Baxi

Baxi is a long established British heating manufacturer whose boilers sit on the walls of millions of UK homes. If you have a Baxi boiler, this page tells you what you need to know as a household: how to identify your model, what its fault codes and lights mean, how to reset it after a power cut, what to do if you smell gas or suspect carbon monoxide, and how to keep it serviced, registered and covered by its warranty.

The most important things to hold onto are these. Most gas boilers, including Baxi models, need electricity for their pumps, fans and electronic controls, so a boiler can stop working during a power cut even though the gas supply is fine, and it should start again by itself when the electricity returns¹. If you smell gas, open a window if you can, leave the property immediately and call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999². And only a Gas Safe registered engineer may legally work on your boiler³.

What Baxi makes for UK homes

Baxi's core business is domestic heating. Its range for UK households centres on gas boilers: combi boilers that provide hot water on demand and central heating from one wall hung unit, and system and heat only boilers that work with a separate hot water cylinder. The maker's own help and advice pages cover resetting these boilers, reading their fault displays and dealing with common winter problems such as frozen condensate pipes⁵.

Alongside gas boilers, Baxi and the wider Baxi group make other heating equipment for homes, including heat pumps and the pumps and controls that circulate water around a heating system. A heat pump may be a suitable choice of central heating for your home, depending on a number of factors such as when your house was built, how many bedrooms it has and whether it has insulation, and the Met Office points households to the government's online tool to check whether one would work for their property⁷.

For this site's purposes, Baxi kit falls into two areas we cover in depth elsewhere: gas and heating failures, which covers what to do when a boiler or gas supply lets you down, and home emergencies, which covers gas leaks, carbon monoxide and burst pipes. If a power cut rather than a fault is your problem, see power cuts; if you are planning how to heat your home without mains gas or electricity, see heating and cooking without mains power or gas.

Baxi gas boilers

A Baxi gas boiler is the heart of most of the homes it is installed in: a boiler breakdown means no hot water or gas central heating⁶. That is why the maker publishes its own guidance on the faults a householder can safely deal with themselves, and draws a clear line between those and anything that needs an engineer.

If a fault occurs on your boiler, an error message or light, depending on your model, may be shown on the fascia display⁵. On models with a dedicated reset button, resetting is simple: press the reset button until the red light goes away⁵. On models where the reset is done through the boiler thermostat control knob, a lockout is identified by the Red Lockout light being on or flashing; you hold the reset position until the red lockout light goes out, then turn the control knob back to the desired setting⁵. On older models using neon indicator lights instead of an LED display, a lockout shows through the flame failure light, which on the 10-Neon display is the top left light⁵.

Two things every Baxi owner should know how to do:

• Read the display: note the error code or which light is showing before you do anything, because the engineer will ask for it⁵.
• Find the model: Baxi says the easiest way to find out the type of Baxi boiler you have is to check the instruction manual⁴.

Anything beyond a reset, or a fault that keeps coming back, is a job for a Gas Safe registered engineer. Gas safety checks cover boilers, gas cookers, heaters and any other gas fired appliances in your home⁸, and only a registered engineer may legally open up and work on them³.

Baxi heat pumps and other heating systems

Baxi also supplies heat pumps and the circulating pumps and controls used in heating systems. Whether a heat pump suits your home is not a simple yes or no: the Met Office notes it depends on factors such as when your house was built, how many bedrooms it has and if it has insulation, and directs households to the government's online checking tool⁷.

If you are moving to a heat pump, or already have one, the household preparedness questions are the same as for a boiler: what happens in a power cut, and what is the backup. Baxi offers servicing for boilers, filters, cylinders and air source heat pumps, so a heat pump household can keep the same routine of professional maintenance it would have with a boiler⁹.

While your main heating is off, whether for a fault or an outage, official fire and rescue guidance sets the rules for alternative heaters. Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service advises buying a portable gas or paraffin heater that carries the British Standard Institution kitemark, and never buying a second hand paraffin heater as they can be dangerous¹⁰. An NHS patient advice leaflet on sleeping with a gas appliance on suggests using an electric or oil radiator to provide an alternative heat source¹¹. London Fire Brigade covers the safe use of portable heaters, gas fires and open fires in the home¹². We set these choices out side by side in heating and cooking without mains power or gas.

