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Boilers

Water heaters are hot water facilities that are simple, safe to use and easy to operate. You can place them anywhere. In addition to an electrical socket, you should install cold and hot water piping. For correct installation, see the supplied manual. Although the installation is simple, we recommend hiring an installer, especially if you are not sure how to proceed, you are then insured.

The capacity of a boiler is indicated in the specifications. The efficiency or how much hot water comes out is about 1.5x the capacity. So with a 50 liter boiler you get 75 liters of hot water and with 80 liters 120 liters. This equates to a shower head that lets through 10 liters per minute that you can shower for 7.5 or 12 minutes respectively before the water gets colder. Please note, this is if the temperature is set to 65°C. The efficiency is less with horizontally placed boilers.

To prevent legionella, we recommend that the boiler is heated regularly above 60 ° C. You then prevent these and other bacteria from developing in the boiler. Although you can set the boiler to any desired temperature, the capacity decreases at lower values. Analog displays only indicate that water is hot or cold. A pointer can therefore best be in blue while the water is 65 ° C. It is only an indication.

Boilers with an electronic display are usually not suitable for time switches, so also not for day and night power. They will then turn off or on standby and will not heat up again until manually turned on again. For exceptions, see the specifications of the models. The advantage is that you can set the temperature very precisely. In addition, depending on the type, options such as programming, self-learning and therefore more economical or controllable via WiFi are possible.

Installation Tips

Always place the water heater against the wall vertically or horizontally depending on your model in the correct position. Before installation, make sure that the wall can support the weight (i.e. weight of the boiler + contents) and choose suspension materials that are suitable for this and that the boiler cannot slide off, such as wall anchors. Make sure that the water heater hangs freely and that there is sufficient space to carry out maintenance. The use of flexible hoses makes installation and maintenance easier.

For the power supply, you must ensure that the circuit breaker to which the water heater is connected can handle the total power demand. The capacity can be exceeded if a boiler is switched on at the same time as e.g. a dryer or washing machine.

The pressure relief valve must always be located lower than the boiler. The outflow of water from this valve should point downwards. It is advisable to fit a hose to this and let it run into a drain. Make sure that the valve is placed in the correct flow direction (indicated on the valve with an arrow) on the cold water side. A shut-off valve with possibly a drain point to be placed after the pressure relief valve ensures that you can disconnect the boiler and, if necessary, can drain it quickly.

Always use a mixing or thermostatic tap at tapping points to set the temperature to your liking and to prevent scalding.

Tips for extending lifetime

The life of your water heater is determined by several factors, such as intensity of use, contaminants in the water, the speed of heating, maintenance and the set temperature.

There are several methods to extend the life of your boiler. First, we want you to be able to make full use of the water heater whenever you want. Maintenance is therefore an important point, which can prevent several other malfunctions. See our maintenance chapter below.

Contaminants in the water and the intensity of heating shorten maintenance intervals. We have noticed that certain regions (unnamed) contain more contaminants in the water than others. It is therefore good to halve the interval in the first year to check the state of contamination and the condition of the anode. To see if shorter intervals are necessary. Having a spare anode is therefore recommended.

One option to extend the lifespan is to place a water softener in front of the water inlet.

Maintenance

Maintenance is necessary and with a good maintenance policy you extend the life of your boiler considerably and reduce or prevent malfunctions. Due to the use of the boiler and therefore the heating elements, sediment is created in the boiler. This will act partly on the heating elements, and partly on the bottom of the boiler. Regular cleaning or removal of scale and sediment extends the life of all parts that come into contact with the water in the boiler. This will also make the boiler more energy efficient. The most common faults are due to insufficient/no maintenance. Maintenance is not covered by the warranty.

A consequence of use and contamination in the water is that the anode is sacrificed to protect the boiler. When the anode is exhausted, it can no longer protect the boiler and the boiler or the heating element will be affected. Although the insides of the boilers have undergone a protective treatment, they are nevertheless vulnerable without a magnesium anode. Replacing the Mg anode is relatively simple but must be done properly. You can ask your installer to do this, make sure you have a replacement anode ready before starting. Instructions can be found in the manual.

Before you start, remove the plug from the socket and make sure that the boiler has cooled down. Close the water supply and drain the boiler. When the boiler is empty, you can remove the protective (operating) cover to access the flanges on which the heating element and anode are mounted. While doing this, it is a good time to clean the boiler from sediment. Also clean the removed unit of deposits so that it can last for a period of time.

Operation of the pressure relief valve

Sediment on the bottom can cause the pressure relief valve to stop working due to blockage. For proper operation of the pressure relief valve, you should open it periodically to see if water is flowing out. If the pressure relief valve cannot do its job, this can lead to overpressure in the boiler (which can lead to leakage) and is no guarantee.

Tips for recovery of failed boilers

It is annoying if your (new) device does not work after installation. We will do our best to provide you with a working device. It is important to install the water heater as prescribed in the manual, we would like to ask you to consult it before contacting us.

