Get ahead of the cold snap by checking your boiler now | Tenant news

Now that we’re in October it's a good idea to carry out a few checks on your boiler and thermostat ahead of winter.

If you’ve not turned your heating on yet, don’t wait until cold weather arrives, please do it now to check if it’s working.

If once you’ve put the boiler, your radiators aren’t heating properly, making a strange sound, leaking water or you suspect your boiler has a fault, please report it as a repair.

Report your repair
You can report a boiler repair in various ways, but the best way to report a repair is via the My Habinteg tenant portal. If you don’t have a My Habinteg account it is easy to register for one. You can also call our Customer Services Team, Habinteg Direct, on 0300 365 3100 or email them on direct@habinteg.org.uk.

Our contractor Sure Maintenance will attend to all calls about boiler repairs.

If you smell gas or suspect you have a gas leak, call the Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 or via textphone (minicom) on 0800 371 787.

If you're a British Sign Language (BSL) user, you can use  SignLive to contact the National Gas Emergency Service free of charge. If someone has collapsed or is displaying severe symptoms, seek medical help by calling 999 or 112.

While you wait for the Gas Emergency Service to attend you MUST:

• Open doors and windows to allow fresh air in
• Turn off the gas at the mains tap, which is usually near the meter. Move the handle a quarter turn until it’s at 90 degrees from the pipe to shut off the gas supply
• Leave the property.
   

Once you have done this, also report the issue to Habinteg’s Customer Services Teamin the ways outlined above.

Keep an eye out for minor faults
There are a number of minor potential faults to watch out for while your boiler is in use in the coming months. They include:

·       Loss of boiler pressure
Check your boiler pressure. Find out how you can do this by checking your boiler instruction manual. The pressure should sit at 1.0-1.5 bar.

Your manual’s instructions will tell you how to reset pressure. However, if you can’t do this, please call Habinteg Direct and report it.

·       Frozen condensate pipe
One of the most common causes of boiler shutdowns is when your boiler’s external pipes freeze over in extreme low temperatures; usually when we get prolonged temperatures below zero.

A simple fix is to switch the boiler off and thaw the pipes by pouring warm to hot (not boiling) water on the pipe. Don’t use ladders or hang out of windows to do this. Once the ice is thawed, switch on the boiler. If in doubt, call our Customer Services Team at Habinteg Direct to report it. 

·       Thermostat not working
Troubleshoot using the thermostat’s manual instructions. Think about the temperature you keep the thermostat at.
The Energy Saving Trust recommends setting your thermostat to the lowest comfortable temperature, typically between 18°C and 21°C.

·       The World Health Organisation (WHO) suggests 18°C as the ideal temperature for healthy people, and the Met Office recommends that temperature for people with reduced mobility, heart or lung disease or who are 65 or older. If you’re unable to get your thermostat working, call Habinteg Direct and report it.