stepped into the shower this morning. Damn, still freezing even as we approach summer.
I check the boiler (An AGPO Ferroli Econoforte HMA32 — a fancy setup that looks like a mini-nuclear reactor). An unfamiliar thing on display. It reads E.01. It’s an error code and, we have no clue. I search for the manual lying around somewhere in the store. Hallelujah, it’s in Dutch. No time to translate. 8.30AM. I’m running late. Kiddo is going to be late for school too, and she would have to register late again, at the front desk today.
My wife calls the AGPO hotline. The other end, I’m told, is friendly, says it’s simple to fix, but can’t explain howto very well in English. We decide not to try anything foolish, because the system is a blackbox, unconventional, Dutch labels, manuals and all. Instead, we call our official maintenance. They promise to get somebody to call us for an appointment. Goddamn, this whole country is obsessed with appointments.
Nobody calls. Wife continues to phone the official maintenance. The phone rings and then auto-redirects to voicemail. This is now on a do-loop.
By afternoon, the entire home temperature has dropped two degrees down; this inspite of a bit of sun today. No one calls us up for an appointment, and it is now evening. We are now worried about the drop in temperature at night. Worry that kids may not be able to sleep well at night.
I translate the error code and it says it’s a water intake error. Not enough pressure. The needle needs to be in the greenzone and above 1 bar.
We mention it to our neighbor. He comes up, looks at the setup and tells me that the sump needs water. Adds that it could also be clogged. Together, we unscrew those odd looking closure valves and pump water into the sump (that looks like a Cabsons gas cylinder — which is the reason, we didn’t touch it in the first place. Slap on the forehead!).
The code changes automatically, boiler’s familiar sound comes back on. We’re relieved; and thank Eric for saving us. All is well again.
- Boilers — used in room heating systems and for supplying hot water to showers, wash basins and dish washers — are connected to the sump, which maintains a certain pressure, for water intake. [←]
- It’s a network of pipes carrying hot and cold water between radiators (for room heating) to the boiler and back. [←]