what type of boiler in house I'm buying?

longwalks1

Will soon be moving house and the place we are buying has an old boiler in the kitchen (boxed in), and a copper cylinder in an airing cupboard upstairs, and 2 water tanks in the loft. I'm expecting to need to replace the boiler at some point, if I get a combi boiler will removing everything be a pain?

DTDfanBoy

britishboy wrote: »

If I get a combi boiler will removing everything be a pain?

Only if you want it to be :beer:

The question you really want to ask is a new combi boiler suitable for my lifestyle/house

longwalks1

Cheers DTD - hmmm never thought of that, its a 4 bed semi, with 2 adults living in it (will never be more than 2 of us)

Hedgehog99

Advantages of combi: only heat water when you need it (no wasted hot water cooling off in tank between uses), no tanks in loft to flood in case of winter freeze etc or to flood out of your washing machine if its solenoid fails. Disadvantage: no tank of cold water in loft for flushing loo etc if your mains is off unexpectedly for roadworks in your road. There are different models of combis designed to cope with different house sizes & number of users. A condensing combi recovers the heat from the flue.
If you would miss having an airing cupboard, you can still have one without having a hot water tank - ask your gas man how.

Plumber90

How many bathrooms?

C_Mababejive

Reasons why to buy a condensing boiler that isnt a combi..

1)slightly cheaper/less complex
2)Lower heat input
3)retains hot water tank so no issues with hot water demand
4)If boiler fails,immersion heater available as backup
5)Less strain on gas and water networks
6)heat loss from cylinder is "lost" to the home and not exported down the drain.
7)Easier to install,less mess,less expensive

Whats not to like?

lstar337

C_Mababejive wrote: »

6)heat loss from cylinder is "lost" to the home and not exported down the drain.

This makes no sense.

When comparing the two, a combi doesn't export heat 'down the drain' any more than a cylinder does. Hot water from both ends up down a drain eventually. Heat loss from the cylinder is an extra loss, even if it is somewhat recouped via a lesser need for heating during winter months.

adandem

We changed to a combi last year, we have a 4 bed 1 bathroom detached. We love the fact that hot water is instant, we have also gained from the increased pressure to our hot water upstairs, shower is excellent.

C_Mababejive

lstar337 wrote: »

This makes no sense.

When comparing the two, a combi doesn't export heat 'down the drain' any more than a cylinder does. Hot water from both ends up down a drain eventually. Heat loss from the cylinder is an extra loss, even if it is somewhat recouped via a lesser need for heating during winter months.

Hi..yes what i mean is..When the cylinder which of course will be modern/well lagged,is sat there doing nothing (no flow out to taps) and is losing a bit of heat to its surrounds,the heat lost remains in the home for longer i.e leaks from cylinder into household airspace and eventually to outside.

The lost heat from the cylinder supplements space heating requirements.

Cold water tank for cylinder is exposed to internal temps so benefits from some pre-heat,especially so if fortic combined cylinder.

Cylinder,tap runs,short run off of standing water then hot water.

Combi > when heating is off, no heat loss to home>tap on> boiler fires at full rate,,maybe 35Kw...flow rate is throttled >incoming water is cold>fairly slow rise to usable temp> during rise phase,energy and water is lost to drain.

Ben84

Although they're less popular now, I like my conventional boiler. Mostly because I can fill the bath to almost the top in 2 minutes as it's just a matter of emptying the tank in to it. I have insulated the tank and attached pipes well however to minimise energy loss.

As for the boiler itself, it's from the 70s and still works well. Some old boilers are tough, so if yours is old and still works, it may be a good one worth keeping.

spaceboy

I didnt realise that you dont need a cold water tank with a combi. All the houses I've surveyed have had a cold water tank regardless of where the boiler is a combi or conventional type/