Oil Feed Safety Valve

[bongolier]

Hi,

Just been told that our oil feed safety valve should legally be fitted externally. This valve is in the utility room as the regulations must have changed since the house was built (1997).

Since we moved here in 2007, we have had the boiler serviced and had many deliveries of oil and not a single person has mentioned this to us.

What / where should the fitting be?

Is there an internal equivalent (I am sure we are not the only people in this situation)?

Any good professional advice appreciated...

 

[dontknowitall]

The phial should be above the burner in the boiler and the other end should be on the (external) oil line where it comes into the building. It should be checked at every service.

It is an OFTEC technician's duty to point this out to you but it is up to you if you want to have it changed. A technician cannot make you do this. This is the householder's responsibility.

In case you don't know, the reason one is fitted is that if the burner/boiler catches fire, the phial heats up, the gas expands in the tube and pushes the button on the other end to isolate the oil so the oil is not feeding the fire. Quite how many lives this has saved I don't know. If the fire brigade came along they'd just rip the oil line away instead of fiddling around with a small button for a while.

There are loads of regulations in the construction world and rules is rules (never to be broken, of course.)

To repeat, an OFTEC technician must abide by the rules and advise accordingly. The advice is in the first paragraph of my response.

 

[SimonG]

Or at first point of entry if no oil line visible externally. Like DKIA has said it's upto the person doing the service to advise you, and probably document the fact, but it's down to you if you do it or not. If you decide not to then you might as well cancel any house insurance you have cos you are wasting money. Loss adjusters went to a customers house who had a chip pan fire in the kitchen, noticed the oil tank and went straight to the boiler, no fire valve no payout. Just like anything these days just looking for an excuse to get out of paying.