diy gas work

[on31ll]

reading up bits and bobs about gas came across somthing. so read it and it states this

"

"Water carrying parts of a boiler unrelated to gas or airflow, can be worked on without
gas training, though you still have to be competent, for example electrically. "​

 

[on31ll]

it went on about stating competence etc ! so whats the truth ? or is it another major grey area ? because we have had it before with are room stats gsr or not etc but this is basically saying non gsr could change pumps, PCB's, hexs

 

[Keefy]

Aaaand?

 

[stoker122]

It's not illegal for people to work on them but UKPF can't encourage it in case someone hurts themselves.

 

[on31ll]

I thought it was illegal to fix a boiler unless gas safe ? So a plumber can do boiler repairs just not on combustion side of things !

 

[diamondgas]

The way I personally see this is if you do any 'work' on an appliance you are responsible for it's future safe working and have to carry out basic checks for safety on reinstating! How can you do any safety checks if you haven't been trained in doing so?

When replacing a pump or phex you're disturbing wires and moving components around. How would you know if you'd inadvertently dislodged something crucial to the safe working of the appliance? It's highly unlikely but not impossible IMHO

 

[SimonG]

On a gas central heating system the only things that I would change would have to be external to the boiler. i.e. pump or three/two port in airing cupboard. I wouldn't like to think that in changing a pump in say a gas combi I dislodged something gas or flue related. That's why in these cases I pass them on to my mate that does gas and he does the same on the oil. Just my two penneth

 

[R1CKY]

it went on about stating competence etc ! so whats the truth ? or is it another major grey area ? because we have had it before with are room stats gsr or not etc but this is basically saying non gsr could change pumps, PCB's, hexs

PCB is a gas related part IMO. TBH there aren't many parts a non GSR could legally change as most modern boiler's cases form the room seal, therefore illegal for a non GSR to remove it.

On older boilers where the outer casing is decorative, there is nothing stopping joe bloggs changing a pump, diverter valve, expansion vessel etc. As long as they don't disturb the gas or combustion parts of the boiler. Not that I'd recommend someone doing so, as someone else said, they could inadvertently disturb something crucial unknown to them.

 

[cr0ft]

My understanding of it all is that a non-GSR engineer is not allowed to tamper with any gas part including of course the room seal. Many older boilers are designed so that some of the parts are changeable without doing this but most modern ones aren't. This allows me to make a lucrative side earning changing PCBs on Potterton Suprimas as you don't need to break the room seal to change them.

I would love to become GSR but there is no real way for me to do so without working for free for many days to get my portfolio which simply isn't an option if you are self-employed. Couple this with the fact that no sane competitor will take me on and train me to become their competition and you have an industry that is making it nearly impossible to get qualified in. It's not something I condone but until there is an easier route for people outwith apprenticeship ages to get Gas Safe Qualified I think people will continue to do DIY/unqualified gas work with potentially devastating consequences.

Faulty electrics are more likely to kill someone than faulty gas appliances in the UK* but yet the electrical trade (whether we agree with it or not) has modernised and allows people who are switched on (pardon the pun) to study for 6 weeks full-time and work as an electrician. With the same annual inspections that electricians have, there's no reason why the gas industry can't do this too tbh. I know people will say that you get fast-trackers who are complete idiots, but you also get ex-apprentices who are complete idiots too.

I appreciate this is probably controversial but not being able to get GSR is a real gripe of mine!!

Of course this is the consequences when someone plays around with gas and gets it wrong - Newark gas explosion: second body found | UK news | The Guardian .

*These are the most recent stats for deaths/injuries by electrocutions in the UK and it appears to me that electricity kills/injures more people than gas each year in the UK. So where's the argument for making gas qualification so hard to achieve relative to electrical qualification? Statistics : Electrical Safety Council

 

[hammers4spanner]

if you want to work on boilers do the courses and register for gsr dont understand why thats so difficult to understand

 

[cr0ft]

It's not that straightforward though is it?

 

[hammers4spanner]

why not??
do what everyone else does whom wants to work on gas appliances
shadow an experienced engineer , do the courses ,pass exam then apply gsr
a few hundred thousand manged it

 

[on31ll]

As stated though how do people do there portfolios etc ? Nobodys gonna pay to train the competition !

 

[Leo21]

Ask someone in the next town or city to you. Do the odd Monday or Friday free, and build up your portfolio slowly.

 

[cr0ft]

why not??
do what everyone else does whom wants to work on gas appliances
shadow an experienced engineer , do the courses ,pass exam then apply gsr
a few hundred thousand manged it

Feel free to prove me wrong and drop me the details of a local GSR company who is willing to train me up. I'll even help train them as a sparky in return. I can assure you that it isn't at all as easy as you are making out. Why would one of my competitors want to train me?

 

[cr0ft]

Ask someone in the next town or city to you. Do the odd Monday or Friday free, and build up your portfolio slowly.

The problem is that I haven't had a free day all year. I understand that the system is what it is, I just don't understand why it needs to be more restrictive than electricity to get into. The system is not geared up to small limited companies wanting to become registered and surely those are exactly the sort of people it should be geared up to attract, rather than those with zero experience in plumbing. From what I've seen the portfolio requirement doesn't guarantee a good quality of engineer all of the time, I've seen good and bad gas fitters like every other trade.

I know nothing I say is going to change the system but I'm merely opening up a debate on it.

From what I can see electricity kills more people in the UK each year than gas, so why the large portfolio requirement for domestic gas work?

 

[cr0ft]

why not??
do what everyone else does whom wants to work on gas appliances
shadow an experienced engineer , do the courses ,pass exam then apply gsr
a few hundred thousand manged it

I'm also pretty sure that a good chunk of the people who got GSR did it working in employment first where the opportunities are there to get qualified under the current scheme!

 

[hammers4spanner]

you shooting yourself in the foot by working all the time ,
i am under the assumption you have some knowledge of gas controls and regs??
if you do then you need to start going out with an engineer and i wouldnt contact with a small gsr firm better off going witha h/a contract company an engineer on the books .
I do agree that the system is a pain in urse tho

 

[cr0ft]

Cool, glad we agree about the current system! What I meant was I have worked every weekday other than ones I take off on holidays! It's not been a quiet year. I would love to get GSR qualified my issue is a day a week out stops me being able to do bathrooms and large jobs where a customer understandably wants the contractor on the job 5 days a week.

I didn't consider the h/a contract company option, I think I will call the council and see who does them round here. Cheers!

 

[on31ll]

Its a hard thing to get sorted as said ! I work away up and down the uk so i cant exactly work with sonbody there ! I then travel home friday nights and work the doors friday, sat and sunday ! Im finding it hard ! The portfolio you can blag so to speak but its the knowledge thats hard to gain