Boiler Servicing

[OFTEC]

Does anyone have any idea of roughly how much money could potentially be made from boiler servicing and maintenance in a year but not doing any other sort of work if a person has done Oftec courses?

Opinions appreciated.

Cheers

 

[Toddyplumb]

How much do you charge for a service ?

 

[ferret]

also depends on where your gonna get the work from and if you are any good , you wont last long if you cant faultfind and repair!!!

 

[mark_mc]

i was thinking of completing my oftec courses 101, 105a and 600a in the near future, i would say there would be good money to be made, as said, if your good, do it right and give all the proper documents etc.

being oftec registered is also a must there are to many boiler service tradesmen out there working on oil but not registered so they cant even fill in commissioning booklets etc.

i think also a fga is nessacary to be professional

what area are you from? are there many households using oil still in your area??

 

[OFTEC]

Im from Northern Ireland average charge here seems to be in around £35 per service and it is nearly all oil fired accross three counties in driving distance from me.

I would hope to get work from advertising and hopefully buillding up word of mouth.

If I thought I coud maybe make around 20 grand a year it would definately be worth it

Cheers

 

[mark_mc]

have you got your oftec courses completed?? which ones?
I am doing my courses this week and am thinking with the cost of courses, fga, oil jet commissioning kit, smoke pump and printer, and cost of parts including nozzles etc, looking at around £2000 - £3000 start up costs

are you a plumber by trade?

 

[Dotty]

whereabouts in NI are you oftec? Ave price is £30-35.00 over here. But it's the convincing people their boilers need serviced is the problem. Many think along the lines of "it work's. I'll leave it alone"

Have you any plumbing experience? And who are you training with?

Start up costs are dear as stated but it's kit you will need plus your fga will need calibrated annually. Bassetts may do you a deal for consumables.

Not stealing your dream my friend, just be aware it's a long hard slog to get where you want to be.

 

[OFTEC]

Tyrone but can cross into armagh and enniskillen very handy from here, I supose any amount of marketing won't convince customers they need the service done. See your in portadown are you plumbing?

Theres a few companies about, in in central Belfast for the training

 

[mark_mc]

as said it convincing people that they need there oil boiler serviced, they only look at it when its not working.

have you got you qualification OFTEC?? do you do plumbing?

 

[OFTEC]

No I would be a new entrant and would have to complete the prior learning etc.

 

[mark_mc]

im doing my course this week at ccts in belfast tarmar street
have a week off from wrk so asked the boss to put me thru it, hes claiming but the VAT and his CITB levy so hopefully wont be that expensive around £300- £400 quid.

its the price of oftec register etc as you need 2million insurance for it and the cost of tools, the 1st year is going to be hard to make a profit out of it i think, im going to do it in the evenings and weekends as homers, when doing homer people also ask do i do boiler service and I always say no, theres a lot of people that do it and just change the nozzle and hoover it out nothing else and charge £40 +£10 for nozzle and get away with it.

If your going to do it, do it right, i plan to do it right from the start

 

[Dotty]

i'll see you there at some stage Mark. Doing my gas TPCP1 there on Tuesday.

Oftec, i'm mainly working on commercial heating for CHC Group. I tend to service bloody big boilers, 300Kw+.

I try not to get too involved in the domestic side and don't do homers. Too much hassle after a day's work plus i've no personal public liability insurance.

 

[mark_mc]

what the course your doing for?

do you think it worth doing boiler servicing, it dont mind doing the domestic boilers as i will get a turn out of it, and at the minute i am trying to increase my customer base for going out on my own and with a gd secure job at the minute its extra cash for the future.

