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Gas safety week is this week (17th – 23rd September), is the eigth annual gas safety week. WPJ Heating is proud to say that we are strong supporters. The Gas Safe Register coordinates the week every year. The official list is of gas engineers who can legally work on gas installations and appliances. Companies across the UK will raise awareness of the dangers associated with ill – maintained gas appliances.

So, WPJ Heating is gas safe registered and we take care of our customers’ homes – it’s our top priority. We believe that it doesn’t end when we deliver a good service, get paid and leave.

Why Gas Safety is important

Poorly installed or badly serviced gas appliances – (gas boilers, heaters, cookers, fireplaces, underfloor heating) can cause gas leaks, fires and carbon monoxide poisoning. Every year, carbon monoxide poisoning affects thousands of people across the UK. It’s a gas that you can’t see, smell or taste. It is especially dangerous because it can kill with no warning. Ensure that you service your gas appliances properly and you’ll be taking care of your home.

Gas Safety Guide

Next, follow this simple guide to make sure that your home is gas safe:

Your Landlord

The law states that your landlord has to ensure that gas appliances supplied to you are in good condition. They must arrange regular gas safety checks every year and show you that they have been completed. Landlords will typically also provide a gas safety certificate to show you that your boiler and other gas appliances are safe.

Your Engineer

Check that your engineer is gas safe registered. You can check that an engineer is gas safe registered by visiting www.gassaferegister.co.uk or calling 0800 408 5500. Make sure to check your engineer’s id card and that they are qualified to work on the specific appliance you’ve called them out for. A company may be gas safe registered but it doesn’t mean that all their engineers are qualified to work on any gas appliance. For example, an engineer might have sat exams to be able to work on a boiler, but not a gas cooker. Also check the back of their id card to make sure.

gas safe card front

gas safe card back

Your Appliances

Next, if you notice anything odd about any of your gas appliances, call a gas engineer immediately. For example – weak, yellow or orange flames instead of crisp blue ones, black marks around your appliance or too much condensation in the room. If you notice any of these signs, call your gas engineer or arrange a boiler service because they may be a sign. Importantly, don’t attempt to adjust or fix gas appliances yourself.

Carbon Monoxide

Third, make sure you have a working, audible carbon monoxide alarm and locate it near any fuel burning appliances. It might be necessary to have more than one carbon monoxide alarm depending on the size of your property. (For example, if your boiler is located in the loft and you have a gas cooker in your kitchen, you’ll need to have an alarm near your gas cooker and another one near your boiler).

Finally, the signs of carbon monoxide poisoning are – headaches, dizziness, breathlessness, nausea, collapsing and loss of consciousness. Above all, exit the property immediately and call emergency services if you or a family member experience any of these symptoms,.

Gas Safety Emergency

In conclusion, call the national gas emergency helpline 0800 111 999, if you ever smell gas

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Summary:

Boiler installation place to choose from.

Question: Where should i put my boiler?

Answer: Anywhere you want to, as long as you check with a gas safe engineer that it is safe and cost effective.

Bonus: There’s a glossary of key terms at the bottom of this article.

Where should I install my boiler?

You can install your boiler anywhere in your house if your kitchen has got limited space. But consider what is practical, safe and cost effective before you decide to install it in the shed. Of course, you should get advice from your Gas Safe registered heating engineer. Until then, use these tips:

boiler installation place

Boiler installation place: put your boiler under the stairs

You can put your boiler under the stairs to keep the boiler and any ugly pipes out of sight. This is only an option if your walls aren’t adjoining a neighbour’s. We advise that you install your boiler on an outside wall or else it will cost you more than planned to run a longer flue.

boiler installation place 2

Boiler installation place: Put your boiler in the bathroom?

Bathrooms are becoming a popular choice for boiler installations. If you install your boiler in the bathroom, make sure it’s not out of place in your bathroom design. Also, house it in a cupboard to shield it from damp and humidity. As a bonus, keep your towels in there too because they’ll be warm and toasty when you use them.

Make sure the housing cupboard is far from any water, so that water doesn’t come in contact with the electrics. Again, check with your heating engineer. The boiler you choose will affect its location in your home.

boiler installation place 3

Boiler installation place: Garage/Outbuilding/Loft

Boiler installations in an outbuilding or garage are also an increasing trend. But before you do this, remember that your new boiler might cut out in freezing weather. Also, consider accessibility. When the time comes to service your boiler, will it be accessible in that obscure corner of your loft? If your boiler must go outside, buy extra frost protection for your condensate piping.

