Boiler Servicing – What is it for?

Canucklehead

barrymung wrote: »

A service on a modern-ish gas boiler will simply involve an inspection, clean and a 'telegan' reading of the flue exhaust gases.

The 'telegan' meter will simply tell the plumber whether the gas is being burnt correctly. If it falls within the "pass" band then everything is OK. If not, there's a problem.

Oooops! Have I blown a multi million pound industry?

Good morning: Relevant and correct info on FGAs (flue gas analyzers) is detailed in BS 7967 Parts 1-4. Please note: an FGA is not intended as a substitute for the normal servicing and/or maintenance carried out in accordance with the gas appliance manufacturer's advice: it is a diagnostic tool. The use of an FGA is not yet mandatory though it is specified by some manufacturers for commissioning and servicing gas appliances and has been rumoured to become another compulsory qualification for CORGIs. Best advice...when you have a CORGI in to service your gas appliance, ensure he/she follows the servicing procedure detailed in the manufacturer's manual...a quick hoover and a sniff with an FGA does not make the grade and you are not getting your money's worth.;)

HTH

Canucklehead

Ken68

It's a wonder the insurance companies havn't jumped on the gravy train and insist compulsory checks for everyone.
They would love less risk and someone else paying.

espresso

Ken68 wrote: »

I have skipped one years servicing and fitted a Carbon Monoxide meter.
And £60 for half an hours 'service' has always seemed way over the top and of course if unnecessary anyway, a swindle.

I wouldn't beat yourself up about it Ken, our gas boiler is still going strong without any intervention whatsoever from a small, fat, short legged, squat, Welsh mongrel, for over 23 years now!

I have usage records and can see that no noticeable loss of efficiency has occurred over this time period. The boiler seems to perform just as it did when originally fitted and is certainly not unsafe as far as I'm concerned. Just because something is recommended by some body or other, does not mean that it is actually required.

The problem with some of these certified mongrels is that they seem to think that they have a license to print money. A friend of mine who is a pensioner, was recently handed a invoice for £230 for an annual boiler service on a standard installation Vaillant combi. No new parts were fitted however the system was re-pressurised (five minutes work at most). What a Rip-Off and little wonder that householders don't have them checked regularly! Just because someone is registered, does not mean that they won't spin you a line or rip you off.

I agree that a typical 'service' consists of little more than a visual inspection and a quick clean i.e. no adjustments are made to affect the operating efficiency of the boiler. The flue check is simply a quick and convenient way to check that the combustion is correct. I understand that modern boilers are much more complicated with more component parts to fail but they also have fail safe devices fitted.

What about other very common gas appliances like ovens, hobs etc. Do householders get those serviced annually? Use some common sense and make you own decision regarding these annual 'services' which are basic simple safety checks but I still sleep sound every night!

roddydogs

At least 1/2 of the £60 will be call out charge, the other £25 is for knowing what, or what not to do, £5 for the service, if you were a gas fitter how much would you charge? he may have driven for 20 mins each way to get to you!

Cardew

roddydogs wrote: »

At least 1/2 of the £60 will be call out charge, the other £25 is for knowing what, or what not to do, £5 for the service, if you were a gas fitter how much would you charge? he may have driven for 20 mins each way to get to you!

£60 is a lot, but not excessive, for a call out. However that is not the issue in this thread.

My question was is it necessary, and what do they do to 'improve/tune/restore' the boiler to its optimum efficiency?

Frankly if there were serious safety concerns, I believe the Government would make it mandatory for all households - rather like an MOT for cars.