In order to keep your boiler in excellent condition and ensure you have hot water and heating when you need it, it is highly recommended to service your boiler on a yearly basis. A boiler that is serviced annually is more reliable, more efficient and is less likely to cause carbon monoxide poisoning.

Heating Central’s engineers specialise in installing and serving boilers by the UK’s leading brands, including Worcester Bosch, Vaillant, Baxi, Potterton and Gloworm. Furthermore, an extended 5 year warranty on installation of some of these boilers.

Our heating engineers are Gas Safe registered (previously CORGI) and are experienced in boiler service and boiler repair on all types of gas boiler and central heating systems.

Heating Central’s plumbing and heating team has developed a strong expertise in high efficiency boilers and central heating systems, which includes breakdown repair as well as full system designs and installations.

Boiler servicing the key steps

A professional boiler service by an experienced gas engineer is key in safeguarding your boiler and ensuring it is efficient and safe. A boiler that is serviced annually will be working to the specifications designed by the boiler manufacturer and guarantee your peace of mind. This will help prolong the life of the boiler as well as reduce the risk of faults and expensive repairs down the line.

A detailed boiler service will include inspection of the gas pipe work, ventilation, clearances etc. The system is then inspected, cleaned and reassembled. The operation of the boiler functions are then inspected for safe and correct operation.

Annual boiler service

Typical check list for an annual boiler service

Preliminary examination includes:

• Boiler location – is it suitable?
• Any visual damage on the boiler?
• Correct operation – check that the boiler operates correctly, including consumer controls and safety devices
• Flame – is it burning as per the spec?
• Electrical wiring – check they complies with electrical regulations
• Near environment – ensure clearances from combustible materials
• Gas supply pipe work – ensure correct installation and clearances
• Room ventilation – ensure sufficient ventilation

Full boiler service procedure:

• Main boiler burners – remove, clean and inspect condition
• Boiler gas injectors – clean and inspect conditions
• Pilot assembly – dismantle and clean pilot assembly (including gas injector)
• Heat exchanger – clean and check condition
• Check boiler parts for gas leaks (case and seals)
• Thermocouple – check condition
• Measure gas pressure and flow rate, and adjust if necessary
• Flue - inspect for faults
• Assemble all boiler parts back and test operation

Manufacturers’ specific instructions may have more steps to follow. A proper boiler service takes at least an hour. A gas fire, although appearing to be a simpler appliance, usually takes around the same amount of time because the flue/chimney system needs especially thorough checking.

There are now three broad options for a boiler installation: conventional, combination and condensing. If you are considering a boiler replacement, it is worth understanding the differences and benefits of each.

Conventional Boilers

Conventional boilers use a gravity heating system with a water tank in the loft. This is the traditional system whereby a store of water is heated up prior to you using it, via the hot water cylinder and header tank.

This can be problematic as it comprises many large parts like the cylinder and header tank which require space for storage.

As the cylinder is heated whenever the hot water is on, the water can sometimes by very hot when it is required use. When the pump is off, the radiators can heat up by default due to convection. Therefore, whilst the conventional boiler does it job effectively, it does have some side effects that you must be aware of for safety reasons.

Combination Boilers

Combination boilers are a high efficiency option, and can involve condensing (see below). They also economise on space, and are currently a popular choice for UK homes. Combi boilers account for more than half the new domestic boilers installed in Britain annually.

Combi boilers are highly suited to small houses or flats because they don’t store water; they simply heat it as you use it. There is no cylinder, no tank and no connecting pipe work, which saves space and reduces hot water costs.

You can therefore access hot water almost instantly.

This helps you save on hot water costs, as the hot water is fed at mains pressure. Combi boilers provide a powerful shower without the need of a pump.

You can also save money on installation, as the time will be much shorter as there is less to install!

Condensing Boilers

Condensing Boilers are modern and highly efficient, incorporating an extra heat exchanger so that the hot exhaust gases lose much of their energy to pre-heat the water in the boiler system. Water vapour produced from the combustion condenses into liquid form releasing the “latent heat of vaporisation”. The condensate from this process has to be piped away.

From an energy saving perspective, it is always better to have a condensing boiler. There are more expensive, but it the long term will be cost efficient for the amount of energy they save.

Condensing boilers have been used the US and on the continent since the 1980s, but are still in a small number in the UK, largely due to cost but also due to a lack of information about the technology.

