central heating / boilers / plumbing / gas

“Education is Essential”

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Central Heating / Boilers / Plumbing / Gas

Steps to hiring a plumber

Questions you should ask to spot rogue traders

Tips about getting your boiler serviced

Checklist to help you decide who to hire

Tips on Finding the Best Plumber for your Boiler job

Do you find yourself turning the central heating on for hours before you want the house to warmup?

Are you fed up of having to turn round in the shower to keep yourself warm?

Do you find your gas bills are really high even though you haven’t even had a warm house over the winter?

If your answering yes to the above questions then you’re most probably in need of a new boiler which, when correctly installed, will serve your household for years to come.

Throughout this guide, I have used the term gas fitter instead of plumber. The reason for this is a plumber specialises in installing and maintaining systems used for drinking water, sewage, and drainage. As this guide is generally specialised to boilers, central heating and gas, I have used the term gas fitter just to distinguish the speciality.

1. Get 2 or more references either from friends or somewhere you can trust

The best type of reference is a referral from a friend. If your friends don’t know anyone, or you’ve decided to look from someone better than the following points will help you decide who is best.

2. Make sure they are Gas Safe registered

If you are getting a boiler or gas appliance installed this is imperative.

You can do this either by phone or email; Tel: 0800 4085500 http://www.gassaferegister.co.uk/

Check either by company name or Gas Safe Register number.

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http://www.gassaferegister.co.uk/

3. Check they have Public Liability Insurance

This insurance covers the business against injury or damage to your property caused by them or their business. It also covers any related legal and medical fees if necessary. This is normally issued in the form of a certificate which you can ask for if you feel the need.

4. Get at least one other quote and check what they are offering, like for like.

This is important so that you can get an idea of cost so that you don’t get ripped off. Make sure you understand the value of what you’re getting. You may have a quote which is cheaper because they have quoted either a smaller boiler or a cheaper model. In each case, you can’t compare “like for like”. See the check list at the bottom of this guide to make sure you are getting a “like for like” comparison.

5. Ask how much experience they have.

Generally, this tends to be something people ask about but you may be wondering why it matters? I mean surely every fitter has undergone the same training so what’s the issue? Sometimes jobs don’t go according to plan because of things like house shape, design and materials the floor or walls are made of. If problems are encountered midway through a job, the more experienced fitter will know how to overcome the problem better.

As long as the gas fitter has been installing boilers for more than 3 or 4 years, you can be reasonably sure that they have adequate experience but the more experience the better.

6. Make sure you get an accurate quote to avoid being stung later.

It is important that you get an accurate quote for the whole job which includes clean‐up, getting rid of the old boiler and patching up any old holes with bricks. If you end up with an estimate for a job, you can be fairly certain that it will change and cost you more by the time the job is complete. A good plumber will be able to price up a job fairly accurately and complete a breakdown of all the costing for you.


Flux

A good plumber will always apply flux (with a

brush) to the outside of the pipe. This is so that

when he pushes on the joint, any excess flux will

come out of the pipe and not get put inside as

flux is not good for the internal working of the

boiler. Any excess is also removed from the

outside as it looks bad because it goes green and

over time can corrode the outside of the pipe.

Insulation

Pipe work in exposed areas that are unheated,

underground floors, lofts, or in an outhouse a

insulated to maximise the efficiency of the

heating system and reducing heating costs.

re

is

, a

Cleaning

An extremely important factor in getting a new

boiler is that the old system is cleaned

thoroughly and any contaminants are properly

flushed out.

Generally if the outside of your radiators are

looking rusty, the insides are most probably rusty

too and will have a build up of sludge which

circulating round the system. This sludge build up makes the system less efficient and actually

reduces the life of the boiler. During a boiler installation, if you are not replacing the radiators

good gas fitter with flush the system with a cleanser so that the new boiler can have the longest

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Cleaning continued...

To prevent sludge build up in the future, or to get any particles that may have

been missed during the cleaning process, you can have a magnetic filter fitted.

What this does is it attracts the particles of rust and sludge magnetically and

mechanically to it and it can be emptied during an annual service to keep your

system efficient, cost effective and protect your new boiler meaning it will last

longer. Remember prevention is better than cure.

Number of Fittings/Pipe Joints

It is good practice to keep the number of 90 degree or right angle turns in pipe fittings to a minimum

i.e. plan where the pipe is going to run and work out the most efficient route which takes the least

number of turns. Excessive use of pipe turns can put extra strain on a central heating system making

it harder to heat radiators which are furthest away from the boiler as well as creating extra places

for possible leaks.

Interesting fact: For each 90 degree bend, it’s the equivalent of adding another half meter of pipe.


