Boiler in the attic

artyclarty

Hello moneysavers!

Long time lurker, first time rambling poster (so please be kind!).

We are looking to purchase our first house and we have found a one that is the closest to ideal that we will be able to find within our budget. We are cash buyers and have at least some furniture.

I know that the house has been rented out until 6 months ago then has been empty since, so it is eligible for a £5k empty homes grant which we wanted to get rid of a hideous set of patio doors leading into the living room off the street, plus furniture etc.

The snagging point is that the property has received a new boiler and it has been placed in the attic about a year ago. I also know that loft insulation has been installed during the time it has been vacant (ie when the boiler was not in use).

When looking round we also noticed that the attic hatch has been sealed shut with several screws and what looks like expanding foam so I can't inspect it myself.

Also when asked, the owner just shrugged his shoulders when asked about any gas safety certificates. Alarm bells much?!

So what I am looking for is advice and general ballpark costs (will I have to use my grant for this instead?):

1. Is it ok to leave the boiler where it is (I would guess having to take out the loft insulation!) and are there any safety regulations/precautions that need to be adhered to if it stays in place? I am assuming there are none currently.

2. It gets pretty cold up here (had frost this morning). Would this be an issue with a cold attic and pipes etc when winter turns up?

3. would it just be better to move the boiler elsewhere? Would this be quite expensive though?

4. Should I just run for the hills?!

Thanks in advance!

thesaint

It is not normal to seal a boiler in a room/loft.
If the vendor is not prepared to open it up to allow an inspection, then, on that basis alone, I would run a mile.

G_M

Instruct a gasSafe engineer to inspect the boiler. He'll comment on safety/Building Regs etc.

Make sure the seller has agreed to provide access so as not to send the engineer on an abortive visit.

If seller refuses to unscrew the access, find another property.

theartfullodger

What saint says..

Gas safety certificates are only required for properties rented from a private landlord: So not needed for owner/occupier property, nor council or housing association tenancies..

In my experience very few owner-occupiers have them.

DaftyDuck

Agreed. I've no idea why a boiler shouldn't be installed up there, but not met one like that. If it was being shown off as the star idea "hey, look at my brand-new clever position for the boiler, here's all the paperwork" I'd still be wary. But, sealed attic, no paperwork... I don't think I'd go any further with that one. What else has he done "creatively" that you'll only find after exchange?

Cost to move boiler? Could be a couple of thousand quid, especially if a new boiler is required after all.

PasturesNew

I'd be wanting to relocate it anyway - whoever wants to go into the attic if there's a problem, or suspected problem, or clock that needs resetting, or something, on the boiler. Daft place for it

G_M

theartfullodger wrote: »

What saint says..

Gas safety certificates are only required for properties rented from a private landlord: So not needed for owner/occupier property, nor council or housing association tenancies..

In my experience very few owner-occupiers have them.

However, OP said:

the house has been rented out until 6 months ago

so should have had a safety certificate at that point which the LL should retain for 2 years.

see regulation 36(3)(c) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998

Also

the property has received a new boiler

so there should be an installation certificate to compy with Building Regs.

crashwilliams

I have a small two bed house with limited kitchen space downstairs and my plumber suggested locating the boiler to the loft and I must say I'm pleased I did - I do though have all the relevant certs etc.


The plumber also installed a low temp thing so if it temp drops below 2 degrees the boiler will auto kick in to protect it. He also had to install some woodwork to hold securely in place (if that makes sense.)


He also had to install a some boards (on top of insulation) from hatch to boiler. And also a pull down ladder.


Thermostat in the living room.


I would absolutely recommend placing it there but I'd be wary in your situation re not having access or eyes on.

jbainbridge

Get it inspected before continuing (at the very least get access to it yourself). Mainly to check it is accessable - as many plumbers will refuse do anything if the access is poor.

Ours is in the garage which gets very cold. With a frost stat (and pipe stat in our case) it is fine.

mgarl10024

PasturesNew wrote: »

Daft place for it

I disagree. When recently renovating our new home, I deliberately opted to have the boiler put in the attic.

We control it remotely via a radio-frequency time-clock currently sat in the lounge, so I rarely need to go into the attic to do anything. It is also out of the way, meaning that it doesn't take up space in a bedroom/garage/kitchen. I also really didn't want it in a bedroom where children would be sleeping, not just because of any CO danger, but also because a lot of them get scared about the noises they make (think 'monsters' ).

The only regulation that I am aware of is that the engineer must be able to get to it. I suspect there are conditions about ladders being in good nick, headroom around the boiler, and boarding from the hatch to it (so they are not balancing on joists).

Well worth doing IMO.

Slinky

mgarl10024 wrote: »

I also really didn't want it in a bedroom where children would be sleeping, not just because of any CO danger, but also because a lot of them get scared about the noises they make (think 'monsters' ).

Can you hear it up in the loft though? Our boiler is below our bedroom in the garage. The wretched frost thermostat starting the boiler in the winter wakes me up at night and we have to use a different bedroom when it gets really cold otherwise I can't get a decent night's sleep.