Grants for new boiler

Lady_K

Do you think I should say anything about hoping I might get a new boiler rather than repair when the person comes to check it out? Just wondering if it actually really benefits them to do that

Its not working but they may try to mend it, if they try to mend it and it breaks down again can I reapply?

margaretclare

Lady_K wrote:

Do you think I should say anything about hoping I might get a new boiler rather than repair when the person comes to check it out? Just wondering if it actually really benefits them to do that

Its not working but they may try to mend it, if they try to mend it and it breaks down again can I reapply?

I don't know!

You could express your concerns about what happens if it's repaired but breaks down again perhaps in the middle of winter etc.

Best wishes

Margaret

sheilepet

lilac_lady wrote:

Do you need to be claiming a benefit to get a central heating grant in Scotland if you're an OAP? My aunt doesn't claim anything because of a small private pension but can't afford a new system. The one she has is 35 years old and won't last much longer.

My boiler was condemned in February so I phoned EEGA to see if I was entitled to new central heating since I was over 60. My new central heating was installed on 1st June and I don't claim any benefits since I have a small pension from husbands work pension on top of my own pension
Your aunt wont get new system unless her system fails or is declared unsafe
Incidentally when I phoned I was told I would have to wait 6 months but was lucky

[Deleted User]

As I write, my new boiler is being installed .From applying for the grant, it has taken around two months. As I am having a n extra radiator fitted as well I have to pay an excess of £750 00 which I thought was very reasonable considering the amount of work needed. The young chap has been really good and very helpful.He even replaced my lightbulb that had blown in my kitchen for me as it's not a good idea to be standing on chairs with my wonky legs. I care not praise the firm highly enough .

margaretclare

Hi JackieO, congratulations! Glad you're getting the boiler installed so quickly.

I applied in June. So far, we've received the pack of energy-saving light-bulbs. We're due to have a visit from the installer's representative who will tell us what they can do/what they're prepared to do/what they think we need under the scheme. He was going to come this Wednesday but that was the day DH was going into hospital, we said leave it until he comes home, about a week we thought. Only the surgery wasn't done on Thursday as planned - the set of parts wasn't there (this is his knee we're talking about, not the boiler!!) so he has to go back on Monday for surgery Tuesday.

In the meantime, DH and I between us have got the cost of new boiler installation saved up in our cash ISAs so IF what's offered under WarmFront doesn't turn out to be what we want, we'll just get a local installer to do it for us. But DH wants to be fit and active again before we make any firm decision about it.

Margaret

[Deleted User]

Hi Margaret,
well the boiler is in, and the sparks came today to wire all the programme in and so far touch wood all has gone to plan .I am awaiting the guy to come on 2 oct to to the making-good i.e. fill in the hole left where the ga fire and back boiler used to be.At the moment I have stuck a sheet of xmas wrap over the hole to make it look a bit better.
Neccesity being the mother of invention it cheers the sitting room up a bit instead of this huge hole .Three days of carpets and floor boards being lifted was more than enough for me .It is a little stressful when burly chaps start pulling your home about ,but the end result hopefully will justify it all.

margaretclare

JackieO wrote:

Hi Margaret,
well the boiler is in, and the sparks came today to wire all the programme in and so far touch wood all has gone to plan .I am awaiting the guy to come on 2 oct to to the making-good i.e. fill in the hole left where the ga fire and back boiler used to be.At the moment I have stuck a sheet of xmas wrap over the hole to make it look a bit better.
Neccesity being the mother of invention it cheers the sitting room up a bit instead of this huge hole .Three days of carpets and floor boards being lifted was more than enough for me .It is a little stressful when burly chaps start pulling your home about ,but the end result hopefully will justify it all.

Hi Jackie, glad you're getting sorted.

Could you please explain exactly what you've had done, what kind of a boiler you've had installed, where it is etc. You describe having the gas-fire and boiler removed from the sitting-room - this is exactly what we DON'T want. We have a back-boiler and gas-fire but we don't want it all ripped out - see my posts above - we just want the boiler part rendered inoperative and the gas-fire (which we use very infrequently) left where it is.

If the WarmFront installers are not prepared to do what we want then we'll go to a local installer who will. We've already had an estimate from a local man who can do it for us for the £2,700 - obviously at our cost not WarmFront's! But the very LAST thing we want is carpets and floorboards lifted and a damn great hole in the fireplace. Skiduck's suggestion of a plasma fire would not look right in this type of a property.

Best wishes

Margaret

Skiduck

margaretclare wrote:

Hi Jackie, glad you're getting sorted.

Could you please explain exactly what you've had done, what kind of a boiler you've had installed, where it is etc. You describe having the gas-fire and boiler removed from the sitting-room - this is exactly what we DON'T want. We have a back-boiler and gas-fire but we don't want it all ripped out - see my posts above - we just want the boiler part rendered inoperative and the gas-fire (which we use very infrequently) left where it is.

