Find out where your thermocouple is – because you might need to replace it one day
Ask the average UK man in the street where his thermocouple is and the chances that you won't get the answer that you won't get the answer you were looking for. Most people don't know what a thermocouple is, what it does or where it is kept. Yet most of us have one.
For those of you dying to know, a thermocouple is a safety feature that determines if the pilot light is lit on a boiler. The heat from the pilot light flame will create a minute current in the thermocouple which allows the gas control valve to operate. If the pilot light goes out, the thermocouple automatically switch off the flow of gas.
Having a faulty thermocouple can be a very annoying problem, as it will often cause the pilot light in the boiler to switch itself off. If this happens and basic checks such as checking that the connection between the thermocouple and the gas valve is tight and the thermocouple is properly positioned should be carried out. If everything looks ok from the outside then the conclusion has to be drawn that your thermo is no longer a couple and will need to be replaced.
The procedure in replacing a thermocouple are far from complicated, yet despite that best left in the hands of a professional, as there is a risk of dangers if the procedure is not carried out according to the book.
UK consumers who have had the good sense to take out a British Gas breakdown insurance don't have these problems. For just a few pounds a month, they are protected from the realities of having to change their thermocouple as well as a host of similar repairs that are involved in keeping a boiler properly maintained. They can sleep soundly in the knowledge that should problems occur, they will be in the hands of British Gas, the UK's largest energy company.
Next time you are in local DIY store and some poor fellow comes running in shouting "my thermocouple has broken" don't laugh behind your hand like everybody else. Instead take him aside and explain to him the wonders of British Gas HomeCare® 400™.
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