Central heating issues? Here are some tips that can help

20 December 2021

Have a problem with your heating or hot water? There are a few things you can do before making a call to see if you can get your heating working without the need for an engineer.

Please read our guidance below:

1. Frozen Condense pipe – Always check 1st if external

** Boiler makes a Gurgling sound when switching it on**

If your boiler has an external condense pipe, in this weather the possibility of this pipe being frozen is extremely high and the fault we find on most boiler breakdowns.

The trick is to gently unfreeze the pipe using either a hot water bottle, heat pads of the sort used for muscle pain, or a watering can of warm – not boiling – water. Once this is done, holding down the boiler's reset button should spark it back into life.

And how do you tell if this is the problem, assuming you can't decipher the fault code flashing on the boiler's screen? If the weather has been freezing, and your boiler has an external condensate pipe, then a gurgling noise when you try to reset it is a good clue.

2. Do you have gas on the meter?

If you have a prepayment meter, check that you’ve got enough credit. Next, test whether your other gas appliances, like your cooker hob, are working correctly, or whether the switches in your fuse box have tripped.

3. Think back to if you’ve had a power cut recently

If you have, your boiler’s timer might have reset - which means getting it working again could be as simple as re-programming it with your times.

Take a look at its instruction manual for a reminder on how to do this.

4. Check your boiler’s pressure gauge

If it’s showing a reading of one bar or less, low pressure could be the reason why your boiler’s not working.

Topping up the pressure yourself is usually straightforward - follow the steps in your boiler’s manual.

5. Turn your room thermostat to 21 degrees or higher

Having your room thermostat set lower than 21 degrees can stop your heating from coming on, so turn it higher to see If your boiler starts working again.

Always please check the radiator valves are turned up.

Still need help?

If you still have problems with your heating after trying these steps, find out how to report your repair here.