Aga Cookers
How Often Should an Aga Be Serviced? Oil 6 Months, Gas 12
By the Hill & May team
Updated 2026
How often should an Aga be serviced? It depends entirely on what heats it. AGA’s own recommended intervals run from every six months for a traditional oil-fired Aga to never for the current electric cast-iron models. Gas and older electric heat-storage Agas sit in between at once a year, and the Dual Control and Total Control models need a full service only every five years.
The table below is AGA’s published schedule, model by model, followed by what each kind of service involves, who is allowed to do it, and how to work out which Aga you actually have.
AGA’s recommended service intervals
AGA published this schedule on its service and repairs page. The page has since been simplified, but its current FAQ still says the AGA Signature, AGA Mini, AGA Classic and AGA Compact “require no regular servicing” and that other models vary.
| Aga model | Recommended service interval |
|---|---|
| Traditional Aga, oil | Every 6 months |
| Traditional Aga, gas | Every 12 months |
| Traditional Aga, electric (13 amp heat storage) | Every 12 months |
| Aga Dual Control, gas | Every 12 months |
| Aga Dual Control, electric | Full service every 5 years, interim service every 2.5 years |
| Aga Total Control | Full service every 5 years, interim service every 2.5 years |
| Aga 60, dual fuel | Every 12 months |
| Aga 60, electric | No servicing required |
| Aga R3 and eR3 series (now the AGA Compact) | No servicing required |
| Aga R7 and eR7 series (now the AGA Signature) | No servicing required |
| AGA Mini | No servicing required |
The pattern is simple. Anything that burns fuel needs regular attention, because combustion leaves deposits and a flue has to keep drawing safely. Anything that only uses electric elements has nothing to burn, so routine servicing drops away. The two Dual Control and Total Control electric models sit in the middle because they carry more complex controls and elements than the newest cookers.
If your model is not listed, AGA’s advice is to check the user guide for that cooker or ask the AGA service team or a retailer. Rayburns follow their own rule: AGA says a Rayburn should be serviced once or twice a year depending on the model, and solid-fuel Rayburns also need the chimney swept and the flueways cleaned.
Why the oil Aga needs it twice a year
A traditional oil Aga runs a vaporising burner around the clock. Over months of continuous burning, carbon builds up in the burner and the flueways, and the flame and draught slowly drift out of adjustment. A six-monthly service brings the burner, flue draught and oil supply back to where the cooker was set up. Skip it and the usual symptoms appear: an Aga that will not hold temperature, sooty smells, a smoky flue terminal or a burner that goes out.
Oil Agas are also the costliest to run, so a poorly set burner wastes money twice over. Heating oil roughly doubled in price over the past year (see our heating oil price tracker), and our Aga running costs page sets out what each fuel type burns through.
Many owners book one service just before winter and one in spring, so the cooker goes into the cold months freshly set up.
What a gas Aga service involves
Gas Agas need servicing once a year. Any work on a gas appliance in Great Britain must legally be done by an engineer on the Gas Safe Register, so check the engineer’s Gas Safe ID card, which lists the appliance types they are qualified for. A service normally covers the burner, the flue and its draught, the gas pressure, and a check that combustion is clean.
If you let a property with a gas Aga, it falls under the landlord’s annual gas safety check like any other gas appliance. The Health and Safety Executive sets out the landlord gas safety duties.
Electric Agas: once a year, every five years, or never
Older 13 amp electric heat-storage Agas need an annual service. The Dual Control and Total Control electric models need a full service every five years and an interim service halfway, at two and a half years.
The current cast-iron cookers need no routine servicing: the Signature (the former eR7), the Classic, the Compact (the former eR3) and the Mini. That is one of AGA’s main selling points for replacing an older cooker, and it shows in its FAQ, which lists “no regular servicing” alongside lower running costs. If you have just bought one, our Aga eR7 review and Aga eR3 review explain the rename and how each model behaves day to day.
No servicing does not mean no care. Keep the enamel clean, brush out carbonised residue from the cast ovens, and call an engineer if an oven stops reaching temperature.
Servicing and your warranty
AGA says regular servicing is a condition of the warranty for many models. On a fuel-burning Aga, a missed service can give AGA grounds to refuse a claim, so keep every service record. Our page on range cooker warranty registration covers the separate trap of registering within 30 days of delivery.
Who can service an Aga
AGA says your cooker should be serviced by RepairTech Services UK Ltd, its appointed national service partner, or by an AGA Registered Engineer. You can find one through the AGA engineer finder. In Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, AGA points owners to Waterford Stanley at service@waterfordstanley.com.
Independent Aga engineers are common, especially in rural areas where oil Agas are most common. For an older cooker out of warranty that can work well, but check:
- for gas, that they are Gas Safe registered for cookers;
- for oil, that they are OFTEC registered (OFTEC is the competent person scheme for oil-fired appliances), and that they work on Aga burners regularly;
- that they leave a written service record with the date and what was done.
Not sure which Aga you have?
The serial number identifies the model. Its position varies by cooker, so AGA’s Customer Experience team or a local AGA retailer can tell you where to look. If you have inherited an Aga with a house, they can also tell you which service interval applies. Clues you can check yourself: an oil Aga has an oil supply pipe and usually a tank outside; a gas Aga has a gas supply and a flue; a current electric Aga has a control panel or app connection and no flue at all.
Frequently asked questions
How often should an Aga be serviced? AGA recommends every 6 months for a traditional oil Aga, every 12 months for gas and older electric heat-storage Agas, and every 5 years (with an interim visit at 2.5 years) for Dual Control electric and Total Control models. The Signature, Classic, Compact and Mini need no regular servicing.
Do electric Agas need servicing? The current electric cast-iron models do not. Older 13 amp electric heat-storage Agas need an annual service, and Dual Control and Total Control electric models need one every five years.
Why does an oil Aga need servicing twice a year? It burns oil continuously, so carbon builds up in the burner and flue and the settings drift. A six-monthly service keeps it holding temperature and burning cleanly.
Can any engineer service my Aga? AGA recommends RepairTech Services UK Ltd or an AGA Registered Engineer. Gas work must legally be done by a Gas Safe registered engineer; for oil, look for an OFTEC registered technician who knows Aga burners.
Will skipping a service affect my Aga warranty? It can. AGA says regular servicing is a condition of the warranty for many models, so keep dated records of every service.
How often should a Rayburn be serviced? Once or twice a year depending on the model, according to AGA. Solid-fuel Rayburns also need regular chimney sweeping and flueway cleaning.
Sources
- AGA: Service & Repair and AGA FAQs (read October 2026)
- AGA recommended service intervals table, agaliving.com/service-repairs (as published February 2026)
- HSE: gas safety, landlords and letting agents
