Find a Heating Engineer you can trust in Saffron Walden.

Who Fixes Boilers?

With boiler running for several hours in a day and working hard to ensure that our home stays warm, even when we tend to take it for granted it’s always there give us the heat we need whenever we need it. So in the event whereby the inevitable happens and your boiler breakdown, which professional is the most suitable to call for help? When the pressure is on to stop a boiler leak or bring back warmth to your home, knowing who to call can make all the difference.

When you need a professional to fix your boiler, the right professional to call is a heating engineer. Heating engineers work mainly on heating I both homes and businesses, so you’d be right to call them specialists in all heating matters. As a result of this, you may want to give them a call when experiencing some issues with your boiler as they’d be in the best position than any other professional to give you a proper solution.

Generally, heating engineers are experts when it comes to fixing boilers and can help with various tasks such as installing a new boiler, boiler repairs, installing new gas pipes, repairing gas leaks, changing radiators, fixing leaks, installing heating controls and many more. What’s more? A boiler repair has to do with working with gas and before you can do that you must be a Gas Safe registered engineer as required by the legislations in the UK. In other words, any gas boiler related issue must be tackled by a Gas Safe registered engineer as this is a very dangerous fuel in which the services must be provided to highest standards of safety. Only heating engineers can be a Gas Safe registered engineer to work on gas boilers.

In the UK, more than 50 percent of the money paid for utility bills is aimed at heating and hot water costs as stated by the Energy Saving Trust. This also means that when you settle for an old or ageing boiler, you’ll have to unnecessarily incur high utility bill in order to heat your home and have hot water on demand. In this kind of situation, the most effective and practical solution is to fit a new gas boiler in your home. This will provide you several benefits such as improved efficiency and reliability as well as reduced operating costs.

However, the only drawback here is the fact that removing your old gas boiler and replacing it with a new gas boiler isn’t a 5 minute task. And as you would have expected, like many other home improvement project there’s always an element of disruption that you’ll have to put into consideration when fitting a new gas boiler system. Good news is, with a qualified and experienced heating companies, these disruptions can be kept at a minimum. So now let’s take a look at how long it’ll take to replace a gas boiler depending on the type.

✓ An existing combi boiler upgrade - Installation times may vary, but typically the removal of an existing combi boiler and installation of a new one will usually be completed in a day - about four to six hours.

✓ Converting a regular to a combi boiler - Due to the fact that these type of project is usually labour intensive, it’ll take longer to complete - about 2 days.

✓ First time installation of new boiler to a home. This will usually take about 3 or more days because new pipes and other tasks need to the installation will be carried out.

Can I Repair My Own Gas Boiler?

If you’re more of an handy person, then you’d probably want to fix everything you can around the house while saving yourself some money that would have been spent on hiring a professional instead. This is a very cost effective but at the same time you must know that some tasks are usually more difficult than others, and a good example of those complex tasks is boiler repair. Not only can this be very tough, but they can also potentially be one of the most dangerous home appliances you can acquire. So with that in mind, what can be done to ensure your gas boiler is taken care of and in the event whereby it starts to malfunction, what can be done to remedy the situation?

With regular maintenance and repair of your gas boiler, you’d have absolutely nothing to worry about. However one of the fear several DIYers have is the fact that they might just end up incurring more expenses on services they didn’t really need in the first place. But when it comes to gas boilers, it’s necessary to be certified to work with them as it’s very dangerous to tackle it all by yourself. Despite this, there are still some minor issues that you wouldn’t need to hire a technician to resolve. In some cases, all that would be needed is simply to reset the boiler. To identify where the reset button is, simply go through your boiler’s manual for more information. Most times, all you’ll have to do is press down the reset button for a couple of seconds. If the boiler isn’t fully restored to its normal proper functioning state after two resets, then you may need to call in a professional for help.

How Often Should You Service An Oil Boiler?

If you have an oil boiler, you probably know the importance of having it serviced to ensure its proper functioning, prolong its useful life as well as ensuring the safety of your home. However, the question that most frequently arises is how often would one need to service the prized hating system? If you’re also looking for the answer to this same question, then you’ve come to the right place. To make sure your oil boiler is running smoothly, safely and efficiently, it should be serviced as often as once in a year. You certainly do want to know the numerous disadvantages of failing to service your boiler. Not only will neglecting your oil boiler service result in possible faults as well as higher energy bill caused by its inefficiency, but can also lead to your warranty ending early.

Therefore, you should ensure your oil boiler is serviced by a qualified heating engineer on an annual basis to make sure it’s running just as it should. This will give you peace of mind knowing you wouldn’t be spending huge bucks on possible repairs and in some cases, replacements.

As a landlord in the UK, it’s a legal requirement to make sure that your oil boiler and flue system is services on a yearly basis in your rental property.

Unlike a gas and oil boiler, an electric boiler do not require the same level of maintenance or servicing. However, it’ll be a nice move to ensure that it’s also checked once in a while.

Overall, it’s important to note that failure to service your oil boiler on a yearly basis can give rise to multiple risks. These includes a rise in energy bills, carbon monoxide leak, fault that can cause boiler breakdown as well as an expensive repair or replacement bill.

What Size Of Oil Boiler Do I Need?

When it comes to oil boilers, there are three main types - the combi, system and conventional. Within these types, you’d discover there happens to be a wide range of sizes to choose from. First and foremost, we must note that the size has to do with the amount of energy they offer to your heating and hot water system rather than the physical dimensions.

