Advice from our engineers
Heating and plumbing guides for Borders and Lothians homes
23 guides covering the faults we get called out to most, what work genuinely costs, how heat pumps compare with boilers, and the paperwork landlords need. All written by the engineers who do the work, with no filler.
Fault diagnosis
Boiler losing pressure
A Gas Safe engineer's diagnostic order for a boiler that keeps dropping below 1 bar: filling loop, expansion vessel, PRV discharge, radiator valves and hidden pipe leaks.
Read the guideNo hot water, heating fine
If radiators heat but taps run cold, the fault is almost always the diverter valve, the cylinder coil or a control. Here is how the cause differs on combi, system and unvented setups.
Read the guideCold radiator bottoms
Cold at the top means air. Cold at the bottom means magnetite sludge. Here is how to tell the difference, what bleeding will not fix, and when a power flush is genuinely justified.
Read the guideBoiler lockouts
Repeated boiler lockouts are a protection response, not a random glitch. What ignition, flame-loss, overheat and low-flow lockouts each point to, and when resetting becomes unsafe.
Read the guideFrozen condensate
Condensate freezes on cold Borders mornings and shuts the boiler down. How to thaw it safely, how to tell it apart from other lockouts, and the permanent fixes that stop it recurring.
Read the guideLow water pressure
Weak showers and slow-filling baths are usually flow rate, not pressure. How to test what you actually have, and which fix — stopcock, pipework, pump or unvented cylinder — applies.
Read the guideKettling and noise
A kettling boiler, banging pipes and a humming pump each mean something different. What each noise indicates, which are urgent, and what the correct repair is for each.
Read the guideFluctuating hot water
Cold-water sandwich, scaling, low flow rate or a failing diverter — the four reasons combi hot water fluctuates, and how to tell which one applies to your shower.
Read the guideNo heating or hot water
Gas Safe engineers in Kelso set out the safe checks to make when you have no heating and no hot water: power, thermostat, pressure, timer, gas supply and lockout codes.
Read the guideBoiler fault codes
What common Vaillant, Worcester Bosch and Ideal boiler fault codes actually mean, which ones a homeowner can safely clear, and which need a Gas Safe engineer.
Read the guideCold radiator tops
Cold at the top means trapped air. A step by step homeowner guide to bleeding radiators safely, in the right order, and what it means if the air keeps coming back.
Read the guideTaps and toilets
Which small plumbing jobs are genuinely worth trying yourself, from dripping taps to a toilet that keeps refilling, and when a plumber will be cheaper in the end.
Read the guideCosts and budgeting
New boiler cost
What actually moves the price of a boiler replacement: appliance choice, swap versus conversion, flue and gas run, system cleaning and controls. Indicative Borders ranges explained.
Read the guideHeat pump cost
What an air source heat pump installation involves financially in Scotland: system cost drivers, radiator and cylinder upgrades, and Home Energy Scotland grant and loan funding.
Read the guideBathroom cost
A realistic breakdown of bathroom refit costs — strip-out, first fix, tanking, tiling, sanitaryware and the hidden items older Borders properties add to the bill.
Read the guideService cost
What separates a genuine boiler service from a ten-minute visual check: combustion analysis, component inspection, inhibitor testing and the paperwork your warranty depends on.
Read the guidePower flush cost
What a power flush costs, how pricing scales with radiator count, when a cheaper chemical clean will do, and why a flush is often mandatory before a new boiler warranty applies.
Read the guideUnderfloor cost
Why underfloor heating costs so differently in a new extension than in an existing room: screed depth, floor build-up, manifold work and the effect on the heat source.
Read the guideCall-out costs
How out-of-hours plumbing charges are structured, what counts as a genuine emergency, and how to avoid paying emergency rates for something that can safely wait until morning.
Read the guideCP12 cost
What a CP12 costs, how appliance count and portfolio size affect it, what the inspection covers, and how to combine certification with servicing to reduce visits.
Read the guideComparisons and choices
Property and audience
Process and paperwork
Letting a property?
Our landlord gas safety hub explains exactly what the annual check includes, what the certificate must show and how the renewal cycle works, with regional pages for the Borders and the Lothians.
Landlord gas safety hub