Boiler Making Groaning Noises UK

Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night because of strange groans that seem to come from somewhere in your home?

Now, don’t be too spooked just yet. For all you know, these sounds are all coming from one source – none other than your boiler.

From a plumbing contractor that deals with boilers all the time, if you are a homeowner or renter, chances are you have been taking your boiler for granted most, if not all the time. Maybe all you do are yearly service checks or occasional pressure top-ups. The boilers in most UK homes are just left hanging on the wall, doing what they were supposed to do and that is to provide you with hot water and heat.

Unfortunately, your boiler is just like other electrical appliances. So, if something goes amiss, it may end up going wrong in ways you can never expect and imagine, it is likely you’ll need your boiler repaired. What’s with all those groans, then?

Find the Source of the Sounds

Most of the time, sounds can be quite misleading, particularly the ones heard inside homes. The very first thing you should do if your boiler produces some weird noises is to identify the exact source where the sounds come from.

Since sounds tend to echo and travel through your water and heating system, you need to establish first if your boiler is really the culprit behind the noise or if it is your central heating pipe or your radiator. All this kind of noises can have a variety of causes and reasons.

What Causes Groaning, Gurgling, or Dripping Noises?

A dripping, gurgling, or groaning sound can often be heard coming from the pipework or radiators. The number one reason behind this problem is because of the trapped air inside the boiler unit that combines with the water. However, it is important to remember that no air should be present inside the boiler at all.

You don’t have to worry about trapped air and you can easily resolve it if you bleed the radiators. Although this is not risky, you have to know that the trapped air in the unit may hinder the heat from totally radiating all over the room. This can make the boiler use up more gas and stay on for a longer time that it actually should.

Since it may result to higher heating bills once the colder months kick in, it is recommended that you bleed the radiators right from the moment you hear constant groaning, gurgling, or tapping noises from the boiler.

Every now and then, groaning noises may also be the result of a frozen condensate pipe. Unfreezing the pipe will be able to help resolve this issue. You need to do this as soon as you can to prevent additional damages to your unit.

How about Vibrating Noises?

There are various factors that can cause vibrations in the boiler. These include a broken pump shaking within the casing or an improper pump setting such as putting it on too high.

This might also be due to a sludge build-up inside the unit. This kind of build-up is potentially risk since the excess sludge may lead to overheating. You need to hire a qualified engineer once you start hearing this sound.