The rule of thumb is, the larger your house (which implies the more hot taps, radiators and showers), the more powerful (bigger) the oil boiler you’d require. For instance, a four-bedroom apartment with three showers occupied by a family of four will definitely need a more powerful boiler than a a bungalow featuring a single occupant.

It is, however, important to also note that it’s not all about going for the biggest oil boiler. If you decide to choose an oil boiler with a much bigger capacity that needed, not only will you be wasting money on the initial purchase as well as installation, but also lose money operating it. And in a converse scenario, if you go for the cheaper and lower-powered oil boiler in an attempt to save up some money, you’re most likely to end up with tepid radiators while also frequently running out of hot water. Hence, the importance of determining the appropriate size of boiler for your particular household before purchase.

To determine the appropriate size, determining the number of bathrooms, radiators as well as the total number of people living in the property would be a step in the right direction.

Numbers of Radiators Combi System Boiler Regular

Up to 10 24 to 27kW 9 to 18kW 9 to 18kW

10 to 15 28 to 34kW 18 to 26kW 18 to 26kW

15 to 20 35 to 42kW 27 to 40kW 27 to 40kW

How To Fix A Boiler

A boiler is subjected to regular usage, working for a several hours a day and providing hot water for shower on a daily basis and even more so during winter. With it’s power and efficiency, we tend to postpone or even totally overlook its maintenance. However, no matter how good your boiler is, it consists of many moving components and it’ll certainly develop some faults some day. When the inevitable occurs, you might want to save some money and get it fixed all by yourself.

When it comes to fixing boilers, seeking help from a licensed heating engineer is usually the best solution, however at times you might be just lucky to be faced with minor issues which you should be able to handle yourself. In this article, we’ll look at some of the most common causes of a broken boiler and how you can get your heating system up and running again. Let’s have a look!

✓ Low system pressure. In the event whereby your boiler display a low system pressure, it could mean that the system is about to breakdown. You’ll have to carry out regular inspections on the pressure gauge to see if there’s any noticeable changes and call in a heating engineer immediately to prevent a system breakdown from happening.

✓ Poor heat production. Although this is unlikely to lead to any great issues, but it’ll reduce the effective functioning of your heating system. To prevent a debris build, it’s important to have your boiler cleaned regularly.

✓ Strange noises. Boilers often make noises, so there’s nothing to worry about unless it’s a banging or whistling noise that’s very odd , then there may be a serious issue. You’ll have to check the air intake, pressure, exhaust and piping to ensure they’re working just fine, if not there may be a need for replacement.

Is Electric Heating Expensive?

Well, electric heating being termed as “expensive is relative to your budget. But we can tell you making use of electric heating will cost you within the range of an additional £300 to £400 per year more than the conventional gas powered systems. Meanwhile the average UK home making use of heating has been found to incur around £550 on an annual basis while those using electric storage heaters will spend almost £900 every year, according to OVO Energy.

However, there are numerous benefits of using electric heating and some of which can contribute to give a lower cost. If you’re considering the installation of an electric heating, here are some of the benefits you’ll derive.

• Safety. The several risks that comes with traditional systems are greatly reduced with an electric heating system. For instance, there’s no risk of carbon monoxide emissions or potential explosions since there’s no use of fuel to run the system.

• Installation. When compared to traditional systems, electric heating quite inexpensive to fit. This is due to the fact that minimal hardware are needed in the installation - no pipes, no flues, no vents and no ducts to be used. As a result, electric heating systems can also be installed within a shorter period of time.

• Environment. Generally, electricity has a positive impact on the environment especially due to the fact that there are no gasses or heavy metals incorporated in the system’s make up.

• Control. Electric heating offers a more convenient and controllable system. What’s more? This does not only make life easier, but can also help save as much as 30 percent on yearly cost of heating as well as helping to minimize toxic carbon emission. Furthermore, there’s a built in Wi-Fi that usually comes with electric heating systems while same can not be said of traditional gas systems.

How Long Does It Take To Service An Oil Boiler?

Are you about to service your oil boiler and wondering just how long it would take to completion? Well, you should first know that during an oil boiler service, there are a wide range of things that needs to be checked. As a result, the service can actually take some time and even more, depending on the present condition of your oil boiler.

During a boiler service, your qualified heating engineer will carry out the following tasks:

• Detach and clean both the burner and fan.

• Examine the combustion chamber rope seal.

• Wipe clean and descale baffles.

• Wipe clean and descale the main heat exchanger

• Detach, clean and replace turbulators

• Examine the combustion levels after cleaning.

He’ll also perform some tank and system checks which includes:

• Inspecting and cleaning condensate

• Testing the fire valve

• Cleaning or replacing the filter

• Cleaning the condense trap

• Conducting a thorough inspection of the tank and oil supply pipe to identify possible damages, deterioration as well as debris.

• Pressure testing the oil supply pipe at the point where it goes underground.

• Examining the system pressure.

With all the aforementioned activities and more, an oil boiler service may take relatively longer period of time when compared to it’s counterpart - gas boiler. This is mainly due to the fact that the boiler itself requires a thorough inspection as well as the oil tank where the fuel is being stored. You get your gas through the mains supply, however oil must firstly be stored inside the tank then filled up when it’s almost low. The oil tank will be inspected to identify possible leaks, bulging, corrosion as well as water.

So generally, an oil boiler service should take between the range of 1 to 2 hours to be completed.