ABACUS OIL EXPERTS FILL ALL INSTALLATIONS WITH DEMINERALISED, pH REGULATED WATER TO PROTECT AND PROLONG THE LIFE OF YOUR HEATING SYSTEM.
WATER HARDNESS - WHAT IS IT? WHAT CAUSES IT? The short answer is naturally occurring minerals, like calcium, lime and magnesium mineral salts. How hard your water is will depend on local H rainwater’s journey into the water table and specifically the aquifier, the porous rock through which the water trickles. The nature of that aquifier will determine what minerals are picked up along the way.
LEVELS DIFFER ACROSS THE COUNTRY - WHY? This is dependent on your local geology, so chalk or limestone areas will have water hardness levels higher than those with impermeable rock such as granite. These minerals will have an impact on taste, which is why we value mineral water and why there can be such variations between different brands. The essential minerals present in hard water are an important factor towards a healthy diet but they present serious problems to the components within your heating system.
VISIBLE SIGNS A simple way to see if you live in a hard water area is to look around your home: in your kettle for deposits on the heating element or your shower screens for chalky streaks and staining. You can see who supplies your water using this link. Your supplier’s website will list, usually by postcode, water hardness levels in your area.
NON-VISIBLE SIGNS (at least initially) include what goes on within your heating system – heat exchanger, pipework, pumps and valves.
CORROSION In simple terms, corrosion within heating systems is the result of a chemical reaction between elements within the fill water and different metal components within the system.
​
This results in the wearing away of the surfaces of those components, leading eventually to perforation and resultant leaks. An important factor in the likelihood of corrosion occurring is conductivity - a measure of a solution’s ability to conduct electricity. The more dissolved salts present in water, the higher its conductivity
WHAT EFFECT DOES IT HAVE ON MY SYSTEM? The likelihood is that you will encounter problems long before the corrosion is advanced enough to cause leaks. The corrosion process generates iron oxide – a black sludge – which will begin to circulate and eventually settle within your system, blocking pipes, radiators, pumps and heat exchangers, damaging seals and having a detrimental effect on its efficiency and ha operational lifetime.
​
In the push towards ever greater efficiency modern heating system components such as valves, sensors and control units utilise very small apertures – the openings through which water flows.
The presence of limescale or rust and sludge, the by-products of corrosion, can block these small apertures very quickly, leading to system failure.
WHAT CAN I DO TO PREVENT CORROSION FROM HAPPENING? The boiler market is a competitive one and manufacturers are seeking to set themselves apart from their competitors by offering increasingly longer guarantees. They are, however, acutely aware of the impact of poor water quality on components and for this reason many seek to make water control a condition of warranty in order to be able to honour these guarantees. Many major manufacturers will stipulate the thresholds determined within a European standard for water heating systems, VDI 2035, as the desired benchmark.
​
The simple reason why they do so is because these measures are proven to work.
​
Refreshingly enough, these thresholds are not difficult to understand. They specify low conductivity, controlled pH levels and the removal of dissolved oxygen.
​
• pH range of 8.2 –10
• Conductivity of < 100 uS/cm
• Dissolved oxygen level of 0.1 mg/litre
“Put simply, if these criteria are met an environment is created where corrosion cannot take place and bacteria cannot survive.”
HOW DO ABACUS OIL EXPERTS MAKE SURE YOUR SYSTEM MEETS VDI 2035 STANDARDS TO REMAIN CORROSION FREE?
​
We use a range of products from Elysator. Swiss-engineered and proven over 50 years, they are primarily intended to meet the criteria defined by VDI 2035 and to deliver water of an optimum quality for heating systems, engineering environments where corrosion cannot occur.
Their products include:
​
PUROTAP Leader – Using premium quality Nexion resin, the Leader provides fill and top-up water that is demineralised and pH regulated.
SorbOX, Trio and Elysator to provide additional ongoing protection against dissolved oxygen, pH stabilisation, removal of air and dirt delivering corrosion prevention that is non-aggressive and chemical-free.