Before going through one of our FAQs, it is important to look and listen to what the boiler does and does not do. This can provide clues to determine the problem. Our service team can also ask about this! We also understand if you want to disassemble the boiler with defects as quickly as possible. But before you do that, we would like to ask you to take pictures of the installation. And in case of leakage of water, where the water leakage is illustrated by means of a photo, with e.g. MS Paint you can clarify the spot by means of an arrow/circle, please note that it does not cover the spot. This can help us and you to arrive at a correct judgment quickly and shorten the time to a solution. It may be necessary to remove the protective cap. Always remove the plug from the socket before working on the boiler. Send the photos and your story (be as specific as possible) to info@kiip.de and we will help you as soon as possible. Sometimes we need additional information to arrive at a good picture and the right solution.

The boiler switches off completely, no more power to the device.

Thermal protection.

If your boiler is new you can remove the cover and reset the thermal protection see below. First make sure that the installation is correct.

The boiler was not properly vented after commissioning, or the boiler was already switched on before the boiler was (completely) filled. Bleed the water heater by opening the hot water tap fully and waiting for a good stream of water to come out without interruptions. Only then insert the plug into the socket.

Deposits on the heating elements can trigger the thermal cut-out to activate. Your device will turn off completely and will not do anything until you reset it. You can usually find this as the first part after which the power cord goes into your device. Depending on the model, there is a button in the middle that you can press. Please note, failure to remedy the cause will cause the malfunction to return and may lead to more serious consequences.

Sometimes the thermostat may not be set correctly and will heat to too high temperatures, triggering the thermal protection. On the other hand, the thermal protection may be too sensitive and actuate too quickly. You can set the water heater to a lower temperature to see if it continues to work. Measuring the water temperature in Celsius then provides a definitive answer as to what the cause is.

A circuit breaker is switched off

Another possibility is that the heating elements burst because they cannot get rid of the heat (due to the deposits that accumulate with use). You will then have a short circuit and the thermal protection will activate or the ground fault in your meter box will jump out. Then make sure that you remove the plug from the boiler before switching the circuit breaker back on. You then need a new heating element, see our parts page or send an email to info@kiip.de, stating your invoice number and/or brand and type number of the boiler so that we can select the right parts for you.

Another reason may be that the circuit breaker has insufficient capacity (for all appliances connected to it). An 80 liter boiler easily requires 2000W or more for heating, that is about 10 Amp., although these types of boilers have a shorter heating time, they demand more from your circuit breaker. If other devices are on at the same time and exceed the capacity of the circuit breaker, the circuit breaker will shut down. A point of attention here is that you do not always know when your boiler and possibly other devices turn on and demand too much from your circuit breaker.

If you use a UK-plug or an Eu to UK-plug adapter, it is also equipped with a fuse. Please check this if the device remains power-less.

Leakage

Leaks at the connections can generally be remedied by using Teflon tape, etc. and/or a rubber ring (not included).

Leaks at the boiler can be remedied. Therefore, always take a photo at an angle of about 45, this almost always gives a better picture than others, of the place where there is a leak, before you disassemble the boiler. You can clarify this with MS Paint. If we cannot determine the cause, it may be that the boiler has to be returned for inspection.

If the water heater leaks after maintenance, this can be caused by incorrectly replacing the gaskets and flange. Then try to place it again, sometimes you need a new gasket, you can order it on our parts page or send an email to info@kiip.de.

Cold water

If the water gets cold quickly, there is a good possibility that you have accidentally swapped the cold and hot water connection. Another reason that you have cold water (quickly) is that you have placed the boiler incorrectly. Check the manual if the installation is correct. Send photos if you are sure that everything is in order, and the problem is not solved, we will have a look. We can only check the first point for you in exceptional cases.

Little or no water comes out of the boiler

The same amount of water goes out of the boiler as goes into the boiler. If little water flows out of the boiler, this can have various causes. We go through the possible causes in order from before the boiler to after the boiler and not by probability:
  • The water supply is blocked, this can be caused by little or no water entering your location. e.g. Due to drought or breakage. Check another faucet to rule this out.
  • The pipe to your boiler is blocked/closed. Check whether all shut-off valves for the boiler are open. If necessary, disconnect the supply line at the boiler to check whether the flow is good.
  • The pressure relief valve is mounted the wrong way round and the arrow is not the same as the flow direction. Install the pressure relief valve correctly.
  • The pressure relief valve is clogged or the boiler is clogged by sediment. Removal and cleaning is necessary to resolve this.
  • Check that the water heater is completely filled with water. Fill the boiler completely by opening the cold water supply and the hot water tap until water flows evenly from the boiler.
  • The pressure relief valve is mounted on the hot water outlet and the arrow points against the flow direction. At all times when the pressure relief valve is mounted on the hot water outlet, you must remove it and place it correctly on the cold water inlet.
  • The pipe to your hot water tap or your tap itself is clogged, solve this problem
Normally, solving one or more of the above points will resolve the situation. If the problem continues to manifest itself, we can use photos to see if we can find a cause. If we cannot determine the cause, it may be that the boiler has to be returned for inspection.

Frost


As long as a boiler is switched on, it is protected against frost and its consequences. Some boilers even have a separate frost setting so that the water is kept just above freezing point, useful if you do not use the boiler for a while. The boiler can therefore be protected against frost damage, but does not affect the pipes before and after, so they can still freeze!