Vigas gasification boilers

After around 20 - 30 minutes the fire will have got sufficiently hot and when you push the flue flap closed it will start to gasify. At that point the flue should stop smoking and the hot flue gases will now be going through the boiler tubes. The Vigas is a reverse combustion or downburning boiler (sometimes called 'downdraught boilers' or 'downdraught burners', but this is misleading as downdraught is a common term used to describe a chimney which puffs smoke). In a 'normal' burner the flue gases and smoke go upwards, but in a downburner they are drawn downwards, in this case through the use of a fan. This allows more accurate control of the combustion and the air supply needed for most efficient burning.The smallest Vigas requires a 150mm flue while the other models need a 200mm diameter flue. 

In the event of the boiler overheating an overheat safety system kicks in which flushes mains cold water through a coil in the boiler. The hot water coming out of this coil is then discharged to a waste pipe and in this way the boiler is cooled down. There are some simple monthly maintenance tasks to keep the Vigas in good condition which will take around 10-15minutes, and you do have to empty the ash.