And the answer was about the legal requirements; the Gas Safety Regulations (can't be arsed to look up the exact wording) requires only that you must be competent to do the work. If he has to ask about the legal issues, it suggests it's not something he has done before.
On Sunday 20 October 2013 21:58 Rick Hughes wrote in uk.d-i-y:
There is nothing in law that says being a GasSafe member is the sole method of demonstrating competance.
Have seen the work of a couple of CORGI fitters in particular, I'd trust me more.
This kind of answer tends to get on my t*ts a bit...
Even if we ignore the basic point that one of the ways we gain competence to do anything is by asking sensible questions. The question was not "am I competent". but "am I allowed"...
In the first few seconds he says that having a boiler serviced every 12 months is a legal requirement. Is this so for private (not rented) property?
The legislation:
The relevant section:
Notes:
Where the phrase "class of persons approved for the time being by the Health and Safety Executive" means GasSafe member.
"Competent" is not defined in the legislation.
That does not appear to be the case. If you read the wording you will note that "class of persons approved for the time being by the Health and Safety Executive" and competent are used quite separately.
Indeed - even if you follow the corgi/gassafe party line that having ACS exam passes etc is the way to demonstrate competence, its a logical fallacy to reverse that and suggest that is the *only* way you can demonstrate competence.
Its also worth noting that competence is a very nuanced thing - gassafe etc have a multitude of classes of approval for different categories of work. Knowing how to install a boiler does not automatically make you competent to do a gas hob etc.
Without exception, all the really shoddy and dangerous work I have seen was done by (or under the supervision of) registered fitters.
I can hoover out of the combustion chamber. Does that count? On one occasion the engineer discovered a gas pressure problem in the meter, which was replaced by Transco later that day. Presumably not something a d-i-yer is likely to find. Going a little OT, my home insurer includes boiler breakdown for a very modest charge providing it has been "regularly" serviced. Once every ten years enough do you think? :-)
On Monday 21 October 2013 09:32 PeterC wrote in uk.d-i-y:
Er no...
Rented properties need a gas safty cert every year - not sure that implies they need servicing, but it's easier to book it in as one job unless you want to be woken at 6am by a narked tenant with a cold shower!
Um, manometers are not expensive. I have one. How are you going to leak test before and after work without one?
Tim
Try telling that to the coroner at the inquest.
'Servicing' suggests work has to be done every 12 months - like say on a car where you'd change oil and filters etc after a degree of use. Modern boilers have no such requirement - so that service is more of an inspection.
Yes, thing is of course that competent in this context has never been really legally defined.
If you do it right, no one will ever know. If you do it really wrong and there is big bang they will, but they aren't going to be bothered about ascertain your competence at that point.
On Monday 21 October 2013 10:01 stuart noble wrote in uk.d-i-y:
Highly likely as the DIYer is more likey to hook up a manometer to the test point which is something I've *never* seen a CORGI/GASSAFE bloke do!
On Monday 21 October 2013 10:16 Peter Crosland wrote in uk.d-i-y:
How likey is that to actually happen Peter?
You might as well say you shouldn't drive a car ever because there is more risk you will kill/maim someone and have to explain yourself to the coroner.
Are you reading the same place as me??
PART BGAS FITTINGS ? GENERAL PROVISIONS Qualification and supervision
Yes if paid, no if your not, including if not paid in rented property.
The obvious exception regarding the gas safety cert.
Surely if a *competant* DIYer works on the boiler he would always do a routine pressure drop test afterwards.
Robert
There was one near me where the guy installed his own bottle gas fired central heating system. It worked OK for a few weeks and then one afternoon fortunately with no one at home at 4pm detonated the entire house and left a blackened roofless shell by the time the fire brigade arrived. The source of the blaze wasn't hard to figure out. Insurers said "show us the gas installation certificate" - and then get lost.
It sat there as a blackened shell as a reminder of the unforgiving nature of gas for a few years before finally being demolished.
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