Geyser Installation and Geyser Repair
Monster Plumbing has decades of experience installing geysers, servicing geysers, repairing geysers, and improving hot water systems.
Our professional artisans are trained in all safety aspects of electrical and plumbing requirements with regard to geysers and adhere to the SANS 10254 water bylaws.
From electric and energy-efficient geysers to instant hot water systems and solar-powered geysers, we know them all.
We also offer maintenance services to keep your geyser in top condition and help you avoid costly repairs down the line.
Geyser Installation Services
Replacing a burst geyser requires a qualified plumber on site to obtain the serial number and codes that identify the make, size, and age of the geyser to advise whether the geyser is still under warranty or not.
The technician will isolate the geyser (if necessary) to limit further risk of leaks or flooding. Cold water to the house is restored leaving you only with no hot water during the process of the replacement.
A further inspection is done to identify any SANS compliance requirements to install the new geyser in line with SANS 10254 water bylaws. A new geyser is installed on a new drip tray and suitably reinforced platform or wall mounted. It’s then reconnected to the property’s hot water reticulation, power supply, and emergency overflow discharge pipes.
Once installed, the geyser is fitted with R-rated pipe insulation (lagging) and electrical bonding to suitably earth the installation as per regulation.
What to do when you have a burst geyser
- Switch off the electricity supply to the geyser on the main electricity board.
- Open the hot water taps in the property to reduce any immediate hot water pressure from the hot water reticulation system.
- Close the water mains if there isn’t a tap situated close to the geyser.
- Call Monster Plumbing to send a qualified plumber to verify that your geyser is burst (and if it is still under warranty or not), to isolate the burst geyser and to reinstate the cold-water supply to the remainder of the property.
- Obtain a quote for the replacement.
- Submit the costs incurred to insurance (if you have insurance) to reimburse you in line with your policy details.
- Report any resultant damages to your short-term insurance company. Secondary or resultant damages could occur because of primary damage being linked to a burst geyser. Further damage to assets because your geyser burst is known as resultant damage. Most insurance companies cover resultant damages.
Types of Geysers in Cape Town, South Africa
Solar geysers are an alternative heating option and heats the water by means of solar panels fitted to a north facing roof structure. Initial installation costs are high but it considerably reduces your electricity demand.
Solar geysers should be equipped with a smart timing device to manage the electricity supply, ensuring you’re predominantly using sun energy to heat the water rather than electricity.
Only consider this option once aware of the pros and cons of the system. For example, if all hot water is depleted early in the evening, the system will instantly start using electricity when there is no sun. If ongoing, you won’t benefit from the desired savings on electricity. The answer is to install a much bigger tank than pre-solar specifications. This ensures that more hot water is stored to provide you with hot water for a longer period of time before needing to use electricity.
Gas geysers are heat-on-demand systems reliant on LP Gas. They are good off-grid solutions where electricity is not available and instantly heat water when opening the hot water tap. Use a LP Gas certified technician for a safe, functional, and compliant installation.
Electric geysers with more insulation around the geyser tank, also referred to as ‘B rated’, are energy efficient with lower heat loss. Electric B-rated geysers, due to the width and length of the new geyser cylinders, sometimes require a larger ceiling trapdoor or cupboard for installation.
Most electrical geysers are recently solar compatible, enabling you to add solar or heat pumps at a later stage.
Kwikot, also known as Electrolux, is the leading geyser manufacturer in South Africa and Monster Plumbing’s preferred supplier. We install Kwikot products with the backing for products installed in a compliant manner. https://www.kwikot.com/
Under counter geysers enable you to install a hot water cylinder closer to where instant hot water is needed, saving the hot water from bulk geysers which may be far away or not possible to connect to. Office blocks with no geyser that need to install a small geyser in their kitchen for washing, cleaning, or drinking purposes are a good example.
Geyser Parts
A geyser blanket reduces the heat loss and electricity costs associated with heat loss. Since the introduction of B-rated geysers, manufacturers have created more comprehensive insulation methods catering for better heat retention. So, blankets are no longer a focus point of modern geyser tanks.
The geyser element is a hard-working component reliant on a stable and compliant electricity connection. The geyser element is fitted with a thermostat which enables you to pre-set the temperature. It’s best to set the element on 55 degrees Celcius as a base temperature and navigate further from there, depending on the current season or your specific hot water requirements. Usually, a temperature of 55 Degrees Celsius is a good useable safe temperature that doesn’t require the water to be overheated at additional costs or cause loss of water as it heats up and rises. Less cold water needs to be added and you get the best value for money.
The geyser thermostat ensures the control of the temperature from the element. When a thermostat is faulty, it will either allow the element to continuously heat causing the geyser to overheat and the water to overexpand as a result. This is a major waste of electricity and could cause a dangerous scenario, especially if the geyser is not installed with the needed safety components or linked outlets.
A faulty thermostat won’t allow the element to heat the water or it will allow for unregulated heating and you can’t control the settings of the temperature. Because the two items are installed inside one another in a close working environment, they should be replaced as a set, as one often fails soon after the other.
A geyser anode is a key part installed inside the geyser tank to prevent harsh metals in the water from attacking the cylinder inside, helping to increase the lifespan of the geyser.
