I have had British Gas Homecare 400 for just over a year now. I knew the boiler would be due for the yearly maintenance check and I wanted them to check a wurring noise that happens sometimes when the heating is on and we switch the hot tap on. An engineer came on Thursday (with supervisor in tow) and said he knew what the noise was and it just need a new part (nothing major) which he would come back the next day to fix, at which time he said he would do the annual maintenance check.

When he did this on the Friday he announced that we needed a Powerflush which would cost £620!! He said the parts in the boiler were corroding (but could not show me this when asked) and if we do not get this done we will no longer be covered. To show us signs he opened the valve on our bathroom radiator and set a bit of tissue alight. He said this shows hydrogen in the system which is a sign of corrosion (Is this correct??).

Call me suspicious but I'd heard about this Powerflush before and had my doubts as to how necessary it is. He seemed to be trying to get me to sign the form then to go ahead and I said no I would look into it and to leave it with me. He also told us that if we did not get it done we would no longer be covered by them. He really did annoy me, he sounded more like a salesman than an engineer, telling me that he had brought the quote down by reducing the labour hours and how he had not put charge for the 2 parts needed and even kindly threw in a free carbon monoxide detector!! Does this sound like an engineer to you??

The boiler is a Vokera combi and that and the radiators were installed 9 years ago by a previous owner. All work fine, the only issue is the radiators and water can be too hot sometimes (another thing he said was due to this need for a Powerflush).

I’d appreciate advice on this. Do I contact BG and ask for a 2nd opinion and for them to show me this so called corrosion? Do I get a couple of independent engineers out to see if they say the same thing?

Apologies for the rather long message!!
Sarah

See also this thread...

http://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1177924321

BG say you won't be covered for future damage if you don't have a power flush. That may well be correct according to their terms and conditions. However I don't think they can stop you going to someone else to get the power flush done more cheaply. Might be time to read the terms and conditions carefully.

If you google "power flush" you should be able to find other companies that charge a lot less than BG. Just be aware that they frequently say prices start from £x. Try and get a firm price on the phone.  Some people will...

http://www.pritchard-plumbing-heating.co.uk/powerflushing1.html

I recall the BG plan doesn't cover the cost of the first flush but it does cover the cost of subsequent power flushes - but then how many people live in the same house long enough to need more than one. Particularly if they have the corrosion inhibitor checked every year as it should be.