Liquid Petroleum Gas boiler installation

If your boiler runs on liquid petroleum gas (LPG), don’t install it in the basement. LPG doesn’t rise and will not disperse in the event of a gas leak, which is a safety hazard. Your installer should survey your home and tell you what areas are safest and most efficient. While saving the space you set out to by installing your boiler in different parts of the house.

Hope this helps! Leave your feedback and comments below. Also, if you’re thinking of changing your boiler, or you think it needs to get fixed, call us and we’ll be able to help. 

Glossary

Flue – A flue is essentially a pip, or opening (usually attached to a boiler) to remove exhaust gases and allow them to escape outdoors.

Have suggestions? think we should add certain terms to our glossary? Or just have a general query – contact us via live chat, or send us an email: info@wpjheating.co.uk

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Things to consider:

Whether your turn your boiler off in the summer or not depends entirely on what you normally use your boiler for throughout the colder months. It may be a good way to save on your bills, but is it worth it practically?

According to this article from boilerguide, there are a few things to consider:

– If your shower is electric, you won’t need your boiler for hot water.

– Your appliances and white goods e.g dishwasher and washing machine need to be cold fill.
This means that they generate their own hot water.

– Make sure you get your boiler serviced regularly, especially if you plan to turn it off.

The full article can be found on boilerguide.co.uk.

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dehunidifier

In winter, the condensation you notice on your windows could also be collecting on your walls, you may have excess humidity in your home. Damp can be created through simple everyday tasks – doing dishes, cooking, taking a shower, drying clothes. All that moisture created ends up hanging in the air, or as damps in your walls or clothes and linen. Damp in the walls can cause structural damage and lead to rotting and ruined insulation. Which ultimately affects your heating, making it difficult to keep your house warm.

A balanced level of humidity is also important for you and your family’s safety. Breathing mould spores is very dangerous, plus breathing dam air can be the reason you’re waking up each morning with blocked sinuses.

Signs you might need a dehumidifier.

If you spot mould on your walls, you notice your wall paper is peeling, or the paint is cracking, these might be signs of high humidity. In summer, if you notice that its difficult to cool down, or you get excessively hot and clammy while inside your home, it might also be a sign of unusually high humidity.

Do this before getting a dehumidifier

Before deciding to purchase a dehumidifier you may not need, try simpler ways to get rid of humidity. Make sure the exhaust fans in your kitchen and bathroom are clean and working. Use your extractor when cooking and open the windows in your bathroom when you take a shower. All these things go a long way to increasing air circulation in you home and can have significant effects on the humidity levels.

Types of Dehumidifier

They come in different sizes and brands and can cost you anything from tens to hundreds of pounds, depending on what you need. Before you delve into the world of gadgets and extra gizmos, we thought this guide might be helpful.

Refrigerant

These are more common in Britain, because it is believed that they work better at higher temperatures and higher humidities. A fan works to draw the air in the room through the dehumidifier and cool it over metal plates, causing the moisture to condense and drip into the water tank over time. This eventually reduces the relative humidity in the room and the refrigerant humidifier will switch itself off.

Desiccant

This type of dehumidifier works better in colder environments – like your garage, shed or conservatory. They use an absorbent material to extract water from the air. The material is then heated, and the moisture drops into the water condenser.

What size dehumidifier?

Portable dehumidifiers are the ones you simply plug in. They’re a good choice if you’ve got occasional humidity issues. They’re easy to use, affordable and effective.

Humidifiers come in different sizes, from 0.5 to 20 litres. The size you need will depend on the level of humidity in your home as well as the size of your home, or the space you want to use it in.

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Some of us believe that turning up the thermostat makes our homes heat up quicker and that the temperature dropping outside automatically means we should turn up the thermostat.

Most of us believe we know how to keep warm. Turn the thermostat up, draw the curtains and reach for a blanket. But a survey from the Energy Savings Trust showed that although 4 out of 5 British consumers believe they understand their heating controls, up to half of us misuse energy by simply turning up our thermostats when it’s cold outside.  On day 16 of our advent calendar, we’re bringing you 16 tips on getting through the turkey, having family over, Christmas decorations and the *really* cold snap without throwing money at the wind too.


Keep your heating on. If you’re going away for Christmas, make sure your you keep your programmer/ timer on. Set it to come on less frequently than usual, but to come on. While you will have some energy costs, this will help you avoid the more expensive problem of frozen pipes when you get back. If you’re a landlord, make sure your tenants do the same.

Draught proof your windows and doors. It could save you about £35 over the year.

