Have you recently had an extension or renovation work carried out on your home?
If so, and your builder has moved your boiler, this can sometimes lead to trouble. I find that all too often, homeowners are so focused and excited about the new build, new kitchen or new bathroom to really worry about the boiler.
The mistake?
Well, for one, assuming that your new boiler will be moved and fitted to the correct specifications! Unfortunately, this is a common thing I’ve seen happen to many customers, and it can lead to a lot of headaches and expense.
As an experienced heating engineer, I’m going to explain more about this, below.
Why would a builder move your boiler?
There are many reasons why your boiler needs to move your boiler. Perhaps it’s been located in a cupboard which needed to be removed when the extension was built. Or perhaps you were moving things around to have a big open-plan kitchen and dining room, with the boiler now going on the new outside wall.
It’s not really the ‘why’ that’s the issue. It’s more the problems this can cause if it’s not moved correctly – or rather, if your builder doesn’t stick to the standards necessary for your boiler to be serviceable and well, legal, as per Gas Safe regulations.
What problems can this cause?
Say your Worcester Bosch boiler was fitted three years ago by an accredited installer. Then your home was renovated, or you got an extension which required your boiler to be moved to a new location. You trusted your builder to carry this out professionally and assumed it would be fine.
Unfortunately, little do you know that your Worcester Bosch boiler has been boxed in, leaving just 170m space above the top of the boiler. This makes your boiler impossible to service, with not enough space to get access to the flue or the top of the case.
If Worcester Bosch come back and look at your boiler, the first thing they’re going to say is that it hasn’t been fitted properly. This immediately makes your guarantee void. However, they’re going to blame your installer, rather than the builder’s contractor, because they won’t necessarily know it’s been moved by someone else.
This has happened to me before, and I need to keep on top of it, saying we didn’t fit it like that and it’s been moved since installation.
Another issue is corrosion inhibitor. There’s no way of telling (unless you asked) whether it’s been added to the system after it was drained in order to move the boiler. So, for the sake of £10 or £15 I’d rather be adding it in to be safe. (Otherwise this can cause damage to your boiler, pipes and radiators)
Won’t builders have to follow regulations?
Not necessarily – but let me explain. A lot of builders will have their own contractors – who are Gas Safe registered – just to move the boiler. As far as that contractor is concerned, your boiler has been fitted to the standards necessary, and they go away happy.
However, as soon as they’ve gone, your builder will start work again. They’ll put up the ceiling, build a cupboard, put something underneath that wasn’t there when the boiler was fitted. This is where the problems tend to arise. With any boiler at all, you can look all the specifications and manual up online. The trouble is that none of them seem to read it.
Jobbing plumbers and contractors might also just decide to run an extra 3m of pipe with bends and twists, and not realise it might be the wrong pressure. This is because every bend reduces and restricts the flow. Someone might check three years later to find the pipe’s not big enough and giving the wrong pressure.
Sad truth is that because the guys who moved them aren’t installing a brand new boiler, they don’t have to worry about things like guarantees. Therefore, work gets done at the cheapest price, without the same attention to detail. This is why you’re better off getting your own engineer in.
Advice from an experienced engineer
If your boiler’s been installed in the past few years, get your own engineer to come in and do the work. Don’t get the builder’s contractor to do it. Get quotes from the builder, speak to your heating engineer during a home visit to ensure you’re going to adhere to Gas Safe regulations.
But don’t just stop there – ask your builder to write up a clause that your boiler will be fitted as per those same regulations. They should be happy to issue you with a certificate of compliance saying that yes, it is Gas Safe registered and yes, it will be fitted to the correct specifications.
A prime example of this scenario actually happened with one of my clients today after having work carried out on their home. Now they must either accept their boiler is inaccessible for servicing, cut open their ceiling, or get the boiler moved and dropped. This is because it’s currently too close to the ceiling, when there needs to be a 200m space.
It might cost another £400 to get the boiler dropped and cut another flue hole etc. to ensure Gas Safe regulations are followed. I’ve also had another client where I had to go back, drain the system, lower the boiler and move it to follow the correct specifications. This can really be a nightmare for homeowners!
Conclusion
I hope this blog has been helpful. Hopefully I’ve managed to highlight a key issue that not everyone thinks about when having work done in their home. Sometimes builders are all too happy to move your boiler and then carry out work which means it’s boxed in, not serviceable and simply not adhering to vital Gas Safe regulations!
One thing I really hate is having to go back to a customer’s home to fix this costly issue. So, if you’re having work done in your home and you know your boiler will have to be moved, speak to your engineer and get them to move the boiler. Then get your builder to provide written assurance that your boiler will adhere to regulations.
Do you have any questions about this topic that I haven’t cleared up above? If so, drop me a comment below. I’m always here to help!
