Siting of a gas boiler flue?

mistee · 7 Jan 2006

Hi,
Advice please, a neighbour has sited a gas boiler flue opposite our porch, the flue comes out of his garage wall and is on our boundary line. It's approx 2m away from the porch and a little less to our kitchen window. It plumes out, at force, a great deal of 'steam' that smells and if our porch door is open can fill it quickly with this smell. Can anyone tell me if he's allowed to site it ON our boundary, I thought I'd read somewhere that it needed to be a metre AWAY from the boundary. I'm bothered about the fumes etc...

ChrisR · 7 Jan 2006

If it bothers you, call Environmental Health and they'll shut his boiler down (in theory), as it's too close to your boundary. Sounds like he has a Condensing boiler, (flue for which must be 2.4 (also seen 2.5) metres from a facing boundary). Absolutely not ON the boundary, whether condensing or not, end of the garden or not!

You could check the current building regulations, hopefully someone will have a link to hand but it's on Prescott's site (ODPM).

May not need to come to blows. Some boilers have plume diverter kits which can take the plume up and away, but any pipes etc should be over his land not yours. ALL boilers have flue options - it could perhaps go through the garage roof, other wall etc.

Is it a recent installation? If so HE might chase the installer, who is also in contravention of BR as well as him, but he can't just blame the installer.

Is the flue terminal is actually over your land?

Fines for contravention of Building Regs are serious, and operate per day once notice has been given by authorities.

Nige F · 7 Jan 2006

To keep things neighbourly........give them a copy of the film" Play Misty for me"

mistee · 7 Jan 2006

Hi Chris,

Yes the flue comes out about 10cm out of his garage wall, the actual garage wall IS the boundary, so yes, the flue is on our property. It's also about 165cm above the ground, just right to get you full in the face! The 2.4 or 2.5m rule, is that a British Safety Standard thing?I was trying to find somewhere in law that the siting could be wrong. You say he might be able to have a chimney thing on the flat roof of the garage, would this also have to be a certain distance away from our property???

ArtfulBodger · 7 Jan 2006

Is there a cage around the flue?

ChrisR · 7 Jan 2006

There are instructions with the boiler about flue positions, but those aren't your concern really. You are of course entitled to build up to the boundary with no gap. Doesn't mean you can just cut his flue terminal off and hand it back like a bit of tree today, but in the long run you can make him move it.

Call your Building Control office (local council), and Environmental Health, and you should be well armed with info. If you get E.H. acting for you, you won't need a solicitor to do any leaning on him.

My mind is wandering to all the things which could unfortunately (for him and his boiler) happen to get sucked into the air intake.

ollski · 7 Jan 2006

Have a word with him, he may not realise and it is up to the installer to correct it, the flue must not be sited where the products will create a nuisance to neighbouring properties, also if the flue gases can enter your property directly through an opening the installation is 'At Risk'.

ChrisRoberts · 7 Jan 2006

So the garage has a flat roof and the installer fitted it with a flue going over the neighbours driveway. That's top work.

Sounds like he needs to fit a verticle flue.
Surely a swift call to corgi might have an effect. Then again probalby not!

mistee · 7 Jan 2006

Hi all, and thanks for the helpful replies.

1) No there is no cage, the flue is a round cylinder thing which tapers slightly at the end, it protudes about 10cm out of his garage wall.

2) the fumes get blasted out directly into our porch and are at about head height, they were coming out yesterday and I had to leave our baby in the pushchair out of the way, go into the porch, open the front door and bring the baby in sharpish as I was a bit bothered about the fumes. We also have an opening kitchen window nearer to the flue and the way the window opens the fumes would come into the kitchen, also our baby has her bedroom directly above the kitchen with the same window opening, so I'm not sure if the flue coming out of the flat roof would be any better.

3) We've spoken to the neighbour who got his tape measure out and started to measure the distance between the flue and our porch, but we pointed out that as it's already over the boundary we felt it was in the wrong place, we suggested he get back to his installer for more information, we also mentioned EH and said we'd do some more finding out.

We don't want to fall out with the neighbour, we just want the flue to be somewhere else. The installer of the boiler shouldn't have put him in this situation in the first place

mistee · 7 Jan 2006

Also, it's a combi boiler apparently, does this make a difference?

