Lessons
Fault Vault jobs: S-Plan
In short
Faults on the wired S-Plan example, walked the way the DrawWarm Fault Vault walks them: confirm the complaint, follow its checks in order, name the cause, repair it, prove it. The Vault may help at every step; it never gives the answer.
The call-outs, by symptom
Each job starts from the customer’s words. The fault is hidden until you prove it, so the jobs are listed here by what the customer rings about.
Heating dead
“Hot water's fine but the radiators are stone cold, whatever I do with the thermostat.” The method
Heating only with the hot water on
“The radiators only warm up when the hot water's on as well. On its own the heating does nothing: I hear the valve click, but the boiler never fires for it.” The method
No hot water
“Heating's lovely and warm but there's no hot water - the cylinder's cold.” The method
Hot water only with the heating on
“The cylinder only heats when the heating's on as well. Hot water on its own: the valve clicks, nothing fires.” The method
Everything dead
“Nothing works. No heating, no hot water, and the controls are dead.” The method
Radiators hot with nothing on
“The radiators get warm when nothing's asking for heat - it's all off at the timer and they're still hot.” The method
Boiler fires with nothing on
“The boiler keeps firing with everything off at the timer, but the radiators stay cold.” The method
Hot water scalding
“The hot water's scalding - far hotter than it used to be, whatever the dial on the cylinder says.” The method
Hot water heating with the timer off
“The hot water's scalding - far hotter than it used to be, whatever the dial on the cylinder says.” The method
You will learn to
- Confirm a complaint before touching anything
- Follow a fault-finding walk check by check: the last point with 230 V, the first without
- Link out, disconnect and isolate as tests, and put things back
- Name the cause, repair it and prove the repair
How a Fault Vault job runs
- 01
The customer’s words, and the DrawWarm Fault Vault’s first question.
- 02
See the fault for yourself: set the demand and watch what each part does before you touch anything.
- 03
The Vault’s checks in order, each one a reading with the meter.
- 04
Isolate, prove dead, the switched live too, then change the part you have proven faulty, core by core.
- 05
Earth continuity before you switch on, then prove the repair.
- 06
A question on what you found, and the job on your record.
Where it connects
Practise it in the simulator.
Runs in the browser on a laptop or desktop. Cancel any time.