The cost of condensing boilers is decreasing though, as with all new technology, and the benefits will outweigh the cost.

It is possible to replace most existing boilers with a condensing boiler, whether they are floor standing or wall hung. Extending fluing can be added.

Finding a place for a condensing boiler is no harder than placing a conventional boiler, the only addition is the condensate drain.

You can purchase a standard or combination boiler, and they are no harder to install than any conventional boiler. You will not need to change your system design.

It is not a requirement to install oversized radiators to achieve energy efficiency. The main energy benefit is from having the larger heat exchanger. While large radiators create lower return temperatures and do add efficiency, the extra benefit has not been regarded as cost effective.

A high efficiency boiler requires good heating controls. Ensure you have:

• an electronic timer or programmer
• a room thermostat
• thermostatic radiator control valves (TRVs)
• separate thermostatic control on the hot water system

Freestanding Cookers

Your freestanding cooker can have an eyelevel grill; can come in a variety of widths, with double oven, single oven and separate grill, and a wide range of different colours and finishes. The choices are endless!

Built in Hobs

With gas hobs you have fast and variable control. These give you the flexibility to cook with anything from a small milk pan to a huge casserole pot depending on the setting chosen. Gas hobs feature frontal controls and a choice of cast iron pan supports for the professional look with triple ring wok burners providing maximum heat distribution around the entire pan and double ring burners with dual controls. You can match a gas hob to the gas oven and find a hood to complete the set.

Built in Ovens

Food is surrounded at exactly the right temperature to seal in vitamins and minerals and preserve textures. Oven maintains taste when cooking dishes, giving better food appearance and smell. Your built in gas oven can go below your worktop, or above it. It can have a double gas oven or a single gas oven. LR Plumbing and Heating registered engineers can come and install it all for you.

Range Cookers to suit style of kitchen

Why not think large; Range cookers really can provide you with the ability to cater for all your friends and family. LR Plumbing and Heating can install, repair, service you with a traditional looking range cooker, or the ultra modern stainless steel range cooker.

Range cookers blend perfectly with just about any style of kitchen, as built-in or freestanding range cookers, thanks to the wide variety of both contemporary and classic range cooker designs and are available as ‘dual fuel’ cookers.

Range cookers are designed to make life in the kitchen more pleasurable and each and every one is manufactured to the very highest quality standards.

Please see below for full details of the work we can carry out for you:

• Taps
• Toilets
• Shower installs and repair
• Leaks
• Traps and vents
• Overflows and overflow repairs
• Repair and install of water heaters
• Cylinders
• Thermostats
• Bathroom Refurbishment
• Pumps
• Tanks
• Hot Water Problems
• Immersion Heaters

Toilet repairs

A working, flushing toilet is something that we all take for granted. But, wait until it’s out of action and you’ll quickly realise it’s value.

Whether your a domestic customer with a leaking toilet connection, or a commercial customer with a whole area of customer toilets that are blocked, our team of fully qualified plumbing engineers will be able to solve your problems fast!

We have local, fast responding, fully-qualified and time-served plumbers around Clacton, Colchester, Sudbury, Ipswich and the surrounding areas. We are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

So, whether you’ve got a blocked toilet, a broken flush button/lever, a noisey, blocked or broken SaniFlo unit macerator, or need a new toilet installed, we’ve got what it takes to help you get back to normal.

Thermostatic Radiator Valves

Thermostatic Radiator Valves (TRVs) control the output of individual radiators in individual rooms around the house. They sense the temperature of the air around them and regulate how much water flows into the radiator – and therefore how much heat it gives out.

TRVs are a great way to control the temperature of a room – independently of the room thermostat. The setting of each TRV can be adjusted by turning the valve between a minimum or maximum setting – typically between 1 and 5. You can also use TRVs to turn off radiators completely: useful for rooms you don’t use very often, such as a spare room, but make sure you close the door to the room so that warmth doesn’t spread from the rest of the house.

LR Plumbing and Heating can supply and install many different styles of TRV’s so that you can have complete control over your radiators individually, which will save energy and money (as much as 20%) for years to come.

We specialise in the fitting, installation and servicing of fireplaces, fire surrounds and fires – gas,

• Gas Safe registered.
• Fully experienced in fitting all types of fireplaces, fire surrounds and fires.
• Offer the highest quality fitting service available.
• Have full Public Liability insurance.
• Guarantee all work for one year.

