Should You Hire a Plumber or a Heating Engineer?

Sometimes, you may end up having a broken boiler and need assistance – this is when you wonder what specialist you can hire. Although plumbers are skilled and can install or repair heating systems, bathrooms, leaking pipes, as well as dripping taps, they are not necessarily qualified to fix a gas boiler. However, there are some plumbers that are Gas Safe registered, but not all plumbers are. If a gas central heating service is offered by a plumber, you should check the Gas Safe Register to check if they are permitted to work with gas.

An engineer specialising in heating will only work in domestic and commercial properties. You might consider hiring a professional heating engineer instead of a plumber since they are experts in their field. They’ll be able to fix your broken boiler, install new boilers, fix gas leaks or change your radiator. Therefore, hiring a heating engineer might be preferable since they’ll be more familiar with this type of issue. However, just like a plumber, you should ensure that the heating engineer you hire is also Gas Safe registered.

To determine which professional you should hire, you need to first of all figure out what type of service you need. Although you can get engineers and plumbers who will be able to do anything, there are some tradespeople that specialise in different parts of their trade. Heating engineers and plumbers may do similar work, but they require different skills and can work on a variety of jobs.

Although a heating engineer will be able to repair boilers and install them, they may not involve themselves in other heating system work. Whereas, a plumber who specialises in bathrooms, for example, will be able to do radiator replacements but may not involve themselves in repairing a boiler. So, it is important to ensure that you get in touch with a specialist, such as an engineer or a plumber, who will be able to advise you on what and who is best for solving your problem.

To help you, here is a list of what a heating engineer and a plumber can do.

What heating engineers do

Heating engineers can repair, replace or install anything to do with your heating system, such as:

• Radiators
• Thermostats
• Hot water storage cylinders
• Associated piping
• Central heating systems that are through vents

What plumbers do 

Plumbers repair, replace or install anything that is focused on the flow of water, particularly:

• Blockages
• Water leaks from pipes
• Water based appliances such as dishwashers and washing machines
• Bathroom problems such as an overflowing toilet
• Drains, irrigation and sewage systems

With any repair or installation focused on gas, remember to check if the professional you hire is Gas Safe registered by visiting the site linked above. However, you can get in touch with any of our engineering services here or any of our plumbing services here.