Quote for new boiler - too much?

uhuru_2

We had a service done on our 14 yr old gas combi boiler yesterday by Eon. The engineer tried to scare us by saying the boiler is dangerous - think he was just trying to get a sale of a new boiler but we were worried last night. Had a quote today for a new one from British Gas. The engineer who did the quote said that while the boiler doesn't meet current safety standards it isn't dangerous. He also said it may be difficult to get parts for it so we are still considering a replacement.

He did the quote and recommended a Worcester Greenstar 28i High Efficiency Combi. Total cost of the installation is quoted as nearly £3900 :eek: (and that is after they have knocked off £300 trade in on the old boiler). The actual boiler and installation being £2600, the remainder is because the boiler cannot be sited on an outside wall and therefore the flue is more costly and we also need a condensate pump to get the condensed water to the drains.

Firstly, what does anyone think of the boiler BG are recommending? Secondly, that quote seems huge to me - I expected maybe £2000 - £3000, not nearly £4000!

I am going to get a quote from Eon too - their engineer said it would be around the £1800 - £2000 mark when I spoke to him on the phone so we'll see what he says when he finds out we need this flue and pump thing.

Can anyone suggest / recommend any other installers (West Midlands area)?

Canucklehead

Good evening: A typical BG quote:eek:....find an independent CORGI and you could probably knock a thousand quid off and get a better boiler e.g. Vaillant EcoTEC plus 831/837, Viessmann Vitodens 200. What make and model do you have at the moment?
Always best to go with personal recommendations: ask family, friends, colleagues for names if possible and check his/her registration at https://www.trustcorgi.com

HTH

Canucklehead

happylife

Have you been quoted for the Greenstar 28i Junior Boiler ?

This is showing as £776


http://www.plumbnation.co.uk/site/worcester-greenstar-junior-28i-combi-boiler-natural-gas/


Can't see any other 28i Combi Bolier on the website

http://www.worcester-bosch.co.uk/homeowner/products/gas-fired-boilers-and-systems


They Are EXCELLENT boilers though but no more than £1500

uhuru_2

The current boiler is a Ferroli Optima 700 according to the form completed by the Eon engineer.

I assume it must be the Junior boiler, the quote isn't clear. After looking at the Plumbnation site I think BG can stick their quote somewhere! The difference is price is ridiculous - I'm not paying £2600 for a boiler worth less than £800 even if it takes them a week to install the thing! And the mark up on the other items looks ridiculous as well.

Thanks for the advice - I think we will look for an independant corgi registered fitter.

Canucklehead

Good evening: Boiler spares are available for your appliance. If you haven't had any major problems with the Ferroli, it is 'safe' and you have it serviced annually then save your dosh and don't replace it. Btw, the WB Junior is an entry level combi (typically found in rental properties) and doesn't have the features available in the WB Cdi range for example...all WBs have an aluminium heat exchanger...many CORGIs prefer stainless steel. Your flueing and condensate waste requirements as stated by you can be labour and material intensive and drive up the cost well beyond that of a straightforward swap.

HTH

Canucklehead

uhuru_2

Thanks for the advice, we'll look into getting it fixed. My OH has remembered a couple of people he knows who have had boilers replaced recently so he's going to find out who did them. I really don't trust Eon or British Gas after this as both seem to have been out to get us to spend a fortune on a new boiler when it probably isn't necessary!

I've also read a few other threads where people have had quotes from BG which are overpriced so I think we will avoid them when we do come th replace.

uhuru_2

Just an update:

Decided to wait for Eon to send a quote for the repairs they thought necessary before obtaining quotes from other (hopefully cheaper) alternatives. Since it isn't dangerous decided not to replace until we can afford it - probably in about 2 years.

Quote didn't materialise thereore I called Eon. Apparently the boiler has been passed with a couple of exclusions and there is no record of the engineer telling me it was dangerous or issuing an immediately dangerous certificate. The guy I spoke to actually informed me that the engineer cannot have issued such a certificate as their computer says he didn't. It is not to current standards but not immediately in need of replacement. I asked if the engineers are on commission for sales of new boilers on properties they visit - apparently not but somehow I don't believe that!

So, I am considering a call to Trading Standards - obviously offering to send them a copy of the immediately dangerous certificate. If I wasn't as cynical as I am I would probably have signed up to have the boiler replaced without doing some research first and spent £4k when it wasn't necessary. Eon should not be allowed to get away with such underhand sales tactics. It is one thing to say the boiler is old / inefficient but to try to scare someone by telling them it is likely to explode is out of order.

Needless to say, I will be getting a local Corgi registered gas fitter to look at it in future.