Metals in water which oxidise causes metal fatigue because of scale build-up or rust deteriorating the inside of the geyser tank. It’s best to inspect and or replace the anode at least every 18 months to 24 months as the metals in the water wear down the anode to a thin base wire – the anode has expired.
The geyser pressure valve PRV (pressure regulating valve) is installed where the internal reticulation of the property starts inside the building. A stop tap is fitted followed by a PRV to balance the cold and hot water pressure equally and manage the required pressure.
The use of mixer taps is often challenged in older configurations as the house was constructed with a gravity-fed geyser at very low pressure alongside high cold-water pressure. In this case, the mixer taps won’t function correctly.
By strategically re-positioning the PRV, the cold-water pressure is reduced to match the hot-water pressure to enable the installation of mixer taps based on a balanced water pressure system.
The geyser timer switch is crucial to saving electricity costs, and also to turn the geyser on and off at desired times. It’s a fact that a geyser doesn’t have to continuously heat the water at a higher cost.
Smart timers come with easy temperature settings so you can see the live temperatures of the water as well as various fault codes to enable you to act sooner in the event of a maintenance requirement, faults, or water loss.
Geyser Sizes
100l Geyser
A 100-litre geyser is mostly used in households or buildings with one or two bathrooms, and a kitchen and with no more than two to three people making use of it in a residential setting or small business reliant on hot water.
150l geyser
Fitted with a 3kw element, a 150-litre geyser installation is generally best in households with two to three bathrooms, a kitchen, and approximately three to five people.
200 & 250l geyser
This size geyser is mostly used for larger properties with more people or higher hot water demand. Often more than 1 geyser is installed so that hot water is available to all service points needed.
This can be further connected to either heat pumps, solar panels, or both systems, working together as programmed to reduce the cost of heating. The geysers are then used as storage vessels holding hot water for on-demand use.
Geyser F.A.Q
You’ll know your geyser has burst when water will leak from the tank into a drip tray and the water will discharge via an outlet pipe connected to the outside of the property or in the case of an apartment the outlets may lead to a common property stack area where the waste pipes are situated.
Alternatively, depending on the severity of the burst (and if the installation is non-compliant), you’ll either have water appearing through a ceiling if installed in a roof or surrounding the area where the geyser has been installed.
Geysers are usually guaranteed for an average of 5 years by the manufacturer, which will result in them replacing the geyser, provided it was fitted compliantly. High pressure geysers can last upwards from 5 to 10 years depending how well the anode and basic services was done.
The average time on an initial assessment is 1 hour or less, depending on the environment the geyser was installed in.
Geyser replacement can range from 2 to 6 hours for the replacement of the tank alone – depending on the size of the tank, the time it takes to drain and prepare the old geyser for removal and re-installation of the new.
The surrounding reconnection of pipes, fittings and services will vary depending on the position of the geyser, as well as the time it takes to fill the geyser up before it can be re-commissioned with electricity to enable the heating process.
Heating problems can be linked to various complications:
The power supply from the DB board may be compromised with a faulty breaker switch, preventing power from reaching the geyser.
The isolation switch could be faulty preventing power from reaching the geyser.
The element could be faulty and cause the breaker on the DB board to trip, indicating a compromised element resulting in no hot water.
The thermostat could have an electrical fault causing a disconnect of power to the element.
PRV overflow could result in cold water dripping out of the overflow to relieve the geyser from excess pressure as water is heated and due to expansion that occurs as a result of heating.
PRV can also leak when a major influx of water pressure is experienced from outside. To protect the property piping or geyser, the valve will open and discharge the excess pressure experienced.
TP Valve discharge will discharge hot water in the event of a faulty thermostat, as the element is constantly heating the water. The TP valve discharge will be a metallic pipe able to withstand scolding temperatures and direct the overheated water to the outside in an attempt to prevent the geyser from bursting. The TP valve, thermostat and element must then all be replaced in some cases to ensure all parts affected are in safe working order especially if they were faulty for an extended period of time. This is a serious safety feature that must be incorporated on all geyser installations.
Expecting an insurance company to facilitate the replacement to save you the hassle and expense, will cause delays until insurance approves a quote from one of their service providers.
Any custom order requirements for drip trays may also cause delays. If geysers need to be installed via a roof, it could cause delays as specialists are required in certain instances.
We issue the client with a Tax Invoice detailing the work completed, a written site report in support of the invoice and events which occurred to validate an insurance claim. Photos of the old and new geyser installation are also provided.
COC’s are provided either by private sector platform for new installations or replacements or otherwise a Schedule 4 COC is provided for the purpose of sale of property and is needed by property transfer attorneys (conveyancers).
We work in line with SANS codes and water bylaws as gazetted publicly.
The home owner can opt to have the geyser made fully SANS 10254 compliant at the time of the burst geyser at their own cost.
Or we can only replace the burst geyser tank – leaving the surrounding services unchanged like it was before the burst geyser. However, we will always bring the installation up to safety standards if the original installation has concerns.
The decision lies with the owner, unless the property will be sold and the geyser must be made SANS 10254 compliant for the purpose of change of ownership. For this a Schedule 4 COC is required in line with the water bylaws published by the COCT.