I do loads of homers and enjoy doing them for the CASH IN HAND which is great and im not like others doing homers that get paid for doing a half job

Im going to do the boiler servicing thing right and i think there is a market for it as im sure you know there is a lot of fellas that service boilers and just hoover it out and chance nozzle, I what to do it right.

do you think there is a place in the market for someone doing a oil boiler servicing in the evening and weekends, i think that time will suit the average customer better, because who is going to let someone round there house to service a boiler when they are not there and never used before and dont use that often (once a year)

 

[Toddyplumb]

Youve answered your own question . You want £20k at £25 a time so 800 sevices plus tax + NI +insurance + fuel + van + tools + advertising etc etc

Sorry miss read that £25 should av been £35 ! so 571 services

 

[Dotty]

My course is for the testing and purging of gas pipework over 1m3.

I wasn't knockin you guys for wanting to do private work, it's just not for me plus i'm more into the commercial end of the business.

If you're prepared to work evenings and weekends and it's what your punters want then go for it.

If you want I'll pm you my number and we'll have a chat on tuesday.

 

[OFTEC]

Services would be at £35 - nozzle cost fuel etc, so would take a hell of a lot of services.
Perhaps it is better lefta as an add on to the plumbers work.

 

[mark_mc]

croppie thanks for all your help, will probably see you at the training centre

its going to be difficult in the start up in boiler servicing the good thing is that i have a secure job at the minute so at least if im only doing a couple of boiler services a week at the start i still have a gd wage coming in and can build up my customers without the worrys of a secure wage etc.

 

[dontknowitall]

£35 for a service? When starting you'll be taking around 3½ hours per boiler so that'll be about £10 an hour. And two a day is £70 for the day's work.

OFTEC qualified people I know are usually Gassafe as well and do boiler servicing as part of general plumbing services. Very few purely boiler servicing companies where I live (loads of oil boilers around here) - only one I know has been in the business for over 15 years and even he does plumbing "on the side". He probably services around 3-4 a day now and has a huge customer base.

I'm not saying don't do this at all - just trying to open your eyes a little into the realities of taking OFTEC exams then shooting off and making £20k in your first year. Much as I hope it happens for you, I doubt it will in real life.

 

[mark_mc]

i totally agree im a fully qualifed plumber now, just taking my OFTEC exams tomorrow - all week, i am going to do boiler servicing and repairs in the evening and weekends
think for the best this way until such times i have a good customer base and more experience and then maybe think of becoming self employed, will do plumbing aswell.

 

[easyt]

I would have expected to pay more like £50 for a service.

 

[Dotty]

I would have expected to pay more like £50 for a service.

I don't do domestics as a rule but in your case easy! Kerchingggggg!

 

[mark_mc]

i called around just to see what others are charging for a oil boiler service they charge £40 + any parts all services require a nozzle so thats £10 total £50

thats what i would expect to charge but may go a bit lower to get some business at the start, would you>?

 

[Dotty]

Not sure where you live Mark, but out here in the sticks they quibble anything over £20.00!

 

[easyt]

I don't do domestics as a rule but in your case easy! Kerchingggggg!

Travel might be a problem though. I'm in Wales near Chester

 

[oldplumber]

basic gas service, £55, niceand clean no oily hands doing an oil service, dirty job, takes longer and your charging £40 plus parts, which equals bancrupt this time next year. take a reality check soon old son or you wont be working for long. ps N Devon is one of the poorestareas of the country and the custards are on low wages normally.

 

[dontknowitall]

Hmmm - I charge £95 inclusive (nozzle, line, labour, call out, etc) for a service. If parts are needed (e.g. new oil isolation valve or hydraulic jack) then this costs extra. No complaints yet, even from those asking how much I charge.

I feel that I'm an OFTEC qualified technician. I've paid good money for proper training. I keep myself up to date with developments, pay for insurance, retrain every five years, keep strictly to OFTEC standards, spend time with customers explaining what I do when servicing, etc and give a decent report.

I give as good a service as can be expected and charge accordingly.

 

[mark_mc]

i live in the sticks too, and know what people are like, and in this climate/ reccession etc etc, the last thing people what to do is service a boiler (no money)

Hmmm - I charge £95 inclusive (nozzle, line, labour, call out, etc) for a service. If parts are needed (e.g. new oil isolation valve or hydraulic jack) then this costs extra. No complaints yet, even from those asking how much I charge.

