Due to the current cold weather, we’re experiencing a higher-than-expected volume of heating and hot water repair requests. Our contractors are doing all they can to meet this demand, and are prioritising repairs to properties where there is no heating or hot water, and any cases where vulnerable customers are impacted.
Whilst we’re working with them to do all that they can to restore these services, on occasion, more complex repairs, or those requiring replacement parts might require a follow up appointment. If your heating can’t be repaired during the first visit, then our contractors are instructed to leave you with temporary heaters as a minimum.
It is important that you accept these heaters, as they will provide you with essential background heat during this period. We’ll provide you with assistance of the running costs of these heaters, as we understand this might be a concern.
If you can’t get hot water from your boiler, there are a few things you can do to create hot water until any repair is completed. You might want to use:
An immersion heater
If you have a hot water tank or cylinder in your home, you may also have an electric immersion heater. This can be used to heat water as and when you need it. This can be an expensive method, so turn the immersion heater on for short periods of time only and turn it off once the water is warm enough for use. The amount of time you need to leave it on for depends on how many people are in the property and what you intend to use the water for.
An electric shower
If you have an electric shower, this should also still work without problems.
Boiling water
As a last resort, you can boil water in a kettle or a pan on the stove. If doing so it’s important to remember to mix this water with cold water before attempting to use it for anything like washing up or bathing as it will be hotter than water from a hot tap and could be hot enough to scold.
It’s also important to take care when transporting this water for use and it would be advisable to only partially fill the kettle or a pan when doing this.
No one should be without heating or hot water during the winter months, especially over the Christmas period, and along with our contractors we’ll continue to do all that we can to make sure that any disruption is minimal and people at the very least have temporary solutions.
No heating or hot water during winter months is classed as an emergency repair, and you should report this by calling 0800 0322 433.