Don’t leave your devices on standby. More than 75% of us admit to leaving at least two of our devices on stand by regularly. Your set top box left on standby for 20 hours in the day can cost you £20 a year. This Christmas, turn your TV and games consoles off standby and you could save up to £30 a year. Particularly when you’ve got guests over, there’s no need for your tv to be left on as background noise when you’re not watching it.

Get your heating system checked before your guests arrive. Book a boiler check with your gas engineer to make sure everything’s in order before the festivities begin. The last thing you want is for us to get that long anticipated white Christmas while your home feels like an ice box.


Check the opening and closing times of your local gas engineer and plumber over the Christmas period. The last thing you want is to wake up over the holidays and face a heating emergency with no idea who to call. Incidentally, we’ve got some tips on how to troubleshoot heating emergencies if you find yourself stuck in a rut.

Get a plumber to do a winter check on your pipes. Again, make sure blockages are cleared, none of your pipes are frozen and there’s no chance of a plumbing emergency over the break.

Turn your thermostat down. It may sound like the opposite of what you should do, but it really won’t make a difference to how warm you feel. Dropping a degree or two on your thermostat could save you money this year.

Use LED Christmas lights. LED Christmas lights use up to 90% less energy than normal Christmas lights. If everyone in the UK used LED lights, collectively we could save up to £13 million during the twelve days of Christmas.


Or use solar powered fairy lights. They’re free to use, as they’re charged by the sun during the day.

Christmas is a good time to light candles. Create an atmospheric or victorian theme in your home by simply using candles instead of flicking the switch. Read our post on the origins of advent calendars or the Swedish tradition of Lucia to see how candles featured very heavily in Christmas traditions.

Wear that ugly jumper. Very simply, you won’t have to turn the thermostat up.

Use your tablet or phone instead of your laptop to power that Netflix binge you’ve been looking forward to. Tablets use 70% less energy than a laptop.


When cooking, make sure to cook with the lids on and use the right size pots for your hobs to avoid wasting energy.

Cook multiple things in the oven at once, to avoid having to turn the oven on multiple times during the day.

Over Christmas dinner, when everyone’s gathered together in the same room, it’s a great opportunity to turn the heating down, or even off. The shared body heat will keep everyone warm, and you can save money while you’re at it.

On the same note, have an engineer install thermostatic radiator valves in different rooms. This will allow you to control the temperature in rooms that no-one is in, or warm up bedrooms just before everyone goes to bed.

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You’ve opened advent window 15!

Over the holidays, you might wake up one morning and find that your central heating has decided to have its own holiday. Not ideal. Especially over Christmas, when emergency plumbing and heating services may face high demand and so will be less available. So it’s important that you know how to trouble shoot minor issues yourself.

NB: If after following these steps, you notice that your boiler/radiators are still not working, call a qualified gas engineer. Everything in this guide can be done without needing tools, or having to open any part of your boiler other than accessing the controls. If you find that you need tools to access any part of your boiler, don’t touch it at all. Don’t try to fix your boiler yourself, it is dangerous and may be illegal to do so if you’re not a qualified gas engineer.


Here are some troubleshooting checks you can carry out yourself, safely:

Hit the reset button.

Did you have a power cut recently? Or fuse tripped on your main electricity? If you did, your boiler’s timer may simply have reset itself. All you need to do in this instance is re – programme your boiler again. Just to make sure set the timer to come on in the next 15 minutes and turn your thermostat all the way up to see if this generates any heat. If after that, it still doesn’t come on, move on to the next step.

Check your gas supply

The prospect of having no heating or hot water can sometimes make us panic. Most people would call a gas engineer out over minor issues that they could’ve resolved themselves with simple checks. The next step is to check that your gas supply is actually on. For modern homes, your gas isolation valve may be located outside, where your gas meter is. If you can’t find it there, check the cupboard under the stairs, under your kitchen sink or in the garage. If the handle is at 90 degrees to the vertical gas pipe, that means it’s off.

If that’s the case at this point, don’t touch anything. Call a gas engineer immediately. There is no reason why your gas will turn itself off and if you find the valve in the off position, there is usually a reason for it that you may be unaware of.

If it is on however, you can move on to the next step.


Check the pressure

Another simple reason your heating may have stopped working as normal is if the pressure is too low or too high. Your boiler will have it’s own specific instructions on how to check the pressure. If it’s at 0.5 bar, the pressure is too low and a water leak may have occurred. Above 2.5 bar means it’s too high and there is too much water in your system. There is a very easy fix and you can deal with this yourself.

To increase pressure:

You’ll notice a silver bendy pipe (called a filling loop) with two swing valves attached. Open one valve, then the other, this will increase the pressure, close the valves when the pressure reaches 1.5 bar.

