Your manufacturer warranty stays valid
Annual servicing by a Gas Safe registered engineer is what keeps up to 10 years of appliance cover in force. Without it, that cover is a document rather than a protection.
Heating · Basingstoke & north Hampshire
Annual Boiler ServicingIn Basingstoke —Warranty Kept, Breakdowns Avoided
A proper annual service by a Gas Safe registered engineer keeps your manufacturer warranty valid, keeps combustion safe, and finds the worn components that would otherwise fail on the coldest night of the year.
Gas Safe registered 593588 · 15 years qualified · £2 million public liability · one-year workmanship guarantee
At a glance
Annual servicing that keeps your warranty valid and catches small faults before they become breakdowns.
- Free survey and a written price, fixed once given
- 8am–5pm, Monday to Friday
- Out-of-hours emergency call-outs available
- One-year workmanship guarantee on every job
15 years qualified
Apprenticeship completed 2011
Gas Safe 593588
Registered engineer
F-Gas certified
Refcom REF1025590
£2 million cover
Public liability insured
Fixed quotes
Free, and fixed once given
Overview
What an annual boiler service covers
A boiler service is a safety and performance inspection, not a tick-box visit. The appliance is opened up, the combustion is measured with an analyser, the seals and heat exchanger are examined, the flue is checked for integrity and correct termination, and the controls and safety devices are proved to operate as they should.
The point is to catch the things that are on their way out. Worn seals, a fouled burner, a weakening expansion vessel and drifting combustion figures all give warning long before they cause a breakdown — but only if somebody looks. That is the difference between a boiler that runs for a decade and one that dies in December.
For anyone with a newer appliance there is a second, purely commercial reason: virtually every manufacturer requires an annual service by a Gas Safe registered engineer to keep the warranty valid. A missed service can turn a covered heat exchanger failure into a bill you pay yourself, which is an expensive way to save the price of a service.
Who it is for
- Homeowners with a boiler under manufacturer warranty, which requires annual servicing to stay valid
- Anyone with an older appliance who would rather find faults in autumn than in January
- Landlords servicing appliances alongside their annual CP12 gas safety certificate
- Households who have just moved in and have no record of when the boiler was last serviced
- Anyone whose boiler is making new noises, cycling oddly, or losing pressure slowly
When it is needed
- Annually, ideally before the heating season starts rather than during it
- Whenever the manufacturer warranty requires it to remain in force
- On moving into a property with no service history
- After a breakdown, to confirm the wider system is in order
- Alongside a landlord gas safety certificate, to keep both obligations on one visit
The cost of leaving it
What skipping the service actually costs
The immediate risk is the one people think about last: combustion. A boiler with a fouled burner, a degraded seal or a compromised flue can spill products of combustion into the property, and carbon monoxide gives no warning of its own. Measuring combustion with an analyser is the only reliable way to know the appliance is burning cleanly, and that only happens at a service.
The financial risk is the warranty. Manufacturers make annual servicing a condition of cover, and they do check when a claim is made. Skipping two years of servicing to save money and then facing an uncovered heat exchanger replacement is a genuinely poor trade.
Then there is efficiency drift. Combustion figures move as burners foul and seals age, and the boiler burns more gas for the same heat output. It is a gradual change, so nobody notices it as an event — it just shows up as a bill that is a bit higher than it needs to be, every month, for years.
Finally, timing again. Faults found in a September service are booked in and dealt with calmly. The same faults found in January are an emergency call-out with a cold house behind them.
Common mistakes
- Assuming a boiler that is working does not need looking at
- Letting the warranty lapse by missing a year, then discovering it at the point of claim
- Accepting a 'service' that amounted to a visual glance with no combustion analysis
- Servicing the boiler while ignoring system water quality, which is what damages heat exchangers
- Leaving the service until the first cold week, when everyone else is calling too
Our process
What happens during the service
A consistent sequence, carried out and recorded the same way every time.
01
Visual and safety inspection
Appliance location, ventilation, flue route and termination, pipework and any signs of leaking, staining or spillage are checked before the boiler is opened.
02
Strip down and clean
Casing is removed and the burner, heat exchanger, condensate trap and seals are inspected and cleaned as required. Worn seals and fouled components are identified here rather than after they fail.
03
Combustion analysis and gas rate
The appliance is run and combustion is measured with a flue gas analyser, with the gas rate checked against the manufacturer's data. These figures are the objective proof that the boiler is burning safely and efficiently.
04
Controls and safety device testing
Pressures, thermostat and control operation, pump function, expansion vessel charge and safety devices are tested. System pressure behaviour is checked so slow losses are caught early.
05
Report, record and recommendations
You get the findings in plain terms: what is fine, what is wearing, and what should be dealt with before next winter. The service is recorded for warranty purposes, and any remedial work is quoted openly rather than started unasked.
Benefits
What you get out of it
A service is the cheapest thing you can do to a boiler. Here is what it buys.
Fewer winter breakdowns
Worn seals, weakening vessels and fouled burners are found while they are still cheap to deal with, instead of announcing themselves as a no-heat call-out in January.
Combustion proved safe
Measured with an analyser and checked against the manufacturer's figures, with the flue and ventilation inspected. This is the part that protects the household, not just the appliance.
Efficiency held where it should be
A clean, correctly set boiler burns less gas for the same output than one that has drifted for three years. That difference sits on every bill.
A record you can produce
Servicing is documented, which matters for warranty claims, for landlords, and for anyone who later comes to sell the property.
