Air Vent - Is This Illegal?

[musashi]

On Sunday night my central heating stopped working. Well, it was on but should have turned off about 10pm and didn't. After looking at the control panel (it's a Honeywell Smartfit system), it was blank with no display at all. Bought a new panel yesterday morning and still the same problem.
On my home insurance, I paid an extra amount of money for Emergency Home Assistance, so I called them up to come out.
The Heating Engineer came out around 12pm (I was at work so a neighbour showed him around) and he called me so I explained exactly what the problem was i.e. heating was working, control panel not working, etc. He said he would sort it in an hour.
At 2.30pm, I decided to call him to see if it was sorted. He told me that the new unit I bought was faulty as well as the old one so he couldn't fix it due to me buying the new part anyway.
He also advised me that he had left me a "Gas Installation Warning Notice" about the air vent in the living room wall.
So get home and decide to take a closer look at the Smartfit connections. After going in the cupboard where most of the equipment is, I notice a shelf that was being stored in there and had fallen and cut through one of the two strands of bell wire which serve the control panel. The cut was about 6" away from the Smartfit base unit but the pro seemed to miss it and instead blamed it on faulty equipment. I cut the cable and rejoined them through a connector block and hey presto, the control panel worked again. Took the new one off and replaced with the old one and that too worked. Going to take the new one back for a refund tonight.
Anyway, going back to the "Gas Installation Warning Notice." He has wrote on the form, 'Air Vent not suitably sized and fitted behind radiator. Unable to check inside vent. Passed spillage test. Needs to be updated before 1st June 2008.'
So not only did he fix what he was called out and paid to do, but he issued me with a warning. I bought the house 4 1/2 years ago and the back boiler (a Baxi Bermuda VP3) must have been fitted a few years prior to that. In the time I have lived in the house, I have had 3 seperate heating engineers out to fit new radiators, sort the heating, etc and not one of them have mentioned a problem with the vent. The vent measures 8.5" wide by 5.5" high. Does anyone know the regulations and is it illegal as it stands? Below is a photo of the air vent in question.

Thanks for reading,

Carl

 

[Agile]

The vent should be clear and unobstructed on both sides so that it can be properly checked and so that the air flow is not obstructed.

The date he quoted is when new regulations come into force which concern how we deal with undersized ventilation provision.

I would have expected him to have given yiou more guidance on the dificiency and how it should be remedied.

He has acted very correctly and professionally but you seem to be criticising him for this.

OK he missed the broken wire but so did you and you had much more time to have seen it when you went buying new timeclocks.

Tony

 

[musashi]

Yes I did miss the broken wire but then again, sussing out these things aren't part of my job - they are part of his job however.
Dismissing it as being caused by 2 faulty control panels was a bit half-arsed in my opinion.
As for the vent, I don't know what the new size is and I can't find it on the Corgi website.
If there hasn't been any problems in whatever many years, why change it now?
I guess I'm just ****ed off that I found and corrected the fault when a professional should have and I find out I have to spend money getting a new vent fitted. He didn't explain things very well to me.
The Home Assistance team have just called me explaining the new regs for the vent but couldn't give me measurements. All I got was constant stuttering as he didn't have answers to what I was asking him. He said I have to get a Corgi engineer out to put a new vent in. That's all well and good but don't Corgi deal with gas? Wouldn't a new vent put into the brickwork have to be put in by a builder to be compliant? I'm confused...

 

[mikej2005]

Wouldn't a new vent put into the brickwork have to be put in by a builder to be compliant? I'm confused...

I doubt it - the important thing is that you have one that meets the requirements and it shouldn't matter who fitted it.

You just need to find out how big the vent needs to be and where it should be situated.

 

[gasmick2]

ventilation to back boilers is very important and i would say that the others that have attended to service it have not done their jobs properly by making sure the ventilation complies with BS 5440 regs which requires a calculation of the net CV gas input of your appliance minus 7kw for adventitous air so i doubt if a builder could work it out for you

 

[toptec]

I with you on this Musashi, I too would be mightily annoyed with the engineer who missed what should of been an elementary fault finding task but then had the cheek to involve himself elsewhere.

I would be on the phone to the insurance company, get them to send him back out again to explain the issues with the vent AND explain why he almost wasted your money on uneeded new parts!

 

[petit_pablo]

Those airbricks only allow about 25cm2 of air to pass though them. Depending on the boiler input its borderline AR already.

The majority of back boilers were installed with undersized vents originally, there are going to be alot of upset people come june this year when the regs change.

Refering to the OP question about the vent required, contact baxi with your boiler details and the will be able to advise you.

 

[ollski]

It'll need a 100cm2 vent ducted through the wall with no flyscreen or closable grille. Those terracotta grilles taper down inside and probably only supply about 20% of required ventlation. The appliance is classified 'at risk'

 

[oakland99]

whilst i agree with you on the fault finding aspect you cant fault the chap for his advice about the vent...its wrong and its his job to advise you.. you may not like what he says then most people don't want more ventilation in rooms but if a co problem arouse at a later date
and the engineer had said nothing you wouldn't be too impressed then. most back boilers 100cm2 of vent will cover it, non closable, sleeved and no fly mesh. but engineer who called should have told you how much ventilation is needed, call them back to advise how much is needed

 

[oakland99]

ollski beat me to it

 

[dmitch071]

He has acted correctly, he has performed safety check on your back boiler which he is obliged to do if he has worked on it, has told you its unsafe and you are annoyed, its people like Toptec that would have a go for something like this, but if they found out you should have noted it and didnt they would be making a scene also. Deal with it, its unsafe you have been lucky he has told you or you would have been living in a unsafe situation and if we could see into the future and see that he saved your llife due to carbon monoxide through lack of air supply, you probally would be pleased he saw it.

 

[oakland99]

well said

 

[nickso]

I with you on this Musashi, I too would be mightily annoyed with the engineer who missed what should of been an elementary fault finding task but then had the cheek to involve himself elsewhere.

would you have been mightily annoyed if you were dead?

forget his incompetence as a faultfinder for one moment and ask yourself if you even have the slightest clue what you are talking about with regard to the regs and this engineers diligence when it comes to safety. he's done more than the last three engineers have and he has done his job correctly. if only he had looked up the correct vent size then he would have been 100% in the right.

his "cheek" may well have saved the OP's life.

 

[toptec]

Shame his competence didn't match his diligence don't you think!

Whilst I applaud efforts to protect us house holders from the perils of CO2 and the other toxins within our houses, the point I would make is that the said "engineer" failed completely at his first task, then partially redeemed himself by pointing out a required change under the Regs.

He has hardly encouraged faith in his abilities has he. Could you rely on the fact that he hasn't missed anything else that required urgent attention?

This failing also reflects badly on the trade as a whole and if "having a go" as dmitch071 refers to it means ensuring this engineer is up to the task in the future then "have a go" is what more people should do!

 

[michaelj76]

if the air vent mesures up to be of adequate size it doesnt matter,because as its situated behind a radiator is classed as not to current standards regardless of whether it hasnt been a problem for however may years.