Questions you Should Ask

Will there be much disruption and how long will it take? A professional boiler fitter with the right experience knows exactly how long a job will take. On average they take 2‐3 days and you may be without a boiler for a night in most cases. Make sure to ask about this and express any concern if you cannot go without a boiler for a night prior to the job being started.

Please note: if you’re getting a boiler changed or are having a whole new central heating system installed, you should ALWAYS have mains cold water and gas for the night when the workman goes home. It is a simple job to cap off the gas and water pipes used in the work so that you can use them throughout the night.

Will there be much mess?

Replacing a boiler can potentially make a lot of mess – mainly if a new hole needs to be drilled through the wall. Any good fitter will always ask for the sides to be clear so that a dust sheet can be carefully laid to catch any debris. Although this won’t protect everything, you’ll be surprised at how much difference a well laid sheet can make to the clean up process.

What type of boiler would you recommend and why?

Some boiler fitters have had extra training with specific boiler manufactures. This can mean that they are experts with some particular type of boiler and in some cases can offer extended warrantee. This is something to look out for.

Professional boiler installers will always be able to backup why they recommend certain boilers. Don’t be afraid to ask them about what they recommend. If they don’t appear to know much about the boiler they recommend, be weary. Remember a boiler should always be new and in a box. If it isn’t new, don’t accept it, there won’t be installation instructions and you could be compromising your safety as well as having no guarantee.

Whatever boiler you decide to go for, remember a good gas fitter should be fully capable of fitting any gas boiler no matter what the make. Also a well fitted boiler has a much longer life span than a poorly fitted one.


What checks will you carry out before commissioning the boiler?

This is very much like taking your car for a MOT. Once it’s up and running, the proper checks needs to be carried out to make sure that 1. The system is safe to be used and 2. It is working at its optimum thus saving unnecessary gas consumption.

The checks which they should carry out when commissioning a boiler are:

• Gas pressure from the main supply • Gas pressure reaching the boiler • Hot water flow rate and temperature • Safety devices are physically checked i.e. Earth continuity (check the system is earthed),

boiler lockout (shuts off the boiler if it gets too hot or there is a problem) and the Pressure Release Valve (PRV).

Once the checks have been carried out, they are logged in the boilers’ own benchmark logbook. You then keep this just like you would the documentation to your car. The boiler is then registered with building control.

Help in comparing quotes

Sometimes it can be frustrating receiving quotes with not enough detail about what’s actually included in the price. I have created a form below which, if you so wish, can be printed out (p9) and handed to the engineer to complete.

You can then accurately compare quotes side by side and uncover anything which might otherwise have been missed out. Remember a cheaper quote is not always a better quote ‐ value is created with good parts, equipment, experience and customer service.


How long should a service take to carry out?

At least 30 minutes but can take up to an hour in order to be thorough.

Why should I service my boiler regularly?

This keeps the warrantee valid. The service details should be recorded in the boilers’ logbook. Just like with your car, every 10,000 miles or each year, you get your car checked over to make sure that it’s working at its best. The same applies to a boiler, as this is a working piece of machinery in the same way and needs to be checked out.

After the warrantee period, annual services will extend the life of the boiler dramatically. Again; prevention is much cheaper than a cure.

What should they check for during a service?

Potential problems:

Rust – this can add to reduced efficiency and higher heating bills.

Leaks – can cause damage to your home and reduce efficiency.

Any externally visual damage – including checking for obstructions to external air vent.

Gas Pressure – for safety. This must not be too high or low.

Gas Consumption – so that the system is operating at its most efficient level and is safe.

Safety devices checked – these are physically checked to see if they function properly.

Emission Levels – these are accurately measured to check they are within the legal and safe limits.

All of this gets documented in your boiler log book. If it isn’t logged than it doesn’t count. Getting your boiler serviced regularly by a qualified gas fitter will save you money in the long run.

Thank you for reading this guide.

Now that you have seen all there is to consider when hiring, we hope that it all makes sense and

that you can be happy knowing that you can hire the right gas fitter for your boiler job.

Photos ©iStockphoto.com/upsidedown_pw


Unofficial quote form – to be handed to engineer to complete.

Cost

Name of company

Boiler Make and Model

Boiler Output (kW/h)

Water Flow Rates (Ltrs/Min)

How long is the Boiler Warrantee?

How long is it guaranteed for?

Will rubbish be removed?

Will radiator valves be changed and how many?

What cleanser will be used?

Will dust sheets be laid?

Will the old hole be bricked up?

How long will it take?

Total Cost

Print Name:_________________________ 9 Date:_________________________ Signed:________________________


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