If the WarmFront installers are not prepared to do what we want then we'll go to a local installer who will. We've already had an estimate from a local man who can do it for us for the £2,700 - obviously at our cost not WarmFront's! But the very LAST thing we want is carpets and floorboards lifted and a damn great hole in the fireplace. Skiduck's suggestion of a plasma fire would not look right in this type of a property.

Best wishes

Margaret

Hi Margaret, with reference to your post on another thread, I thought I would reply to you here.

If you want the back boiler decommisioned you will probably have to decommision the fire too - I can't see any way around that. You can leave the fire in situ to avoid removing the whole unit and being left with a hole. However if the fire is a bit past it, you may be able to remove the fire front and replace to give you an ornamental fire ( bit of board and some flowers etc :rotfl: )

To replace the system with a regular boiler, leaving your cylinder will require rerouting of some pipework - how much will depend on how it was installed initially. You may also find that it may have to be converted to a fully pumped system - check if you have a pump and 1 or 2 motorised valves in your cylinder cupboard. If it isn't fully pumped, you may have to consider a combination boiler, ir's a 2 bedroom house with 2 people and you use a shower more than a bath, so probably this would be the best scenario for you. To save on more costs, you could ask the installer to only decommision your loft tanks and hot water cylinder rather than remove them completely - then just get the family round to ectract them all. (waterproofs at the ready just in case)

Combination boilers have pros and cons, but I think in your situation it would be your best bet, most new combis now, especially from Worcester have a pre-heat facility to give you instant hot water - one of the previous cons with combis was the slow rate in which you got a decent temp out of the taps.

Depending on how much work is involved in converting your systme and what you wanted doing (ie clean extraction and install or just the basics.) I would suggest it would cost you between £2500 and £3500, but I'm not sure what your local rates are.

margaretclare

Thanks for this, Skiduck.

We'd already decided we wanted the combi type of condensing boiler and have had a quote for Vaillant.

As we rarely use the fire anyway it could sit there as it is.

'Get the family round' - not practicable. Family live in the East Midlands and West Yorkshire, at least 200 miles away! We had thought of having the 40-gallon tank emptied and just left there. The loft is huge and we only use it for storage anyway. But there's a proper loft ladder, floor and lighting.

I've passed on this thread to my DH, who is the technical member of the team - he's a former mechanical engineer.

Best wishes

Margaret

[Deleted User]

margaretclare wrote:

Hi Jackie, glad you're getting sorted.

Could you please explain exactly what you've had done, what kind of a boiler you've had installed, where it is etc. You describe having the gas-fire and boiler removed from the sitting-room - this is exactly what we DON'T want. We have a back-boiler and gas-fire but we don't want it all ripped out - see my posts above - we just want the boiler part rendered inoperative and the gas-fire (which we use very infrequently) left where it is.

If the WarmFront installers are not prepared to do what we want then we'll go to a local installer who will. We've already had an estimate from a local man who can do it for us for the £2,700 - obviously at our cost not WarmFront's! But the very LAST thing we want is carpets and floorboards lifted and a damn great hole in the fireplace. Skiduck's suggestion of a plasma fire would not look right in this type of a property.

Best wishes

Margaret

Hi Margaret,
I wanted the back boiler removed as it was u/s and it had a certain amount of asbestos in it, and the gas fire was well past it's best, (the elements were crumbling and it really was a bit of an eyesore ,it was here when we bought the house 11 years ago) Admittedly the resulting hole was a bit daunting, but a man is coming a week tommorow to 'make good', presumably fill the hole with the breeze blocks that were delivered along with the rest of the equipement and plaster over it .The plaster was also delivered at the same time. I had a new Ideal condensing type boiler fitted and a new cylinder and also a large radiator in the sitting room.They installed a new room thermostat and also a new electronic programmer. Previously I had no radiator in the sitting room, and had to huddle around the gas fire when it was cold. The chaps who did the job were really good as I cannot move furniture very easily owing to my disability, and they did all the humping and taking up of carpets ect. They replaced them very neatly as well. I also had to have all the pipes bonded with an earthing strap as the existing one was not sufficient by todays new regulations . This was a bit hair-raising as my water stop-!!!! is underneath my stair carpet in the hall and earths had to be run underneath the boards all over the place .But it was well worth it, and they did a grand job. :j
I am very pleased with the result and can't think of a nicer present from the Gov. than to ensure that I am warm and toasty this winter. Hope all goes well with your husband's op. and you get your heating sorted before winter is upon us.
The bushes at the foot of my garden are laden with berries, and my old Mum used to say that it was natures way of telling you that a hard winter was on it's way. I hope it's not too severe though it would be nice to have a few frosts to kill all the germs off. Mild winters seem to make them multiply.