Slugbabydotcom · 7 Jan 2006

Combi or conventional boiler doesn't make a difference.

It shouldnt be within 2.5metres of the boundary never mind right on it, if it is pointing towards your land. 600mm if it is parallel with the party wall.
In any case it should not be fitted wherever the condensate is liable to cause a problem with any neighbouring property.
The reason being theoretically that the acidic condensate could rip the paint of your range rover or more realistically perhaps a garden shed or fence could be damaged. [I dont know the layout of your property]

Easiest solution to keep the peace might be to fit a 45º deflector so that the flue gasses are directed away from your porch. If you are convinced you will be happy with that.

The correct solution is to either re-route the flue, move the boiler or fit a non condensing boiler under an exemption.

For confirmation of what I have told you, any Condensing boiler instruction manual has this information

FYI I have copied and pasted this from the worcester site

General position
1. The terminal must not cause an obstruction nor the discharge a
nuisance. Particular care should be exercised with regards to the
pluming of the flue gases and any increase in noise levels.
2. If a terminal is fitted less than 2 metres above a surface to
which people have access, then a guard must be fitted.
A terminal protective guard is available from Tower Flue
Components, Vale Rise, Tonbridge. Tel No. (01732) 351555.
The terminal guard must be securely fixed to the wall using
suitable plugs and corrosion resistance screws. The guard must
be symmetrically positioned about the terminal assembly and
The flue system must be installed and terminated in accordance with
the recommendations of BS 5440art 1.

Terminal Position Min Distance
A1 Directly below an opening, air brick, opening windows etc. 300mm
B1 Above an opening, air brick, opening window etc. 300mm
C1 Horizontally to an opening, air brick, opening window etc. 300mm
D Below gutters, soil pipes or drain pipes 75mm
E Below eaves 200mm
F Below balconies or car port roof (lowest point) 200mm
G From a vertical drain pipe or soil pipe 150mm
H From an internal or external corner 300mm
I Above ground, roof or balcony 300mm
J From a surface facing the terminal 600mm
K From a terminal facing the terminal 1200mm
L From an opening in the car port not
(e.g. door, window) into the dwelling recommended
M Vertically from a terminal on the same wall 1,500mm
N Horizontally from a terminal on the same wall 300mm
P From a vertical structure on the roof *
Q Above intersection with roof *
1 In addition, the terminal should not be nearer than 150 mm (fanned draught) to an opening in the
building fabric formed for the purpose of accommodating a built-in element such as a window frame.
* See instructions supplied with vertical flue kits
spaced such that there is a gap of 50mm between the end of the
terminal and the guard.
3. In certain weather conditions, a white plume of condensation will
be emitted from the flue terminal and siting where this could be a
nuisance, i.e. near security lighting, should be avoided.
4. The air inlet/outlet duct and the terminal of the boiler must not be
closer than 25mm to any combustible material. Detailed
recommendations on protection of combustible materials are given
in BS 5440:1.

ArtfulBodger · 7 Jan 2006

It makes no difference that it is a combi.

The installation, as others have already noted, is seriously flawed in a number of ways. The installer must, and will, rectify this if he or she wishes to remain CORGI registered.

bab · 7 Jan 2006

It it not gona be hard to fit a vertical flue & its not gona lokk bad the installer can fit a 90 elbow up with a terminal on just abve the garage roof or even 2 x 90 bends to point back over the roof. Both ideas were suggested to me by Corgi when i was asked to help in the same sort of incident.

ChrisRoberts · 8 Jan 2006

I had to change one, fitted by someone else, from horizantal to verticle. This was because the neighbours were complaining about pluming. this is similar to your case. I'm sure the neighbour got on to the local building control and they had a quite word. If they are not going to be amicable about it I'd contact Corgi and ask for a visit.

Paul Barker · 8 Jan 2006

Yes the fact it's a combi is very relevant. It was fitted by a combiswap profiteer, great idea to call corgi because I'm sick of people doing cheap jobs and me goinmg round fitting vertical flues left right and centre clambering about on roofs all for less profit.

diynot

If you need to find a tradesperson to get your job done, please try our local search below, or if you are doing it yourself you can find suppliers local to you.

Select the supplier or trade you require, enter your location to begin your search.

Are you a trade or supplier? You can create your listing free at DIYnot Local

Siting of a gas boiler flue?

Similar threads