What to do if you smell gas near your boiler

The smell of gas is distinctive and sulphur like, and hissing sounds near gas appliances or gas meters are another warning sign to look out for⁸. If you smell gas, open doors and windows, and avoid using naked flames¹³. Buckinghamshire Council's guidance on gas supply issues adds the same two immediate rules: open doors and windows, and avoid using naked flames¹³.

Do not operate light switches or anything electrical on the way out, and do not go back in until the emergency service tells you it is safe. The National Gas Emergency Service line, 0800 111 999, is free and open at all hours. Gas network operators such as SGN publish incident advice for households on their incident hub pages during wider gas supply emergencies¹.

If the smell is around the boiler itself, leave the boiler alone. Do not try to reset it, do not open its casing, and wait for a Gas Safe registered engineer. We cover the full sequence of actions in home emergencies and gas and heating failures.

Carbon monoxide: warning signs and what to do

Carbon monoxide has no smell, and a faulty boiler is one of the appliances that can produce it. London Fire Brigade advises familiarising yourself with the signs of carbon monoxide poisoning and learning what to do if you suspect a leak¹², and Lincolnshire's home fire safety guidance says you should know the symptoms and what to do¹⁴. Devon and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service list feeling sick and dizzy among the symptoms¹⁵.

If you or anyone in the household feels sick and dizzy, or has flu like symptoms that ease when you leave the house, suspect carbon monoxide: get fresh air, turn the appliance off if you can do so safely, and seek medical help. An audible carbon monoxide alarm is the reliable early warning, and it matters most in rooms with a gas appliance. Learn the signs of carbon monoxide poisoning and what to do if you suspect a leak, so you can act quickly if the alarm sounds or symptoms appear⁶.

Why a boiler can stop working in a power cut

A gas boiler burns gas, so many people expect it to keep working through a power cut. It usually will not. Gas network operator SGN explains that your boiler may not work during a power cut because most use electricity for things like pumps, fans and electronic controls¹. The gas is still there; the boiler simply cannot move water or air or run its ignition and control circuits without mains electricity.

The practical consequences for a household are:

• No central heating, because the circulating pump has no power¹.
• No hot water from a combi boiler, which heats water on demand using the same pump and controls¹.
• No fault on the boiler itself: this is expected behaviour, not a breakdown¹.

A boiler breakdown, by contrast, means no hot water or gas central heating even with the power on, and that is when you need an engineer rather than a wait⁶. Telling the two apart is the first diagnostic step: if the street lights are off and the neighbours are out too, it is the power cut. Our power cuts guide covers what to keep ready, from torches to a battery radio, and backup power covers the options for keeping small essentials running.

Getting a Baxi boiler running again after an outage

The good news from SGN is that when the electricity supply returns, your boiler should work without any intervention¹. Most Baxi boilers will simply re ignite on their own. Give it a few minutes, then check that the display is back to normal and the radiators or hot water are working.

If the boiler does not come back on its own, a reset is the householder's one safe action. Baxi's own guidance, which varies by control type, is:

1. Dedicated reset button: press the reset button until the red light goes away⁵.
2. Thermostat control knob reset: hold the reset position until the red lockout light goes out, then turn the control knob back to the desired setting⁵.
3. ON/OFF/SELECTOR switch models: open the pull down panel to reveal the control, then reset; on a neon indicator model the flame failure light will stop flashing and will be replaced with the burner light when the reset has worked⁵.

If the boiler still will not run after the power is back and a reset has been tried, SGN's advice is plain: if your boiler is not working but it is unrelated to a power cut, you will need to contact a Gas Safe registered engineer to come out and take a look¹. One winter exception is worth checking first: if the display shows error code E28, E53, E133, E119 or E128, the condensate pipe may be frozen, which is covered below under fault codes⁴.

Keeping warm while your boiler is off

However long the boiler is off, whether for an hour's outage or a day's fault, the same official advice applies. Greater Manchester Combined Authority's loss of essential services guidance says to keep warm by using blankets and layered clothing, and to shut the curtains and doors of unused rooms to keep the heat in¹⁷.

Beyond that, the choice of temporary heater matters for safety. The fire and rescue services' rules are consistent:

• Buy a portable gas or paraffin heater that carries the BSI kitemark, and never buy a second hand paraffin heater¹⁰.
• Use an electric or oil radiator as an alternative heat source where you can¹¹.
• Follow the fire service's safety rules for portable heaters, gas fires and open fires: the right heater, used the right way¹².