I feel that I'm an OFTEC qualified technician. I've paid good money for proper training. I keep myself up to date with developments, pay for insurance, retrain every five years, keep strictly to OFTEC standards, spend time with customers explaining what I do when servicing, etc and give a decent report.

I give as good a service as can be expected and charge accordingly.

I know in Northern ireland you would get £95 a service, but i plan to give the service you do, as many here dont they just change nozzle hoover and walk out, i plan to do it the right way.

 

[Gray0689]

Mark mc
where you from in NI
The average price in Tyrone is £40 for boiler service

 

[OFTEC]

I was thinking 35 includeing nozzle then any other parts over and above for the service, bit would even expect to make over 9-10K a year in first year or two.

 

[mark_mc]

I was thinking around about the same for start up boiler servicing costs.

around £35-£40 + any parts(including nozzle)
a nozzle is around £10 is if your only charging £35 thats only £25 per service, it wouldnt be worth it, if they werent in the same street

 

[Dotty]

Mark, when you're at ccts tomorrow look out for a short round balding grumpy looking english man. That'll be me!

 

[quality]

No offense intended but it seems some folk work for pennies

To go to a job and do any work however small for 35, 45 ,55 quid seems absolutely pointless

my opinion only of course

 

[mark_mc]

i have to agree with you there, after all the training and equipment etc you have to buy then only getting £40-£50 per service and hopeing to get 4 + per day

i think personnally that the oil service profession in northern ireland is full of plumbers and cowboys that do it just to make a quick £ by hovering the boiler out and sometimes changing the nozzle and walking out a getting £40

if you do it right with checking flue pressure, smoke pump, flue anaylsis and you still get £40 OFTEC i think needs to be more strict.

will look out for you tomorrow croppie, im the young fella driving a white volkswagen caddy, would like to have a chat, it went ok today i never service or commission just install and bring someone in, its all new and it was a very interesting day.

 

[Paulio]

i was thinking of completing my oftec courses 101, 105a and 600a in the near future, do any of you who did it, is it worth the lay out been quoted £1200 for the course CCTS belfast,

 

[Dotty]

i was thinking of completing my oftec courses 101, 105a and 600a in the near future, do any of you who did it, is it worth the lay out been quoted £1200 for the course CCTS belfast,

Paulio. First of all welcome to the forums

It's often been said you get what you pay for, I've been to a few training establishments in NI and I can honestly say you get your money's worth from Gerry.

 

[dontknowitall]

£1,200 is for the courses. Then there's the registration which I think is around £800 for 5 years (payable up front?). Then there's the cost of a flue gas analyzer (around £500) then there's the calibration costs (say £100 a year) then there's a requirement for public liability insurance to be OFTEC qualified (around £350).

Also the cost of oil pressure gauge, smoke pump, spanners, allen keys, nozzles, flexible oil lines, etc. To get yourself going you're looking at a cost of around £3,000 for five years (when you have to retrain, and re-register.)

You'll be looking at say £50-£120 for an oil service, depending on your local market and it takes many of these to cover the initial costs and start to make a profit, but installing a new boiler makes you more money so it's not too great a hit after a year or so.

When I told my local inspector that I make a loss in my first qualified year by being an OFTEC chappie he was surprised and offended. The reason I am qualified is I didn't want customers phoning me up and saying "My heating doesn't work" and with me having to send them to another competitor.

Now, with hindsight and experience, it's one of the best things I ever did in my plumbing career.

 

[kimbo]

£35 is very cheap I wouldnt service a boiler for that and I dont know anyone over here that would,I dont know how you can make any money.
By the way you dont have to be oftec registered you have to do the training and then you have to be a member of a competent persons scheme of which there are about 5 one of which is NAPIT. They are actually cheaper because you can notify any plumbing work that needs signing off including unvented cylinders all in the one registration fee, OFTEC charge you extra for all those.