On Tue, 13 Jan 2015 16:53:15 -0000, charles wrote:

In article , Uncle Peter wrote:
On Mon, 12 Jan 2015 08:42:34 -0000, harryagain
wrote:


"Uncle Peter" wrote in message
news boiler or gas fire off in summer?

It struck me it would cost a lot of gas over the year (and from what
I've read it's anything from £25 to £90 a year).

Then I found this! "With the pilot off, there are still trace amounts
of gas molecules in the burner and pilot tubes of your fireplace. The
gas companies add a chemical called Mercaptan to the gas which gives it
that lovely odor we all know. Spiders are attracted to the smell of the
Mercaptan and will sometimes build webs in the pilot and burner tubes
when the flow of gas is off. So when you go to turn on your fireplace
in the early fall or late summer, it will not work, and you will have
to call you local installer to come service the unit. This will cost
money."

Bollix. The reason for turning the pilot off is to save gas and to
prolong the life of the thermcouple.

Trouble is when it won't bloody light. Every time I've had it off for a
while, it takes ages to get it going.

Probably because the feed pipe get full of air. At least that's what I
worked out.

Yes, it does have a ridiculously long feed pipe. The valve should be close to the pilot.

--
Anybody who claims that marriage is a fifty-fifty proposition doesn't know a damned thing about women or fractions.