Home / Product Selection / Energy / Boiler Maintenance

To find out if your gas annual service is due, you can wait for us to let you know, or check online.

1. log in or register, this will open in a new window
2. if your annual service is due it will be displayed in the 'annual service visit' section of 'your account' page

You can book your gas annual service from one month before its due date.If, when you look online, there's no option to book your annual service that's because it's not yet due. Don't worry though, we'll contact you to let you know when it's due.

Don't have an online account? 
We'll let you know when your gas annual service is due by contacting you up to 3 months before (by phone) and then we'll send you reminders by post, email or text message. Alternatively you can contact us on 
0800 294 9678.*

*Calls may be recorded and/or monitored for quality assurance and compliance purposes.

The length of a gas annual service, plumbing or electrical maintenance inspection will vary and depend on:

• what's included in your HomeCare® agreement
• the age, size and condition of your appliances or products
• if any repairs or additional work is needed

If you book your annual gas service online you can choose a 2-hour appointment window. If you book over the phone you can only choose an AM or PM appointment.

There are different expert engineers for each of your products - gas, plumbing, electrical wiring and kitchen appliances. Unfortunately, we're not able to guarantee that these engineers will be available to attend at the same time or on the same day.

The inspections are by request. If you are a HomeCare® customer and have a contract that includes an inspection, please call us on 
0800 294 9678.*

*Calls may be recorded and/or monitored for quality assurance and compliance purposes

Troubleshooting checklist

There could be a number of reasons why your central heating or hot water isn't working. You can fix several problems yourself, avoiding a callout and - if you're a HomeCare® customer - possibly saving you money. Try these tips first:

• check the gas, electrical and water supplies to the appliance are turned on. It's surprising how easily they can get accidentally switched off
• check the thermostat is turned up and the clock timer is on
• some boilers have a pressure gauge showing system water pressure, this usually needs to be at around 1 bar, read more about system pressure
• got a system with a permanent pilot light? Check that it hasn't gone out - this is a very common problem with older appliances
• try putting your heating on maximum for a short while to see if you can get it back into action
• have the clocks gone forward or back? Your clock programmer might just need adjusting to the right time
• has there been a power cut recently? Your heating clock programmer may have returned to its factory settings when the power came back on. Test the central heating by setting it to come on in 15 minutes time - if that works, simply re-enter your preferred settings
• do you have a customer-operated reset switch (not one that needs you to remove any casing)? These are usually found on the front of modern boilers: check your user manual to see if it needs resetting
• try turning the electrical supply to the boiler off and on - the switch is usually near the boiler or in the airing cupboard. This might reset your boiler and resolve the problem
• could you have frozen pipes? In periods of long, cold weather, the condensate pipe of your boiler can freeze. See my pipes have frozen
• are other gas appliances affected? If so the problem is bigger and you need to Book a callout

For open vented system boilers 
(You have this type of boiler if it has a small black tank. You'll usually find these in the loft.)

Has the ball valve float in the feed and expansion cistern got stuck?
(this is usually a small plastic or steel tank situated in the loft)

If so, when your water system falls to a certain point, system water can't circulate. If you can safely and easily get into and move around your loft, check to see if the ball valve is stuck (usually indicated by no or low water in the cistern). Gently move the ball float valve arm to free it - do not use force. This may solve the problem.

For sealed system boilers or combination boilers 
(You have this type of boiler if it doesn't have a cistern that looks like a smaller version of your cold water cistern.)

• has the system pressure dropped? This is sometimes caused by water leaks, and can stop the boiler from working properly: 
  
  

  1. check the pressure gauge - this should be set at 1 bar. A red indicator needle sometimes shows the position set when the boiler was installed.

  2. look in your user manual to see if you can re-pressurise the boiler yourself - you can also find instructions on the rear of the control panel. But if your boiler panel needs tools to remove it, do NOT touch it: Book a callout instead.

Plumbing and Drainage appointments , call us on 0800 294 9650* to change your appointment time/date.

All other breakdown appointments.

To change the time/date of your breakdown appointment:

1. go to 'log in or register', this will open in a new window
2. select your 'Maintenance & Repair account'
3. scroll down to your 'Appointment Diary'
4. click the + symbol, as shown below
5. change your appointment date or time

Alternatively, if you prefer you can call us to change the date or time of 
your appointment on 0845 950 0400.*

*Calls may be recorded and/or monitored for quality assurance and compliance purposes.

Do you think your boiler is too old or not energy efficient enough? An energy-efficient boiler can cut your bills by up to £225 a year^.

We can help you decide if your boiler needs replacing by looking at:

• its make and model
• whether it suits your property

For an energy efficiency rating for your boiler, just fill out our 
simple checklist or call us on 0800 072 8629.*

As a guide, boilers rated A are the most efficient and those rated G or below are among the least efficient. At British Gas, we only install A-rated boilers.

Boiler upgrade offers

From money off installation to free boiler and central heating care, we update our offers for new boilers regularly. Check out our latest offers on new boilers.

Need a boiler quote? Arrange a consultation to get a quote for your new boiler by calling us on 0800 009 4450*.

^Source Energy Saving Trust (September 2010)

*Calls may be recorded and/or monitored for quality assurance and compliance purposes.

Smell gas? Call the Gas Emergency Services on 0800 111 999.

If you think you could have a gas leak you'll need to turn off the gas supply at the meter

How to turn off your gas supply

1. find the gas Emergency Control Valve. This is often outside in a meter box. If not, look under the stairs, under the kitchen sink and in the garage
2. turn the Emergency Control Valve's handle a quarter turn so the lever is at 90 degrees to the Emergency Control Valve's body

Next steps:

1. open all windows and doors
2. don't turn electrical switches on or off - including your TV, computer, oven, etc
3. put out any naked lights (flames), eg your hob or candles. Don't smoke, strike matches or do anything that could cause ignition
4. open any electric doors or gates manually

Carbon monoxide poisoning

Carbon monoxide is an odourless, colourless gas and exposure to it can be fatal. It's produced when products containing carbon, typically fossil fuels, are burnt without enough oxygen.

To prevent this, boilers and central heating systems need regular servicing. A carbon monoxide detector - although not an alternative to regular servicing - will monitor the area it's fitted in and provide an early warning if something is wrong.

Find out more about carbon monoxide.