Servicing an Intergas boiler, and what its fault codes mean

Which Intergas boilers I work on

The current Intergas range is the Kombi Kompakt HR, HRE and HRE solo, the HReco, the Xtreme and the Superflow. The one I open up most often is the Kombi Kompakt HRE, which comes as a 24/18 (CW3), 28/24 (CW4), 36/30 (CW5) and 36/48. The HReco is the newer take on the same idea, in 24, 30 and 36.

Inside, an Intergas has a patented double two-in-one aluminium heat exchanger that heating water and cold tap water both run straight through; on the HReco that does away with the three-way valve. Fewer moving parts is one reason these boilers have a good name, and it means a service is mostly about keeping that heat exchanger clean.

The make and model are on the type plate, usually on the underside of the boiler. Send me a photo of it with your message.

How often Intergas says to service it

Intergas gives two answers, and both are official. Its consumer page on maintenance says at least once every two years by a certified installer, and that your installer may shorten that based on running hours. Intergas doesn’t service boilers itself; it points you to your installer.

The installation manual for the Kombi Kompakt HRE is stricter: checked every year by a recognised installer and cleaned where needed. The Xtreme user manual says the same and adds the flue and air supply pipes to the yearly check.

Keep the invoices. The Intergas warranty terms give two years on the boiler and fifteen on the tightness of the heat exchanger, and say the right to warranty lapses if you can’t show regular servicing according to Intergas’s instructions.

Pressure on an Intergas

Intergas wants between 1 and 2 bar with the system cold. On the HRE you read it on the service display with the boiler switched off; on the Xtreme it’s on the left-hand display. Below 0.5 bar while running, the reading flashes and the boiler limits what it does.

Topping up is something you can do yourself; my pressure guide walks through Intergas’s own steps. If you have to top up several times a year, Intergas says to tell your installer, because there may be a leak. Often it’s the expansion vessel instead, which I check on every service.

Reading an Intergas fault code

On a Kombi Kompakt HR, HRE or HReco, a fault makes the red fault light flash and puts a code on the temperature display. Intergas explains the ones you can act on yourself on its page about faults:

• 1: the boiler is too hot. Open the radiator valves, bleed the system and check the pressure is between 1 and 2 bar. If it keeps happening, call an installer.
• 4: no flame signal. Check the gas tap is open, then press reset. If the code stays, call an installer.
• 5: a poor flame signal. Installer.
• 6: a flame detection fault. Installer.

Missed the code? Switch the boiler off with the off button and press the service button: the last code flashes on the display.

The installation manual lists more, all engineer work: 10 to 14 and 20 to 24 are the two temperature sensors, 8 the fan speed, 29 and 30 the gas valve relay. On a code 4 or 5 it has me check the gas pressure, the condensate drain, the ignition and the earth.

The Xtreme is different: the service symbol flashes and a code such as F004 shows on the left display for 30 seconds; tap the symbol to see it again. F004 means the burner isn’t igniting: check the gas tap, then hold the service symbol for two seconds to reset. For every model, Intergas’s rule is mine too: reset once, and if the code comes back, get it looked at.

What I do on an Intergas service

I follow chapter 9 of the HRE installation manual. The full list is on the boiler servicing page; these are the parts that are specific to Intergas:

• The burner is left alone. Intergas says the burner and its insulation plate must not be cleaned, not with a brush and not with compressed air, because that makes dust from the ceramic fibres. I check them and put them back.
• The baffle strips come out. The HRE has strips pushed crosswise into the heat exchanger fins (the 36/48 doesn’t). They’re cleaned and go back in the right place, because Intergas warns that a missing or wrongly fitted strip can cause serious damage.
• Seals checked, then replaced. The manual says to check every seal for hardening, cracks and discolouration. I fit new ones as standard, with the ceramic grease Intergas specifies under the bolt flanges, and the front plate bolts go back crosswise to 10 to 12 Nm.
• Original parts. Intergas says to use only original Intergas parts, and that’s what I fit.

The Intergas tick

If your Intergas ticks while it heats up and again as it cools, that’s the front plate moving against the heat exchanger. It isn’t a fault. Intergas supplies a ceramic grease for exactly this, and I apply it during a service. There’s more in my guide to boiler noises and in a recent job in Zaandam.

Repair, or replace?

For a fault, it’s €114.95 incl. BTW per hour, with no call-out charge, plus parts. A typical repair with a replacement part comes to around €300-€400 incl. BTW; boiler repair explains how a visit works.

Intergas says a boiler lasts about fifteen years. A standard CW4 replacement is €1,995-€2,495 incl. BTW and a CW5 is €2,195-€2,795 incl. BTW, as guide prices; the fixed quote follows once I’ve seen the boiler, flue and pipework. New boiler cost explains what’s in that price, and boiler installation how the job runs.

Book a service or a repair

Send me a message on WhatsApp with your postcode, a photo of the type plate and, for a fault, a photo of the display and the pressure reading. I work by appointment, 08:00-16:00, seven days a week.

If you smell gas, leave the property and call 0800 9009 from outside. If a CO alarm goes off or you suspect carbon monoxide, get everyone outside and call 112.