To reduce pressure:

Simply bleed your radiators with a bleeding key to let water out of the system and therefore reduce the pressure in the system.


Call Live Plumber

If after taking these steps, your central heating or hot water is still not working, call our live plumber service. It makes it possible for you to call us via video chat and show us exactly what the issue is. This means that you get instant help, don’t need to book an appointment just to get a professional opinion and you avoid unnecessary charges.

Live plumber is usually open from 09.00 – 17.00 during our regular office hours, but over the holidays, we’ll be closed from the 23rd – 26th, and from the 30th December – 1st January 2018.

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Here at WPJ Heating we pride ourselves on the quality of the boiler installation service we provide, as well as the genuine care and thoughtfulness we put into the excellence of our customer care. Worcester Bosch, the UK’s no 1 boiler manufacturer has recognised our commitment to delivering great service and so have acknowledged us as a Worcester Accredited Installer (WAI).

The WAI scheme is the UK heating industry’s longest running and most exclusive business support scheme. The Worcester Bosch Group aim to work with a very select group of independent heating companies who have demonstrated a commitment to great customer service and quality workmanship consistently over a period of time.

What is a Boiler Guarantee?

A boiler guarantee is an agreement between you (the purchaser) and the boiler manufacturer. In the case of Worcester Bosch that we mainly work with, the company promises to visit your home and fix or replace your boiler if it breaks down within a specified period of time, without any objections or protests. This boiler guarantee is legally binding, so you can have the peace of mind that not only are you getting the best quality product. We’ve got you covered should something go wrong.

Extended Boiler Guarantee

WAI status means that Worcester relies on us to install their boilers exactly as they intended, which means that we are able to offer the extended boiler guarantee on new boilers from the Worcester Greenstar gas – fired range. You can be sure that by installing a Worcester Bosch boiler with us you’re getting the best installation product and service on the market.

Why are we telling you this?

We are Diamond Members of the WAI scheme which means that we are accredited by Worcester Bosch to install their boilers, solar water heating, and heat pumps. The Diamond grade is the highest level, so we are able to give you the longest guarantee on Worcester boilers and products, anything up to 10 years depending on product.

Our WAI status means that we have signed up to a strict code of conduct that covers business practices and focuses on proper interaction with customers. As part of the selection process our engineers have to complete a Worcester Bosch product specific training course to demonstrate that they are competent on Worcester Bosch gas boilers. This course carries an industry recognised certificate. In order to continue our membership in the Worcester Accredited installer scheme our engineers update their training every 5 years.

We want you to know that you can always trust a WPJ Heating engineer because we’re committed to providing you with the best possible service.

You can get a quote for a new boiler by clicking the button below.

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Underfloor Heating System: The Basics

Underfloor Heating System

As winter approaches, running  an underfloor heating system may be the most cost effective way to heat up your entire house. Plus, there are lots more benefits, including better heated rooms, lower impact on the environment and there’ll be no need for unsightly radiators hanging off your walls. You can heat your home efficiently with lower level heat that spreads evenly through the room. It’s cosy, modern and most of all, very functional.

Types of Underfloor Heating System

There are two main types of underfloor heating to choose from. Electric or wet underfloor heating. Electric underfloor heating is best for smaller, tiled spaces like bathrooms or kitchens, while wet systems are better suited to larger spaces –   they have a large network of pipes that contain water that gets heated by your boiler when you switch it on. When you find yourself thinking of upgrading your heating system, explore your options to find out if an underfloor heating system would be better suited to your home instead.

Questions to ask about underfloor heating systems

Meanwhile, we’ve created a list of  questions to ask yourself when you start thinking about an underfloor heating system.

How many rooms are in your home? The truth is, if you live in a small flat in the middle of the city are only planning to have an underfloor heating system installed in one room, it may not be the cost effective choice. The planning, materials and labour involved simply make underfloor heating systems better suited to larger rooms or projects. For a small flat or single room, it’s cheaper to install a radiator.

Are you prepared for a big project? You will need to take up all the flooring in the rooms you’re having fitted. You would also need to work out the finished floor height once all the layers are in place, if the installation is happening in a kitchen, the whole kitchen will need to be refitted as generally all rooms will be stripped right back to joists and concrete. Installs like this are best left until they’re a part of a much larger project e.g a kitchen refurb or new bathroom installation.

Are you prepared for unforeseen circumstances? As with all building projects, you might start the work and discover problems you didn’t plan for. Such as leaking pipes, water damage to your floors etc. Depending on the size of your property, how many rooms you’re having fitted with underfloor heating and whether you’ve had electric or wet underfloor heating installed, you may find that you have to install a new boiler to handle new capacity. Make sure you have a contingency for such things that do come up.

