Combi in loft...good idea?

star1_2

Yes - although lack of preasure in a loft is 'unlikley' - my friends top floor flat's combi cuts out (due to lack of preasure) when the two flats below are drawing mains water at "full-pelt" ie. drawing water from the rising main.

A plumber checked out the preasure and said it was generally low in the area, and hence was the cause.

---lee---

Great idea OP - I know where my next boilers going.

moneysavingplumber wrote:

The condensate should discharge into foul water drainage...

Given that most (if not all lofts) would have a soil vent pipe, is it possible to connect directly into this at loft height for the discharge (assuming that limitations on length of pipe etc were ok)? Just a though - I know nothing about plumbing and even less about heating

meadowcat

When we lived in the country we were on top of a hill and in a tall house almost half a mile up a lane. We had terrible trouble with water pressure. Even though I had the water people out, they insisted that the pressure was within the limits they were required to supply. They suggested a pump to help the water up the hill. If the shower was being used you couldn't use any other water in the house.

Where we live now the pressure is very high. No problems at all.

catkins

I am renting a house where the combi boiler is in the loft and it is a pain in the ****. There is no permanent ladder to the loft and twice the flame has gone out on the boiler so no hot water or heating.

Also ours only has a timer on the boiler which is a pain. Myself and OH are not home at set times so have to keep turning the thermostat up and down so heating is on when we are here and off when we are not. Means we have to get up to a cold house and turn the heating on. Must admit it warms up quickly though

moneysavingplumber

---lee--- wrote:

Great idea OP - I know where my next boilers going.



Given that most (if not all lofts) would have a soil vent pipe, is it possible to connect directly into this at loft height for the discharge (assuming that limitations on length of pipe etc were ok)? Just a though - I know nothing about plumbing and even less about heating

Yes it would be fine to discharge into this.

moneysavingplumber

catkins wrote:

I am renting a house where the combi boiler is in the loft and it is a pain in the ****. There is no permanent ladder to the loft and twice the flame has gone out on the boiler so no hot water or heating.

Also ours only has a timer on the boiler which is a pain. Myself and OH are not home at set times so have to keep turning the thermostat up and down so heating is on when we are here and off when we are not. Means we have to get up to a cold house and turn the heating on. Must admit it warms up quickly though

That's a perfect example of the job not being done correctly in the first place, leaving you the householder to deal with the problems.

moneysavingplumber

meadowcat wrote:

When we lived in the country we were on top of a hill and in a tall house almost half a mile up a lane. We had terrible trouble with water pressure. Even though I had the water people out, they insisted that the pressure was within the limits they were required to supply. They suggested a pump to help the water up the hill. If the shower was being used you couldn't use any other water in the house.

Where we live now the pressure is very high. No problems at all.

In some areas it is a problem, depending on the source of your water etc, but it would be a problem you would usually already be aware of and boosted mains are a common solution to these kinds of problem.

Rate_tart?_sticks_and_stones.....

We had a new central heating system installed 5 years ago and had our Combi installed in the attic (it meant partially flooring attic, installing lighting, power socket and loft ladder) but all well worth it for the space we saved in the kitchen and airing cupboard.

Two years ago I heard a tap running in the kitchen, unfortunately when I went to turn it off I realised it was a shower cascading through the halogen lights in the kitchen ceiling......the boiler had 'burst'!! If this had happened and the boiler had been located in the kitchen the consequential damage would not have been nearly so bad.

We soon learned that we had unwittingly been sold one of the worst boilers ever manufactured...the Baxi Bahama.

Unfortunately our insurers decided it was easier and cheaper for them to pay the £4000+ to replace the kitchen ceiling, damaged units etc. than to challenge either the installers or the manufacturers. So we still have the dreaded boiler in the attic and as our 5 year cover with the installers has recently ended, the 3-4 annual call-outs for repairs will be expensive. We also feel that we have a potential time bomb hanging over our heads (literally!) so we have decided to cut our losses and replace it with a 'reliable' condensing combi......ADVICE APPRECIATED!

So, go ahead by all means save space and install your combi in the attic BUT only if you know it's a reliable make and model!

moneysavingplumber

Rate_tart?_sticks_and_stones..... wrote:

We had a new central heating system installed 5 years ago and had our Combi installed in the attic (it meant partially flooring attic, installing lighting, power socket and loft ladder) but all well worth it for the space we saved in the kitchen and airing cupboard.

Two years ago I heard a tap running in the kitchen, unfortunately when I went to turn it off I realised it was a shower cascading through the halogen lights in the kitchen ceiling......the boiler had 'burst'!! If this had happened and the boiler had been located in the kitchen the consequential damage would not have been nearly so bad.

We soon learned that we had unwittingly been sold one of the worst boilers ever manufactured...the Baxi Bahama.

Unfortunately our insurers decided it was easier and cheaper for them to pay the £4000+ to replace the kitchen ceiling, damaged units etc. than to challenge either the installers or the manufacturers. So we still have the dreaded boiler in the attic and as our 5 year cover with the installers has recently ended, the 3-4 annual call-outs for repairs will be expensive. We also feel that we have a potential time bomb hanging over our heads (literally!) so we have decided to cut our losses and replace it with a 'reliable' condensing combi......ADVICE APPRECIATED!

So, go ahead by all means save space and install your combi in the attic BUT only if you know it's a reliable make and model!

The old Baxi Bahama, what a nasty thing that was!

My recommendations are the Alpha CD24C or CD32C or the Vaillant Ecotec Plus 831. Both have stainless-steel main heat exchangers which I think is one of the most important considerations in order to avoid corrosion problems, and both are Sedbuk 'A' rated.

moneysavingplumber

star1 wrote:

Yes - although lack of preasure in a loft is 'unlikley' - my friends top floor flat's combi cuts out (due to lack of preasure) when the two flats below are drawing mains water at "full-pelt" ie. drawing water from the rising main.

A plumber checked out the preasure and said it was generally low in the area, and hence was the cause.

This is because there is probably one 15mm water main serving three flats, where all should have their own dedicated main. This would still present problems with a conventional system, in that it would be unlikely to sustain a storage tank in order to keep up with the draw off flow rates from a gravity hot water system if you were, for instance, running a bath or using a power shower.