Landlord obligations covered in one visit
Where a CP12 landlord gas safety certificate is also due at £90 + VAT, both can be handled on the same appointment rather than two separate disruptions to tenants.
In detail
Servicing detail: what gets checked, and what a service is not
Knowing what should happen is the simplest defence against a fifteen-minute 'service' that consists of a look and an invoice.
The checks that define a real service
A boiler service that never puts an analyser in the flue has not established the one thing that matters most. Combustion figures are the measurement that tells you whether the appliance is burning cleanly, and they are also the figures that reveal drift over successive years.
Alongside that, the physical inspection covers the components that wear predictably. Seals harden, condensate traps silt up, burners foul, expansion vessels lose charge. None of these are dramatic on their own; all of them cause breakdowns when left long enough.
- Flue integrity, route and termination
- Ventilation and appliance location compliance
- Burner, heat exchanger and condensate trap condition
- Combustion analysis and gas rate against manufacturer data
- Expansion vessel charge and system pressure behaviour
- Safety device and control operation
Combi, system and regular boilers
The core safety checks are the same across appliance types, but the additional items differ. On a combi, the plate heat exchanger, diverter valve and domestic hot water performance matter. On a system or regular boiler, the cylinder, motorised valves, cylinder thermostat and wiring centre form part of the picture.
Servicing the boiler while ignoring the rest of the system it is connected to is how properties end up with a healthy appliance and a heating system that still does not work properly.
Water quality is what kills heat exchangers
Most premature boiler failures trace back to system water rather than the appliance. Sludge, magnetite and scale circulate through the heat exchanger, restrict flow, cause localised overheating and eventually block it outright.
That is why inhibitor levels and filter condition form part of a sensible service, and why a heavily contaminated system gets a powerflush recommendation rather than a shrug. Treating the water is far cheaper than replacing an exchanger.
Hard water in Hampshire
Much of north Hampshire sits on chalk, and harder water means scale forms more readily on heat exchangers and plate exchangers in combis. Kettling noises and slowly deteriorating hot water performance are the usual symptoms.
Where scale is a recurring issue we will say so and cover the practical options, including scale protection, rather than cleaning it off annually and saying nothing.
Landlords and rented property
A landlord gas safety certificate (CP12) is a legal inspection of safety; a service is a maintenance operation on the appliance. They are not the same thing and one does not substitute for the other, although both are commonly and sensibly booked together.
For managed portfolios, combining the CP12 at £90 + VAT with servicing on the same visit keeps tenant disruption to a single appointment and keeps the compliance record straightforward.
When to book
Late summer and early autumn are the right window. The heating has been off for months, engineers have availability, and anything found can be booked in and completed before the weather turns.
If your boiler is under warranty, book to the anniversary of the installation rather than to the season, because that is the date the manufacturer will measure against.
Boiler servicing across Basingstoke and north Hampshire
Questions
Boiler servicing
answered straight
Anything not covered here, call 07825 758511 and ask. 8am–5pm, Monday to Friday, with out-of-hours emergency call-outs available.
How much does a boiler service cost?
Servicing is quoted for your appliance and property — quotes are free and fixed once given. Where work is charged by time rather than by quote, the rate is £90 + VAT per hour. Landlord gas safety certificates (CP12) are £90 + VAT and can be combined with a service on the same visit.
How long does a boiler service take?
Typically under an hour for a standard domestic appliance in good condition. Longer if components need cleaning, or if the inspection uncovers a fault that warrants further investigation.
Do I legally have to service my boiler?
Homeowners are not legally required to service a boiler, but manufacturer warranties almost always require it, and it is the practical way to keep combustion safe. Landlords have a separate legal duty to hold a current gas safety certificate (CP12) for the property.
Will a service keep my boiler warranty valid?
Yes — annual servicing by a Gas Safe registered engineer is what keeps manufacturer cover in force, which runs up to 10 years on newer boilers. The service is documented so you have the record when you need it.
How often should a boiler be serviced?
Once a year. Booking in late summer or early autumn means anything found can be fixed calmly before the heating season, rather than becoming an emergency in the first cold week.
What is the difference between a service and a CP12?
A CP12 landlord gas safety certificate is a legal safety inspection of the gas appliances and installation in a rented property. A service is maintenance carried out on the appliance itself. Most landlords sensibly book both together.
My boiler is working fine — is a service still worth it?
Yes, for three reasons: it keeps the warranty valid, it proves combustion is safe, and it finds wearing components before they fail. A boiler working today tells you nothing about whether a seal or expansion vessel is close to the end.
What if you find something wrong during the service?
You are told exactly what it is, how urgent it is, and what it costs to put right before anything else is done. Nothing is started without your agreement, and all work carries a one-year workmanship guarantee.
Do you service boilers outside Basingstoke?
Yes — across north Hampshire, including Hook, Hartley Wintney, Tadley, Andover, Kingsclere, Overton, Micheldever and Aldermaston.
Can you service my boiler and my air conditioning at the same time?
Yes. The business is both Gas Safe registered (593588) and F-Gas certified (Refcom REF1025590), so heating and domestic air conditioning maintenance can be handled on the same visit.
Next step
Book your annual boiler service
One visit, warranty kept valid, combustion proved safe and the winter breakdown risk cut. Landlord CP12 certificates can be done on the same appointment at £90 + VAT.
- Gas Safe registered 593588 · F-Gas Refcom REF1025590
- £2 million public liability insurance
- One-year workmanship guarantee, up to 10 years on new boilers
- 3 Mansfield Road, Basingstoke, RG22 6DU