Before we fit your fireplace we will arrange to carry out a survey to check that the fire you have bought or chosen is right for your flue or chimley and to advise you on the work that needs to be carried out. This can save you time and expense because not all fires can be fitted to all flue and chimney types.

What are my main duties as a landlord?

• To ensure gas fittings and flues are maintained in a safe condition.
  Gas appliances should be serviced in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. If these are not available it is recommended that they are serviced annually unless advised otherwise by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
• Ensure an annual safety check is carried out on each gas appliance/flue.
  Before any new lease starts, you must make sure that these checks have been carried out within one year before the start of the lease date, unless the appliances in the property have been installed for less than 12 months, in which case theyshould be checked within 12 months of their installation date.
• Have all installation, maintenance and safety checks carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
  keep a record of each safety check for at least two years.
• Issue a copy of the latest safety check record to existing tenants within 28 days of the check being completed, or to any new tenant before they move in (in certain cases there is an option to display the record).
  
• Please save the following document provided by the HSE, it is a must read for all landlords click the link below to download it.

  http://www.hse.gov.uk/PUBNS/indg285.pdf

In an age of advanced and high efficiency gas and oil boilers there has never been a greater need to safeguard what amounts to one of the most expensive investments in the modern home – the central heating system.

Even a small build-up of iron oxide in a standard or modern efficiency boiler results in substantial efficiency loss and fuel wastage. So, not only does the system perform inadequately, it also costs more to run and maintain.

MagnaClean Professional is a proven, high efficiency, full-flow magnetic filter designed to tackle all central heating systems removing virtually 100% of the suspended black iron oxide.

The benefits of this simple technology are immediate:

• Simple installation and effortless servicing, saving time and money
• Immediate results and system protection following installation
• No ongoing running costs
• Quick and easy chemical dosing
• Long operational life AND guaranteed for TWO years
• Reduced carbon emissions

We highly recommend that once a powerflush has been carried out that a Magna Clean professional is installed. This will be at a discounted rate when install at the same time as a powerflush is being carried out.

If your system has any of the following symptoms it is likely to benefit from a Power Flush:

• Cold spots on radiators?
• Blocked radiators?
• Radiators frequently needing venting & bleeding?
• Boiler noise?
• Boiler failure or lockout?
• Noisy pump?
• Pump failure?
• Heating circulation problems?
• System is slow to heat up?
• Reduced heating output?
• Pinhole leaks from radiators?
• Blocked inoperative or leaking radiator valves?

The benefits of Power Flushing?

• Improved central heating efficiency by 25%
• Reduced fuel bills
• Quicker heat up times.
• Can solve boiler overheating problems and “kettling” noises.
• Quieter operation
• Increased boiler life span.
• Increased radiator life span

The Power Flushing process

We use a low pressure, high velocity, high volume, dedicated kamco power flushing pump with a magnetic power flushing filter which reduces recirculation of iron oxide through the boiler. It also increases efficiency by reducing water consumption and time to flush the system. With the addition of the combiheat that enhances the performance of the power flushing chemicals making sure we remove those stubborn adhesive deposits that a normal flush cannot remove. The chemicals used to cleanse or descale your system will be chosen to suit your individual system requirements. The flushing pump has an instantaneous flow reversal feature to aid the process. Your system will be cleansed internally, methodically and thoroughly, pipe by pipe, radiator by radiator, including the boiler. Once your whole system has been cleansed thoroughly we refill with clean water. On completion we will add corrosion inhibitor to your system which will protect it from inevitable decay as system metals trend back to their natural state. Balance the radiators for optimal system efficiency.

If you want to know more about power flushing please read the The PowerFlush Association website

Unvented Cylinders can be heated Directly using an immersion heater, or Indirectly (but not for use with a Solid Fuel Boiler). There is no need for a cold water storage tank, cold water feed or expansion tank or open-vent pipes saving space. An unvented hot water cylinder instead uses a diaphragm inside a pressure vessel on top of the unvented cylinder. If this vessel fails an expansion relief valve protects the system by releasing water via a discharge pipe.

Unvented cylinders are increasingly specified and are becoming very popular. They come in various capacities suitable for small homes to large family houses.