Bioler Service Checklist

[Hass]

Hello all,
Apologies firstly, if this is answered already. I did have a look around.

I am having my boiler serviced late this week.
Its a glo-worm CX 35i and is 2 years old.

Glo-work/Vaillant use Homeserve as their insurance but, I've been told the engineers are all Vaillant employees.

Can someone let me know from the pro's view, what I can expect?
ie, how long should a genuine service take if there are no problems with the boiler or other counterparts?
what are the 10 main things they should be checking and/or adjusting (if anything)?

thanks, appreciate the responses.
regards

 

[Agile]

How about reading the service book?

Tony

 

[Hass]

thanks Agile. Considering most manuals are geared towards people who understand it, they are not much help.

I just want to know for example, if the guys comes and goes within 10 minutes, is it likely they haven't done a proper check??
I am technical but, boilers and heating are not my forte.
regards

 

[dcawkwell]

Most modern boilers need virtually no maintenance.
A con spread by the gas industry that they do.
A basic check that seals are intact
and burning is being performed correctly is all that is needed.
In and out in 10-15 minutes.

 

[Agile]

thanks Agile. Considering most manuals are geared towards people who understand it, they are not much help.

The manufacturer's service manuals are written for the engineers who are to work on the boiler!

But anyone who can read English and has a reasonable ability to understand slightly technical writing.

I only know one boilers engineer here who has a degree in English Literature and the rest I am sure manage reasonably well.

Probably take 15-30 minutes in most cases if no problems are found.

In addition to whats in the service manual its useful to measure the expansion vessel air charge on many boilers.

Tony

 

[ALEC1]

One of the most important things is to check the expansion vessel charge... Often overlooked, but always worthwhile

 

[yerino]

Depends if he is doing a "service" (1 hour) or a "safety check" (15 minutes).

 

[ScottishGasMan]

Not sure exactly what boiler you are referring to (that's not how it will be named in the manual)

But in general for a Glowworm condensing combi, they will most likely check the expansion vessel pressure, which will mean draining a little water off the boiler, they will probably have a look at the quality of water they drain off and inform you if there was any significant dirt/problems with it.

they may remove and clean the condensate trap if it is dirty (not likely it will be) they will inspect the seals in the appliance, but probably will not strip and replace the door seals if it is only 2 years old.

They will test for an adequate gas pressure at the appliance, check that the appliance gas safety device works, and that the appliance is not leaking gas internally.

They will test that the appliance is burning at the correct gas/air ratio and adjust if required.

They will also inspect the boilers flue as to ensure it has been correctly fitted (this may be a simple as a look at it if its straight out the wall, or more thorough inspection if it includes extensions or a long run.

Bearing in mind, these guys will do this all day with the same or similar boilers it quite often will not take long (and some of those checks you couldn't tell they were doing them unless you yourself were experienced with boilers so there's no 10 things you can really be watching for).

They could do that in 15min on some newer appliances where some people could spend 40min in your house and do much less, so the time taken is not really much of a factor that will affect you.