I've had a gas safety check done on my rental property (I'm the landlord). I've failed the check because the piezo ignigter on the grill doesn't work. They've quoted $1500 to replace the oven. I lived there for 5 years and this never bothered me, and I don't expect it bothers my tenants.
Do I actually have to fix this? Is there anywhere that plainly states the requirements for the gas safety checks? I don't trust that the plumber isn't making up problems to get himself more work.
the piezo ignigter on the grill doesn't work.
🤣🤣🤣
Not surprised with this government.
Did the government break the grill?
Dan Andrews, personally, turned up during a house inspection and fiddled with the knobs
That's not a comprehensive list of what the checks are. I want to see an official list saying the piezo must work
Don't think its that straight forward, they normally reference australian standards.
AS 4575 is the standard
It does have links. This is the checklist https://www.vba.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/15511…
Regardless of what the regulations say (which are in place to stop carbon monoxide poisoning etc I don’t think a non functioning piezo would be a huge concern in that regard) is the tenant not entitled to appliances that work properly? Sure, they can light it with a lighter (that’s what I do in my house) but why should they have to? As an owner you can decide to just put up with things that are slightly annoying/inconvenient but I think you have a duty to your tenant to ensure everything works properly.
How old is this appliance? If you lived with it for five years, how long before that was it installed? Appliances don’t last forever.
Thanks, while I disagree with your stance that I should spend 1500 and throw out an otherwise reasonably working oven it does seem that the ignition is required to be working.
@brendanm: @Bren20: Just fix the igniter then.
you need to know where the components are and source the right part plus the failure point might not be the ignition coil, manuals are not easy to find from a lot of the manufacturers so its quite possible today's lazy repairers will not want to do this.
That bunnings one will work on some units but probably not the one being discussed.
Also no compliance company is going to be OK with such a cheap repair, its not profitable for them.
@Bren20: This is absolutely right, its not just 1500, the next question is can a new stove be fitted to comply with even newer standards?
Once you change appliances ALL of the new standards become effective such as new height rules.
I know if I had to replace ours, we'd be up for probably a 20k renovation to pull down brickwork/a chimney to refit appliances to those new standards and in that time the tenant would have to vacant to get the work done.
I can tell you.. if I need to spend $20k on something that adds so little value, the tenants are instead going to be given a vacate notice and I'm selling as that's the smart move. Some idiot in the government must be taking a lot of drugs when writing these sorts of policies I think.
That's one less property for people to rent, and I am sure my tenants won't give a toss about having to use a manual igniter if such a problem occurred, they'd much rather keep their cheap rent rate and remain in a home.
Also I see nothing in the actual standard saying a piezo igniter must work either so I call bullshit on them on this, sounds like Epic Inspections to me. the documentation talks about checking the ignition system works which doesn't say the ignition can't be manual or must be to original specification.
With say a hot water system or space heater sure that's pretty black and white as these can't be manually light, but a stove, its perfectly easy to manually ignite cookers on even a brand new gas hotplate. The ignitors are a modern luxury some of us are use to in non-period homes. Failure of an ignitor does not prevent the 2 primary burners for being used to cook food. I don't believe the spirit of the original legislation was to drive costs up for no real world increase in safety.
And also.. the gas check requires the compliance company to SERVICE the stove burners, likely the ignitor system stopped due to oil/non conductive material build up on the circuit by tenant use, so its their job to clean it as part of the inspection.
This sounds like the sort of thing Epic Inspections would claim or Detector Inspector, the companies that spend 10 minutes or less doing the work and don't follow the servicing requirements. Best check with the VBA directly.
How did you light the Grill with the piezo not working?
By gaslighting the tenants! Instant flames …
Which company did you use? Is it cheaper to get it replaced yourself?
Yeah I'd shop around for quotes, the REA organised the check.
Dodgy REA choosing their dodgy plumber by the sounds of it. Just diy after watching a YouTube video https://www.bunnings.com.au/gasmate-replacement-piezo-ignito…
Yeah tenants should be kissing your feet for providing them with a house.
Next you will be asked to provide them with electrical wiring that’s up to code
What next? A habitable residence?
The house is unsafe and you'll need to kick the tenants out now. They'll probably end up homeless just like the ones that complained about a bit of mold that they most likely were the cause of.
Google gas stove repair in the suburb and then ask them how much it could cost to replace the piezo ignigter as $1500 is way over the top when you should be able to replace the piezo allot cheaper (google indicates it's $20 to $60 for brick and mortar stores).
I don't trust that the plumber isn't making up problems to get himself more work.
Happened to me as well. These cowboys have flagged some stuff on mine. For gas I sorted it out with manufacturer's service folks without any drama. For electrical it was some downlight replacements that were easy to sort out. You wouldn't believe the ridiculous cost they'd quoted following the safety report. I suspect with govt mandating safety checks for rental properties, these dirty mobs are making money hand over fist….
I suggest you get a few quotes and do what needs to be done.
Aso when the time comes 2 years later, look into a different company with better user reviews than the one rental agency is providing.
The post was suggesting that certain companies were exploiting the requirements by using a safety inspection as an opportunity to generate expensive quotes for the repair/replacement of items that should be relatively cheap to fix, or covered under warranty. There are no complaints in the post about ensuring their rental property meets the standards of "DA GUBBERMENT".
100%. Some people needs to be spoon fed of what's going on which is sad (or may be they represent such shady companies).
For instance, the mob quoted me $500 to replace few lights in the property and $1000 for the gas stating there was a leak. Manufacturer's service folks had a look and mentioned it required bit of tightening of the valve that could have been done on the spot by the gas plumbed that did safety check without requiring a service call…
You know what, that's true, I unpublished my comment
@ThithLord: Cheers. If you’re interested look into stories on how people in ndis schemes are ripped off
Do I actually have to fix this?
Do you need to pass your gas safety check or not?
They've quoted $1500 to replace the oven.
What is the brand/model of the oven? Sure'y the piezo ignigter can be purchased as a spare part.
https://www.theovenrepairman.com.au/
next thread
'my landlord is an arsehole and wont fix the grill piezo'…
Did you study ?