Plumber & plumbing services in Wimbledon.

Your combi boiler pressure gauge should read between 1.2 and 1.5 bar when cold. If it drops below 0.8 bar, the boiler safety switch shuts off the flame.

What you can check

1. Locate the filling loop under your boiler: typically a braided flexible silver hose or two plastic lever keys.
2. Ensure the boiler is switched off before opening valves.
3. Slowly turn the small black or blue lever 90 degrees until you hear water filling the system.
4. Watch the pressure gauge needle rise. When it reaches 1.3 - 1.5 bar, immediately close the lever tight.
5. Restart your boiler and check for the blue flame ignition light.

If the pressure repeatedly drops within 48 hours, you have an active expansion vessel failure or hidden leak. Call our engineers.

Air trapped in the top of a radiator stops hot water circulating fully. Bleeding the radiator releases it and takes under five minutes.

What you can check

1. Turn the heating off and let radiators cool for 20 minutes.
2. Place a cloth and small container under the bleed valve (top corner of the radiator).
3. Turn the bleed key anti-clockwise a quarter turn until air hisses out.
4. When water starts to dribble steadily, close the valve firmly.
5. Check boiler pressure afterwards and top up via the filling loop if needed.

If the same radiator needs bleeding every few weeks, the system may be drawing in air — book a heating inspection.

In freezing weather, the plastic condensate pipe running from your boiler to an outside drain can freeze, causing the boiler to lock out (often with an EA or F28 fault code).

What you can check

1. Locate the white or grey plastic pipe exiting your boiler and running outside.
2. Boil a kettle and let it cool for 5 minutes — never use boiling water directly.
3. Pour the warm water slowly over the frozen section of pipe, or hold a hot water bottle against it.
4. Reset the boiler once the pipe has thawed and water can drain freely.
5. Insulate the pipe with foam lagging to prevent a repeat freeze.

Never pour boiling water on the pipe and never attempt to dismantle it. If the boiler still will not fire, call us.

Knowing where your internal stopcock is can save thousands in water damage. In most London homes it is under the kitchen sink, but Victorian conversions vary.

What you can check

1. Check under the kitchen sink first — the most common location.
2. In flats, look in the hallway cupboard, utility room, or near the front door at floor level.
3. In Victorian terraces, check the cellar or under-stairs cupboard near the incoming mains.
4. Turn it clockwise to close. Test it twice a year so it does not seize.
5. If it is stiff or leaking, do not force it — a seized stopcock needs replacement.

If you have an active leak and cannot find or turn the stopcock, call our 24/7 line immediately.