Boiler Service

Tranquil

Hello, 

I have a boiler that is 2.5 years old. I have been getting an annual service which is around £70-£75 each year. 

I’m wondering if an annual boiler service is something that most people do? I’m not sure if I’m actually paying for something useful or if it’s just money down the drain! Would appreciate advice. 

Thanks 

grumbler

Don't know about most, but my (basic) boiler was about 6 y.o. when I bought the house and during 20 years I have never serviced it. Had two minor repairs costing me about £300 in total.

That said, AFAIK, some warranties stipulate annual servicing. What about yours?

Apodemus

Are we talking oil or gas?  I service my own oil boiler - they are really quite simple bits of kit - but wouldn't risk it with a gas boiler!

Jeepers_Creepers

Tranquil, the main reason for having it serviced annually is to maintain a warranty. Any idea what comes with yours? How comprehensive, and for how long?

If that ain't an issue, a service every couple of years from a trusted local GS would be absolutely fine. Quite possibly every three...

Things that can cause issues due to a lack of 'servicing' are actually very few - like the condensate trap filling with gunk. I would personally prefer a 'good' service every three years, over a 'typical' service annually. For instance, I'd like to see the combustion chamber opened and hoovered out, not something they'd usually bother doing. A surprising amount of debris forms in there, and it usually ends up in your cond trap. 

(I had a service carried out by a GlowWorm guy shortly after installing our boiler. Two things I recall him saying; he had the exact same model himself, and he didn't even service his own boiler every year...)

macman

Which brand? A boiler that age should have at least a 5 year warranty. No annual service, warranty is invalid. End of.

ic

If you're under warranty, you'll need an annual service (and proof of it) for the warranty to remain valid.  I've seen warranties running for up to 12 years for some of the top of the range models.  Seems a shame to lose access to something like that.

fred246

It's all just a game. Tell the customer it's essential for safety. Fit our boilers and you can charge your customer £70 a year every year for virtually doing nothing. The last time I tried to get someone to service a boiler I gave up in the end. When they are charging £2k a day to install boilers they can't be bothered popping round to your house for a few minutes for £70.

Ectophile

I'm not very good at getting it done annually, but I do have my gas boiler serviced rougly once a year.  If done properly, they will check that the boiler is running properly, and adjust it to the manufacturer's specification.  There are also a number of safety checks included.

Giddypip

I have mine serviced annually as it is part of the warranty conditions and a requirement of my emergency home cover.

KnownMaynard

We moved house late last year and in less than a month the boiler died. Our engineer came out to look at it and said he'd never seen so many error codes. It had been installed 14 years previous, last serviced 12 years ago and was deemed unsafe. It had been leaking all down the back and around the flue, possibly for years. I suspect a regular service would have picked these issues up, though admittedly at 14 years old it is as the end of its lifecycle. (Previous house owners had even had the built-in kitchen cupboards built around it so he couldn't even get the front panel off it without breaking something.) He also found that the expansion tank (if that's the correct term?) in the loft had never been set up correctly and that if it had needed to vent in an emergency situation, it would have shot boiling water all over the inside of our loft, which was not a pleasing thought.

New one installed now and it has a 10 year warranty if serviced annually. It's also way more powerful, very pleased to have had it done, excepting the circumstances. So yeah, I'll happily pay £70 a year for that, and to avoid emergency new boiler in the last week of December situations in future!

Mickey666

Had my 7 year old gas boiler serviced earlier this year for the first time.  Didn't seem to need anything specific doing to it.  Probably wasted the £90 in practice.

In my previous house I had a new gas boiler installed soon after moving in.  Never had it serviced.  About 10 years later it broke down - turned out to be a failed fan, which cost £350 to have replaced.  I can't see how an annual service would have prevented the fan bearings failing.  So, in my experience at least, it has proved cheaper not to bother and save the money in case any repairs are needed.

Same with appliance insurance policies.  I can only recall two occasions in the past 35+ years when I would have been able to claim on such an insurance policy.  Once for a washing machine and once for a dishwasher.  I ended up fixing both myself for the cost of the necessary parts and a few hours of my time, but even if I had paid someone it wouldn't have cost anywhere near the money saved over all those years by not buying insurance.

I guess a lot depends on how well you sleep worrying about something breaking down.  I sleep very soundly indeed