Never bring a barbecue or camping stove indoors for heat: they are recalled and warned against for good reason, and carbon monoxide from them kills. If your household needs extra help during an outage, because of age, disability or medical equipment, see extra help in an emergency, and for keeping warm over a longer disruption see heating and cooking without mains power or gas.

Servicing and looking after your boiler

Two annual habits keep a Baxi boiler safe and reliable. The first is servicing: have your boiler serviced annually by a Gas Safe registered engineer, as Lincolnshire's home fire safety guidance puts it¹⁴, and WaterSafe, the independent approved plumbing register, adds that the engineer should also be a WaterSafe Register approved contractor⁶.

The second is frost protection for the condensate pipe. Baxi advises lagging the pipe with waterproof and weatherproof lagging to help prevent it freezing⁵, and WaterSafe recommends fitting foam insulation from your local DIY store or plumbing merchants⁶. This small job prevents one of the most common winter shutdowns.

Between services, watch the boiler pressure. Baxi's support article warns that if you notice your pressure dropping more regularly, then you may have a leak and need an engineer to fix the issue⁴. And if a radiator is cold at the top, Baxi's advice is simply to bleed the radiator and the problem should be resolved⁴.

A serviced, lagged, properly pressurised boiler is also the one most likely to ride out a storm. For the wider picture of protecting your home against cold weather, see storms, snow and ice.

Baxi support, warranty and safety notices

Registering your appliance and warranty

Register your appliance with the manufacturer so that any warranty can be applied and the maker can contact you with safety information or a recall notice. Fire and rescue guidance on electrical appliances is explicit that registration ensures manufacturers can contact you if a safety repair is needed⁹. Typically you will need the model name or number, the serial number and the purchase date to register an appliance¹⁸.

Registering your appliance means the maker can contact you if a safety issue or recall affects it. Check the paperwork that came with your boiler or heat pump for the registration card or website address, and complete it when the appliance is installed.

Checking for recalls

Heating and electrical products are recalled from time to time, and boilers are no exception. Manchester Fire and Rescue Service advises checking your appliances are not subject to a product recall by checking the Office for Product Safety and Standards alerts and recalls pages⁹.

The Electrical Safety First product checker contains the details of electrical products that have been recalled since 2007¹⁹. If you have searched for a product that you own and it is not listed, this means it has not been recalled and should be safe to use; if you have concerns, contact the retailer or manufacturer to alert them to a potential problem¹⁹.

Finding a Gas Safe engineer

Only a Gas Safe registered engineer should carry out gas work; Argyll and Bute Council's gas safety guidance states that anyone else carrying it out is breaking the law³. The Gas Safe Register website has a Find an Engineer service where you can find a local registered engineer simply by inputting your postcode²⁰.

Before letting anyone work on your Baxi boiler, check them:

• All Gas Safe registered engineers carry ID cards which tell you which appliances they are qualified to work on, with competencies clearly marked on the back²⁰.
• Use the Check an Engineer service on the Gas Safe Register website by inputting the licence number from the engineer's ID card²⁰.
• Or text Gas and the engineer's seven digit licence number to 85080 to receive a text confirming whether the licence is registered²⁰.

Not all engineers can work on every appliance or property type, so check they are appropriately qualified for the work needed³.

Fault codes, frozen pipes and low pressure: the common Baxi problems

Three problems account for most of the calls a Baxi household makes in winter, and the maker's own support pages cover all three.

Frozen condensate pipe. If your boiler has shut down and is showing error code E28, E53, E133, E119 or E128, then your condensate pipe may be frozen⁴. The condensate pipe carries waste water out of the boiler to a drain, and in hard frost an external run can freeze solid. The fix is to thaw the pipe, and the prevention is lagging: Baxi recommends waterproof and weatherproof lagging⁵, and WaterSafe recommends foam insulation from a DIY store or plumbing merchants⁶.

Low boiler pressure. A boiler whose pressure keeps falling is losing water somewhere. Baxi's advice is that if you notice your pressure dropping more regularly, then you may have a leak and need an engineer to fix the issue⁴.

Cold radiators. If a radiator is cold at the top and warm at the bottom, trapped air is the usual cause. Baxi's advice is simply to bleed the radiator and the problem should be resolved⁴.