Our Story & Values

The Kid, The Kettle, and Paul Huzzar

I was fifteen years old, a few months off sitting my GCSEs at All Hallows Secondary School in Farnham, and if I'm honest, nobody — least of all me — was expecting fireworks from those results. My sister Clare had gone through a couple of years before me and come out the other side with a fistful of A*s. I loved school for the people, the mates, the banter, but the classroom itself never really had me. I just wasn't built for it in the way she was.

Mum was at work the day it happened, which meant the job of letting the "gas man" in for our annual boiler service fell to me. I didn't think much of it. I opened the door expecting overalls and a toolbox, and instead there was a well-spoken man in a crisp long-sleeved dress shirt, trousers, and proper dress shoes, looking more like he was heading into an office than about to lie on our kitchen floor. That was Paul Huzzar, from Lovekin Plumbing and Heating.

I put the kettle on, made him a cup of tea, and — because I had nothing better to do and he didn't seem to mind — I stood and watched. Then I started asking questions. "What's that doing? Why's that bit there? What happens if that goes wrong?" Paul answered every single one properly, like the questions mattered, like I mattered. By the time he'd packed his tools away and finished that cup of tea, I'd talked my way into a summer job.

Learning the Craft

That was it. Five days a week for the whole summer holidays, watching, learning, and asking more questions than any apprentice probably had a right to. I wasn't paid to think, but Paul let me anyway.

His knowledge of boiler breakdowns was second to none. I mean that quite literally — there were times I'd have sworn the technical departments at the manufacturers knew less about their own boilers than Paul did standing in someone's airing cupboard with a multimeter.

That was me hooked. I wanted to know what he knew, do the kind of brilliant, quietly stubborn work he did, and build the sort of relationships with clients that he had. I went on to complete my three-year apprenticeship through Paul, coming out the other end with my NVQs and, back then, my Corgi registration — Gas Safe now, but Corgi to me always.

Aligning every bend to the millimetre...

The Road to United Gas Services

From there I worked for a couple of other companies. One of them had me covering a contract for the MOD, looking after properties across army barracks in London. Eventually I fell into the commercial side of the industry, testing and signing off work that SGN had installed below ground — the mains gas infrastructure — and that's what set me on the path to starting United Gas Services Ltd.

Funnily enough, United Gas Services wasn't supposed to be the name. My nan, my mum's mum, had passed away and left some money to mum, who shared it with us. My share was just enough to buy my first van. I wanted to call the company King's Plumbing and Heating—King being my mum's maiden name. I was quickly informed I couldn't use "King's" unless it was my own surname or I lived on a King's Road. Time was against me, so I settled on United Gas Services.

The business grew, and we took on engineers to keep up with the work. At our busiest, we had ten engineers covering jobs from Oxfordshire down to West Sussex. It was relentless, but it was working.

A Call from Dave & A New Chapter

Just under three years ago, I got a phone call from an old school friend, Dave. Dave had spent twenty-five years serving in the British Army, travelling the world, while I'd had my head down toilets and inside boilers. He was leaving the army and wanted to retrain as a gas engineer.

Today, Dave is fully Gas Safe registered, holds his ticket for unvented cylinders, and is getting qualified in wiring. Having Dave alongside me has given me the breathing room to step back and look at the business, not just work in it.

Running the Business, Not Just the Pipework

I'll be honest, the thing I've always struggled with is the back office side of things. There've been times I've genuinely forgotten to invoice for a job I'd already completed. So if I was serious about growing this, I knew that side of the business needed fixing.

I brought in a business coach, and I've been doing what feels suspiciously like homework ever since. I've invested in a modern CRM and field service management system to help our customers—giving you reminders, tracking when we are on our way, and letting you access your own booking portals.

We've also introduced 0% finance options on larger installations and Care Plans to help you spread the cost of servicing. We've been around for years without spending a penny on marketing, relying entirely on word of mouth, and that's something I'm incredibly proud of. Come along for the journey—we'll always do everything we can to keep you as a satisfied customer.