The data has been collated following the coldest winter in the UK since 1979, and experts have claimed over 30% of the boilers which broke down throughout this winter coud have been avoided if they had been properly and regularly maintained. The main problems encountered by homeowners were frozen fuel lines, sludge in the systems and a general lack of servicing which led to large numbers of people being left without heat or hot water for extended periods. It seems that a high proportion of the boilers had not had a full service for a number of years and the unusually cold weather stressed the systems beyond what they could handle, leading to the breakdowns.
The following advice is offered by industry experts to help prevent issues in the future:
Ensure your initial central heating installation is carried out by a reputable company
Get your boiler regularly serviced by a reputable company, with oil lines being replaced every couple of years and the boiler is configured using an electronic gas analyser
Ensure any water which has entered into the tank is closely monitored
Remove any sludge from the heating system
Perform regular checks on the level of oil in your tanks to make sure it isn't left empty, which can lead to the the lines needing bled through
Make sure your tanks are filled at the beginning of autumn to prevent a shortage during the colder days in winter
Very good article, another company I would recommend is http://www.london-plumbing-experts.co.uk they have an excellent team of boiler repair engineers an they are Gas Safe (tm) registered.
Posted by: Boiler Repairs | 10/02/2012 at 07:33 PM