Boiler Servicing in Great Torrington

I service mains-gas models from the brands that turn up across Great Torrington's housing:

Worcester Bosch. The Greenstar range is the premium brand I service most here — Greenstar 8000 Life, Greenstar 4000 and the older Greenstar CDi models. In the older properties I still find Greenstar 30CDi units from the early 2000s running perfectly well on regular servicing.

Vaillant. EcoTEC plus and ecoTEC pro are the common ones round here. F22 (low water pressure) and F75 (pump or pressure sensor fault) are the codes I see most on Vaillants that haven't been serviced.

Baxi — the 800 series and older Duo-tec models come up often. On older Baxis, E133 (ignition fault) is usually down to electrodes nobody's cleaned in years, which is Full gas boiler service work.

Ideal. Logic Plus and Logic Max in the newer properties, older Ideal Mexico models in some of the Victorian and Edwardian stock. Ideal's F1 (ignition fault) and F4 (overheat) codes crop up on neglected boilers.

Glow-worm. Betacom 4 and Flexicom models are in a fair few of the town's older rentals. Reliable when they're serviced, less so when they're not.

Potterton. Performa and older Profile models show up in Torrington's older housing. I'll be straight with you about parts availability on the older Pottertons before I take the work on.

I cover the whole EX38 postcode. The town itself — Castle Hill, South Street, Well Street and the streets around them — has a real mix of ages, including some of the oldest housing in this part of North Devon. Victorian stone terraces are everywhere here, and the heating often dates back further than people realise.

Out in the countryside around EX38 there are farmhouses, cottages and converted agricultural buildings, and a lot of those run on LPG or oil. Those are outside what I do, though it's still worth knowing before you book.

Torrington's within easy reach of RHS Rosemoor and Dartington Crystal to the south. If you're in the wider area and not sure I reach you, ring me and I'll tell you. Far better you know now than find out on the morning of the appointment.

Carbon monoxide comes from any gas or LPG appliance where combustion isn't complete. The causes — a blocked heat exchanger, a dirty burner, a damaged or obstructed flue — build up slowly and don't announce themselves. CO has no colour and no smell. At the levels a faulty domestic boiler produces, the symptoms (headaches, tiredness, feeling sick) get put down to a cold or a bug going round.

Annual servicing, and the flue gas analysis I run at every one, is your main defence. Combustion analysis, flue-integrity checks and a normal accessible inspection of the burner and heat exchanger are all aimed squarely at catching incomplete combustion before it becomes dangerous. In Torrington's older housing I'd also fit CO alarms on every floor with a gas appliance. BS EN 50291 is the standard to look for.

BS 7593 requires all central heating systems to be treated with a corrosion inhibitor. Without it, the system makes magnetite — black sludge that blocks radiators, clogs heat exchangers and wrecks pumps. Older systems in Torrington's Victorian and Edwardian houses are among the most likely to have little or no inhibitor left in them.

A water quality check is part of the service: inhibitor level, pH and any signs of corrosion in the system water. Topping up or replacing the inhibitor is not included, so if the system needs it I show you what I found and quote before doing anything. I'll also look for a magnetic filter (Magnaclean, Adey MagnaClean Pro) on the boiler return. They catch debris before it reaches the heat exchanger, and on an old system that's never been treated properly, fitting one makes a real difference to how long everything lasts.

A standard annual boiler service in Great Torrington is £105. That's the full combustion analysis, all the component checks, the inhibitor test and a signed service record. If something needs attention while I'm there, I'll explain what it is and agree the cost with you before I go any further.

For landlords adding a CP12 gas safety certificate to the same visit, the standard gas boiler service and CP12 is £145 including VAT, all confirmed up front. The Full Boiler Service and CP12 package is £185 including VAT.

You'll get an answer. Ring or message during the working day and you'll hear back the same day; evenings and weekends, it'll be the next working day. And if it isn't a job for me, I'll tell you that and point you at someone who can help, rather than going quiet on you.

When you book, I'll confirm it and give you a two-hour window rather than a whole day sat at home waiting. On the morning you get a text with a tracking link, so you can see where I've got to instead of wondering. Traffic and the job before yours are real, so it's a window rather than a promise to the minute, but if it slips you'll hear it from me first.

Call 01271 444410 or email info@tarkaboilersbarnstaple.co.uk. I look after mains-gas boilers in Great Torrington EX38 and the surrounding countryside all year round.