Advice Centre
Clear answers to common heating and plumbing questions.
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Baxi E133 fault code — what it means
E133 on a Baxi boiler means the boiler did not establish a flame — the gas supply was interrupted or the boiler could not light. Check the gas supply first, then the condensate pipe in cold weather. If both are fine, it needs a Registered Gas Installer.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Can a heat pump work with my existing radiators?
Often, yes. A heat pump runs at a lower water temperature than a boiler, so each radiator gives out less heat. Rooms where the radiator is generously sized usually keep theirs; smaller radiators in colder rooms may need to be swapped for larger ones. SEAI grant support covers up to €2,000 of central heating upgrades like this.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Combi, system or regular boiler — which do I need?
It depends on how much hot water you use at once. A combi heats water on demand and suits one bathroom. A system boiler with a cylinder suits two or more bathrooms in use together. A regular boiler with attic tanks is common in older houses and is usually replaced like-for-like unless there is a reason to change.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Do heating controls really save money?
Usually, yes. Heating only the zones you use, at the times you use them, saves fuel in most homes. SEAI offers a €700 heating controls grant for homes built and occupied before 2011.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Do I need a carbon monoxide alarm?
If you have any fuel-burning appliance — a gas or oil boiler, a stove or an open fire — you should have a carbon monoxide alarm. Building Regulations generally require one when a new or replacement boiler or stove is fitted, and landlords should make sure every rented home with a fuel-burning appliance has one.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Gas or oil heating — which is better in Cork?
If the gas network passes your house, gas is usually the more convenient choice — no tank, no deliveries and a smaller boiler. Oil is the norm off the network. Fuel prices move, so neither is always cheaper. If you are replacing either, it is worth pricing a heat pump too.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Heat pump or a new oil boiler?
If the house is reasonably well insulated, a heat pump is usually worth pricing alongside a new oil boiler: there is a substantial SEAI grant for heat pumps and none for a like-for-like oil boiler, and running costs are often lower. If the house is poorly insulated and you cannot do the fabric upgrades yet, a new oil boiler can still be the sensible choice for now.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How do I bleed a radiator?
Turn the heating off and let it cool, open the bleed valve at the top corner with a radiator key until air stops and water appears, close it, then check the boiler pressure and top up if needed.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How do I check a gas installer is registered?
Ask to see the RGI photo ID card. It is renewed every year, so check it shows the current year, then check the registration number with the RGI scheme (rgi.ie).
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How do I stop pipes freezing?
Insulate pipes in the attic, garage and on outside walls, keep the heating on low during a cold snap, and protect outside taps. Know where your stopcock is in case one bursts.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How do SEAI heat pump grants work?
You apply to SEAI and get approval before work starts, an SEAI registered contractor does the work, a BER is done afterwards, and SEAI pays the grant. As at October 2026 the maximum is €14,500 for houses and €11,500 for apartments.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How do you find a hidden water leak?
Start by checking whether water is being used when nothing is running — a meter, a hissing sound or a filling cistern tells you. Then follow the stains and damp back towards the pipework. The source is often away from where the water shows.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How long does a boiler last?
Usually around 10 to 15 years with annual servicing. Boilers that are never serviced, or that run on a sludged system without a filter, often fail sooner.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How much does a boiler service cost in Cork?
Ours is from €120 for gas and €150 for oil, including VAT. Across Cork, prices vary — what matters is what is included: a flue gas reading, safety checks and a written record.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How much does a new boiler cost in Cork? (2026 price guide)
A straight like-for-like gas combi swap starts at €2,750 including VAT, fitted and certified. An oil boiler starts at €3,200. Changing boiler type, moving the boiler or a new flue route adds to that — which is why the fixed price comes after a survey or photos.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How often should a boiler be serviced?
Once a year. Gas Networks Ireland recommends gas appliances are serviced annually in line with the manufacturer's instructions, and most boiler warranties depend on it. Oil boilers are serviced annually as standard practice.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026How often should a landlord get a gas safety check?
The rented housing regulations do not set a fixed interval. Most landlords and letting agents work to an annual inspection and service, which also lines up with manufacturer servicing requirements.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Ideal boiler F1 and L2 fault codes
On Ideal Logic boilers, F1 means the system water pressure is too low — usually below about 0.5 bar — and L2 means the boiler tried to light, failed, and locked out. F1 you can often fix yourself by re-pressurising. L2 is an ignition lockout, usually caused by a gas supply problem, a frozen condensate pipe or the ignition parts.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Is a heat pump right for my house?
It is right for a house that keeps its heat reasonably well and has radiators or underfloor heating that can warm the rooms at a lower water temperature. Many houses are, some need insulation first, and a few are not worth doing.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Is there a grant for a new gas or oil boiler?
