Baxi Heating
Potterton are part of Baxi Heating (another top UK boiler brand), and Baxi in turn, are part of BDR Thermea Group (all very confusing). BDR have a global turnover well in excess of £1bn, so they really know what they’re doing when it comes to boilers.

Non-Condensing CPSU boiler
The Powermax 155x has a SAP seasonal efficiency rating of 82.0%. The 155x is a Non-Condensing CPSU boiler with a maximum power output of 15.5kw that uses Gas as its fuel source.

condensing combination boiler
Powermax HE is a floor standing condensing combination boiler which incorporates a hot water store to provide domestic hot water (DHW) and central heating (CH).

Powermax 140 and 155x are combination boilers in which the gas burner heats the contents of a built-in thermal store. This heated water is used as ‘primary’ water and circulated, as required, to the radiators.

The Powermax boiler was sold under several brand names including Baxi, Potterton & Range. The Powermax was a new concept in energy solutions that combined a boiler and thermal store to provide both heating and hot water, so high pressure showers could be fitted in properties such as flats without the use of pumps.

They convert AC power (from a generator or mains wall socket) to DC power to charge a battery and/or supply power to DC equipment. Using a PowerMax charger will extend the time you can be out fishing by helping to keep your batteries charged allowing you to run your trolling motor and lights longer.

Baxi – the parent company to Potterton – have issued a Safety Alert (number 013) for Potterton Powermax HE boilers manufactured between 2001 and November 2005. The Safety Alert has been issued in response to a very small risk associated with erosion of the aluminium flue/condensate connector for the Powermax HE.

Servicing older Potterton boilers is usually easy peasy, but you may find you need to spend money on repairs. However, it’s worth remembering that even the best brands having a life span of around 14 – 16 years.

Boilers on a budget

PowerMax is Dell EMC’s rebranded all-flash array VMAX. Architectural upgrades include adding NVMe, making PowerMax Dell EMC’s first hardware storage platform with an NVMe backend. The technology supports current and future NVMe development including very high-performance Storage Class Memory (SCM).

I think the 155 was the first PowerMax to be launched. The unit is a ‘thermal store’, heated by combustion gases from a pre-mix gas/air burner at the top which pass downwards through eight tubes, or ducts, in the centre of the water store, to be collected at the base of the unit then exhausted to outside.

The 140 and 155x are similar to the 155, and are built is the the same format with a sump/flue collector at the bottom containing a gauze which is very prone to blocking and virtually impossible to remove for cleaning and replace correctly/safely.

The basic concept of the PowerMax was to combine both a boiler and a hot water cylinder into a single appliance.

It tends to drift out of adjustment, leading to explosive ignition, and replacement of the original gas valve is advised by Potterton. Any 135 which has had the gas valve replaced will bear a label stating this fact. 5) The flue duct on the Range Powermax is made from aluminium.