What type of floor do you have? Underfloor heating systems work best in homes where the floor materials are good conductors of heat. The heat circulating in a tiled bathroom or kitchen will be much better than that in a living room with wooden floors. Generally, it’s advised that you don’t have wooden flooring in rooms where you intend to generate heat from the floor, as wood is naturally a bad conductor of heat.

What are the pros and cons?

ProsCons
Cheaper to runExpensive to fit
Even heat spread out across the room, no cold spotsLots of work - a project could take up to a month
No ugly radiatorsYour current boiler may be inefficient, and need to be upgraded
You can control each room individually
Limited sludge and corrosion

Have you checked reviews? Remember that cheap isn’t always best. Always make sure you check your installers reviews on Google, Facebook and Checkatrade to make sure that you can trust installer with such a big project.

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It’s summer, but it’s not summer. It’s supposed to be getting warmer but why do we have jumpers on? The sun shines in the morning, but by 5pm in the evening it might start raining and we’ll feel nippy. We’re used to the English weather playing tricks on us, but it doesn’t it has to cost us in household energy bills. It’s not a good idea to keep your heating running throughout the year, but with occasional cool temperatures during warmer months, here are 12 ways you can keep warm without turning the radiator on.

Warmer Air

Drafts – Make sure your doors and windows are properly sealed to prevent cool air leaking into your home from outside.

Linen – Curtains and blinds are not just made to look good and accessorise your home. Use lined curtains and blinds – they help block the sun but also trap heat and warm air from escaping, increasing the overall temperature of the room.

Keep doors closed – When the whole family is gathered in the living room, keep the doors closed so that cold air from other parts of the house stays out.

Humidity – After a hot shower, turn off the extractor fans and leave the bathroom door open instead. The warm air will spread through the house and bring the overall temperature down.

Warmer Body

More reasons to cuddle – You wouldn’t think it, but cuddling with a loved one is an effective way to share body heat and keep you warmer. As a bonus, light candles around the room, They aren’t just a source of light and romance, but the added heat will make you warm enough to not have to turn on the heating.

Extra blankets – This one’s a no brainer, so pile on extra the blankets. At night, sleeping with your face under the blanket can actually will trap warm air when you breathe out. This is the reason canopy beds exist, they were originally used to keep lords and noblemen warm, rather than for extravagance and luxury.

Rugs and Carpets – Put down rugs and carpets throughout to stop heat loss through the floor. Use underlays to make them more comfy, but also to add to the heat insulation.

Insulation – Summer is a good time to make sure your home is insulated. While insulation is often standard in new build UK homes, but if your property is older, you may be losing tons of money in your energy bills. Heat rises, so if you’ve got a loft, making sure it’s insulated will trap heat from the sun. Which will keep you warmer in the evenings.

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This week, we’re continuing our boiler basics series. We’ve covered things to think about, what a new boiler will cost and different types of boilers. To sum up, here’s a quick fire list of 17 dos and don’ts when you come to install your new boiler.

Boiler Guide: Things to do

Make sure your installer is Gas Safety accredited.

Get 2 or 3 quotes from local boiler installer companies. Price, guarantee and quality of workmanship can vary drastically.

Have a magnetic filter included in the installation, or at least have a good reason to omit it.

Make sure the system is suitably flushed to remove sludge and debris at the time of the installation.

Have corrosion inhibitor chemicals added at the time of installation to protect the new boiler.

Ensure the installer covers the surrounding area in protective sheets.

Make sure the manufacturer’s guarantee and Gas Safe Register paperwork are completed, sent off and logged online.

Ask your installer about follow-up care and annual servicing.

Check if you need new programmers, pumps, thermostats and other components on the system.

Expect the old boiler to be properly disposed of.

Boiler Guide: Don’t do this

Use an installer with a conspicuous lack of customer reviews. It’s the only way to check the reliability of your installer.

Ignore the importance of researching the manufacturer of the boiler being recommended by the installer to make sure it is suited to your needs.

Be afraid to ask any questions about everything so that you are clear on what to expect.

Feel you have to hang around all day during the installation. Good firms are tidy and responsible and can be left to it.

Expect to clean up afterwards or be left with piles of rubbish – This should all be taken care of.

Pay the balance until you are satisfied.

Be bamboozled by jargon in the quotes. Get at least three and seek clarity when comparing them.

Check here for more information on what to expect from your boiler installation experts. Or visit our website to get a quote for a new boiler installation .

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