Boiler Maintenance Ensures Longevity
Boiler maintenance if neglected, can become an expensive item to replace, so looking after your existing boiler, or a new one if you are having one fitted, can benefit you in many ways, by:
Keeping your heating bills as low as possible
Only use your boiler when you need it
The first thing to consider that will help to extend the life of your existing boiler is to only use it when necessary. You may need it for both heating and hot water, and if you do, that puts more of drain on it in terms of the length of time that it needs to be on. But whatever its use, adjusting the time settings to the minimum, while at the same time making sure your home is warm, and that you’ve got hot water on tap when you need, it is key.
Could you go on the Economy 7 tariff?
If you’ve got an electric boiler, in terms of heating the water, you should do this overnight on the cheaper Economy 7 tariff. All boilers are pretty well insulated these days, so the water will usually stay sufficiently hot all through the day, depending on usage of course. You can always program it to come on at midday for an hour if it needs a top-up.
Are your thermostats working properly?
The other thing you should do is to check your thermostats to make sure that they’re working as they should. Once again, if they’re triggering the system on and off unnecessarily, this could also have a long term effect of the boiler’s working life.
Is your boiler man-enough for the job?
You should also consider if your existing boiler has the right heating capacity. If it’s under-rated, it will be working too hard, and once again, this is something that could shorten longevity.
The biggest single factor to increased boiler longevity
The biggest consideration of all however, is how often you have your boiler serviced and maintained. This is THE crucial factor, and not only from longevity point of view, but from a health and safety point of view too, especially if you have a gas boiler.
Beware the silent killer
When gas boilers are poorly ventilated, or just too old, there is a danger of them giving off carbon monoxide fumes, and these as you are already probably aware can be lethal! They are known as the silent killer. Carbon monoxide poisoning can lull you into feeing drowsy, and if this happens and you fall asleep, you may never wake up again!
Having your gas boiler maintained once per year by a fully qualified “Gas Safe Register” engineer is essential!
Regularly servicing your boiler will increase its longevity
But there’s another good reason to have your boiler regularly serviced and maintained, and that’s because it will help to keep it in good working order, and will extend its working life. Many people think that by missing out on servicing, they can save money; but in actual fact this is false economy! It will almost certainly result in costly repairs, and if it’s in the height of winter, (which is somehow always the case), an emergency call out could cost you even more.
Regular boiler servicing saves money in the long term
Be safe, and be money-wise. If you don’t already have regular maintenance in place, take out a contract now. It may seem more expensive on the face of it, but it will save you money over time; not only on your heating bills, (because the more efficient your boiler is, the less it will cost to run), but on repairs and replacement costs too. If your boiler gets end the end of life, then only choice is to get a new boiler installed.
