Boilers are never silent, but a new or worsening noise is usually the system telling you something has changed. The type of noise narrows it down quickly.
Banging or kettling
A rumbling or kettle-like noise from the boiler itself is normally limescale or sludge on the heat exchanger. Water overheats in restricted passages and boils locally. Left alone it shortens the life of the heat exchanger, so it is worth dealing with early.
Gurgling
Gurgling usually means air in the system, low pressure, or in winter a frozen condensate pipe. Bleeding radiators and checking the pressure gauge often helps, but repeated air means water is getting in somewhere.
Whistling, humming or vibration
A whistle often comes from a restricted flow or a partially closed valve. A hum or vibration is commonly the circulation pump running at the wrong speed, wearing out, or a loose pipe clip amplifying normal running noise.
Clicking with no ignition
Repeated clicking followed by silence is the ignition sequence failing. That is a job for an engineer rather than a repeated reset.
Any noise combined with a smell of gas, staining around the boiler or water leaking means you should turn the appliance off and call a Gas Safe registered engineer straight away.
When to call us
We diagnose noisy boilers and heating systems across Newcastle, North Tyneside and Gateshead, and agree the cost with you before any work starts.
Written by the engineering team at Newcastle Boiler Maintenance Ltd, Gas Safe registered heating engineers in Newcastle upon Tyne.