Gas Fire Service

The parts of a gas fire, in plain English

• Burner: the tray the gas comes out of and burns on. Dust and soot block the holes over time.
• Pilot: the small flame that stays lit and ignites the burner. The part that gets dirty and stops the fire lighting.
• Thermocouple: a small probe in the pilot flame. If the flame goes out, it shuts the gas off. When it wears, the fire keeps going out for no reason.
• Ignition: a piezo spark or a battery or mains igniter that lights the pilot. Fails quietly.
• Gas valve: the control the knob or remote turns. Rarely fails, expensive when it does.
• Oxygen depletion sensor: on most modern fires, it shuts the fire down if the room's air quality drops. It's also what trips when a room is too well sealed.
• Fuel bed: the ceramic logs, coals or pebbles. They go in a set pattern; wrongly placed, the fire burns yellow and sooty.
• Flue: the chimney or balanced flue. A blocked flue is the dangerous fault on this page.
• Spillage test: a smoke test at the fire's canopy to confirm fumes are going up the flue.
• Service record: the written note of what was checked and what was found.

What usually goes wrong, and what fixing it involves

• Fire won't light: a dirty pilot, a failed igniter, or a thermocouple that's gone. All quick, same visit fixes.
• Fire lights then goes out: the thermocouple nine times out of ten. A part from the van and about half an hour.
• Fire goes out after a few minutes: the oxygen depletion sensor, or a room with no ventilation. We check the room before condemning the sensor.
• Yellow, lazy flames or soot: the fuel bed in the wrong place, a dirty burner, or a flue not drawing. A service usually sorts it. A flue problem means the fire is off until it's fixed.
• Smell of gas or fumes: switch it off and call. It could be a joint, the flue or the fire itself. This one is a safety job, not a service.
• Remote not working: batteries, the receiver, or the valve. Checked in that order, cheapest first.

Honest advice: what's overkill

• A new fire because it won't light: a pilot clean or a thermocouple costs a fraction of a new fire. Repair unless the fire is very old and parts have gone.
• Servicing twice a year: once a year, like a boiler. Landlords need it annually as part of the gas safety check anyway.
• Replacing the gas valve on a guess: valves are expensive and rarely the fault. Pilot, thermocouple and igniter get checked first, always.
• A chimney sweep for a gas fire: gas fires don't produce soot like solid fuel. The flue is checked and tested on the service, and only swept if the test says so.
• Worth paying for: the service with the boiler on the same visit. Both need doing yearly and one call out is cheaper than two.

When to book

If it's been over a year, if the fire is doing anything on the list above, or if a tenant has one and the certificate is due, book a service. Send your postcode and the make of fire. Book a gas fire service