Price: £675000 through Strutt & Parker 01273 475411 "At this time of year it's mainly faults, where in summer it's mainly servicing; every job on my terminal today bar one is a fault. The first few weeks of the winter turn-on period there's a real surge in jobs." He reckons that 70 to 80 per cent of breakdowns can be fixed on the first visit; the rest need a part that's not in his van, or need the system to be left on test and re-checked.Most of Steve's callouts are routine, but he has seen some alarming set-ups. "We all have laptops and we log in in the morning to get our day's work. We have all the info on 8,000 appliances available on disc and we can order any parts we need through the terminal for next-day delivery, as well as doing all the billing and banking. And half the radiators were connected to the hot water system instead of the central heating, so you couldn't have the hot water on without the heating coming on as well."It's a legal requirement that anyone who works with gas must be Corgi-registered, whether they work for a large organisation or independently. The Corgi card acts as ID, and the reverse of the card gives details of the different types of gas work the engineer is competent to undertake. All British Gas engineers are, of course, Corgi registered.Steve Newiss, 44, is their Engineer of the Year; he has worked for British Gas for 28 years, since he was 16 years old It's a hi-tech business now, he says. "Luckily, I wouldn't dream of switching a central heating system on without having had it checked by British Gas. The thermostat wasn't connected to anything so the boiler was getting hotter and hotter and could have exploded. British Gas also recommends fitting a BS 7860 audible CO detector; they cost £35 and sound a loud alarm if CO is detected.There are other possible dangers, though, if your system hasn't been properly fitted. "When I moved I was told that the heating system was brand new, so there shouldn't be any problems at all," says one recent home-buyer. Every year, carbon monoxide poisoning claims around 30 lives in the UK, and causes hundreds more injuries.
Corgi advise that appliances should be checked for safety annually by a registered gas installer, ventilation should never be blocked, and DIY projects involving gas should never, ever be on the weekend to-do list (you'd be surprised what people get up to). Many of the spate of early winter breakdowns could be prevented," says Anne Morton, spokeswoman for British Gas. Ensuring your boiler and heating system is properly maintained isn't simply a matter of keeping you cosy, either. Faulty gas appliances can let carbon monoxide gas - odourless and potentially lethal - escape into your home.The Council for Registered Gas Installers (Corgi) has just launched a campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of carbon monoxide. "After your home and car, your central heating system is your next biggest investment and it needs to be cared for properly. British Gas deals with an average of 30,000 central heating breakdowns every month; the first cold snap last month more than doubled the number of emergency callouts. A little regular TLC could save you considerable hassle at this time of year. Four bedrooms, off-road parking and a third of an acre of garden Price: £495,000 through Strutt & Parker (01273 475411).. The nights are drawing in, the frosts are becoming more frequent, and this is the time of year when even the hardiest among us are thinking of switching the central heating back on. Price: £675,000 through Strutt & Parker (01273 475411).Bodkins End, Haywards HeathFormer estate house with four bedrooms, two and a half miles from Haywards Heath station. Unusually contemporary conversion with five bedrooms, playroom, 32ft vaulted drawing room, study and large kitchen/ breakfast room with built-in, top-of-the-range appliances. Has 22ft sitting room with large inglenook fireplace, cellar, beams and a third of an acre garden. Price: £335,000 through Jackson-Stops & Staff (01730 812357).Knights Farmhouse, ShipleyListed six-bedroom farmhouse 21 miles from Brighton and just over eight miles from Horsham Attached barn provides entertaining space and office. Has heavily beamed ceilings, 30ft kitchen with Aga, plus two and a half acres of grounds including orchard. Price: £1.2m through FPDSavills (01483 796820).Brighton townhouseFour-storey, period terraced house with study, morning room conservatory with pyramid-shaped skylight, roof terrace and four bedrooms, a quarter of a mile from mainline station and sea front. |
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