Not for a straight like-for-like gas or oil boiler swap, as SEAI grants stand in October 2026. Heating controls (€700, homes built and occupied before 2011) and heat pumps (up to €14,500 for a house, €11,500 for an apartment) are grant-aided.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Local heating engineer or national company — which is better?
Neither is better for everyone. A national company can offer finance, big teams and branded warranty packages. A local engineer usually gives you published or fixed prices, the same person each time and a direct line. Compare like for like: what is included, who does the work and who you call when something goes wrong.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Replacing an oil boiler: how to plan it
Plan it before the old boiler fails, ideally outside the winter rush. Check the tank, oil lines and flue at the same time, and price a heat pump alongside — with the SEAI grant and the new €2,000 boiler scrappage support, it can work out closer than you expect.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Should I repair or replace my boiler?
Repair it if it is reasonably young, the faulty part is easy to get, and it has been reliable. Replace it when breakdowns are becoming regular, parts are hard to get, or one repair would cost a large share of a new boiler.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026The €2,000 boiler scrappage scheme explained
It is up to €2,000 of extra SEAI support for homes that replace a fossil-fuel boiler — oil, gas or solid fuel — with a heat pump. It applies from 6 October 2026 and brings the maximum heat pump support for a house to €14,500 (€11,500 for an apartment). It does not apply to swapping one gas or oil boiler for another.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Vaillant (and Glow-worm) F28 and F29 fault codes
On Vaillant boilers — and many Glow-worm models, which share parts — F28 means the boiler failed to light at start-up, and F29 means the flame was lost while it was running. Both usually point to the gas supply, a frozen condensate pipe, or the ignition and flame-sensing parts.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026What do the rented housing standards say about heating?
The Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2019 require fixed heating the tenant can control, gas, oil and electrical installations maintained in good repair and safe working order, and carbon monoxide alarms where required.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026What is a Declaration of Conformance?
It is the certificate a Registered Gas Installer (RGI) issues to confirm that gas work was carried out to the required standard. Since 2009, every domestic gas installation, alteration or appliance replacement in Ireland should end with one.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026What is an SEAI Technical Assessment?
It is an assessment of whether your home is efficient enough for a heat pump to work well. SEAI requires one for the heat pump grant on homes built before 2007, unless a valid BER already shows a Heat Loss Indicator of 2.3 or lower. SEAI contributes €200 towards the cost.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026What should a bathroom renovation quote include?
It should list every stage — strip-out, pipework, sanitaryware and who supplies it, tiling, electrics, waterproofing, waste removal and making good — with what is and is not included. Three quotes for the same bathroom can be thousands apart simply because they include different things.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026What should a plumbing or heating quote include?
A good quote states exactly what will be done, the price including VAT, what is not included, how changes on the day are handled, when it will happen, and what certificates and warranties you get at the end.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026What should I do if I smell gas?
Turn off the gas at the meter if you can do it safely, open doors and windows, do not use switches, flames or phones in the house, then leave the house and ring the Gas Networks Ireland 24-hour emergency line from outside on 1800 20 50 50.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026What should I do if my condensate pipe freezes?
Find the plastic condensate pipe running from the boiler to an outside drain, pour warm — not boiling — water along it until the ice clears, then reset the boiler.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026What should I do when a pipe bursts?
Turn off the water at the stopcock, turn off the heating and the immersion, turn off electrics near the water if it is safe to reach the board, open the taps to drain down, then call a plumber.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026What temperature should my heating be set to?
Most people are comfortable with living areas at around 18 to 21°C. On a condensing boiler, turning the boiler's flow temperature down helps it condense and run more efficiently, as long as the rooms still reach temperature.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Which type of shower suits my house?
An electric shower heats mains water and works almost anywhere. A mixer shower needs a hot supply — a combi boiler, a gravity cylinder with a pump, or a pressurised cylinder — and performs as well as that supply allows.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Why am I running out of hot water?
Usually the cylinder is too small for how the household uses it, the immersion element or thermostat has failed, the boiler coil is not heating it fully, or the timer is not giving it long enough.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Why are my radiators cold at the bottom?
Cold at the bottom usually means sludge — magnetite from corrosion — has settled in the radiator. Cold at the top usually means air, which bleeding fixes.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Why does my boiler keep losing pressure?
Because water is leaving the sealed system. The usual causes are a small leak on a radiator valve or joint, a pressure relief valve letting by, or an expansion vessel that has lost its charge.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026Worcester Bosch EA or EA 227 fault code — what it means
EA, shown as EA 227 on newer Worcester Bosch boilers, means the boiler tried to light and did not see a flame. It locks out for safety. The commonest causes are no gas getting to the boiler, a frozen condensate pipe in cold weather, or a worn ignition or flame-sensing electrode.
C. Kenneally · Oct 2026