Warm air heating system in possible new house purchase?.

catterlen

So, I am not sure if this or the house buying thread is the one I should be usin-let me know if you think I need to move it.
I am looking at a house that appears to have been built Probably early 80s, which has a warm air heating system.
I was wondering if anyone had any experience of these (good or bad) and any tips as to what to look out for? One thing I thought was asbestos in the insulation around the flue pipe, but didn't know if there were any other issues that might come to light? It is GCH and a boiler I believe, which powers the system.
I haven't used one before so I guess questions would be
Reliability?
Efficiency?
Costs compared to usual rads etc?
Common problems/advantages?
Cheers

wallbash

Marmite.

I love my system, others post they will rip the thing out.........costing thousands.


Reliability? Better than a standard boiler. its bigger and more robust.
Efficiency? Difficult to compare, I tend to heat the whole house, rather than restricting it to some rooms.
Costs compared to usual rads etc? As its already installed not applicable.
Common problems/advantages?

Can be a little dry, most posts on this site are worried about mould/ wet windows etc. Warm air , you may find putting a small bowl of water in the bedroom may help.
Another advantage , speed on warming up house .........disadvantage house cools down fast.
No bulky rads, never a problem of a leak .

One poster has problems with getting the boiler serviced. So ask neighbors for recommendations. DO NOT ask British Gas. They tend to dismiss/ condemn anything they don't understand.

One thing I thought was asbestos in the insulation around the flue pipe, but didn't know if there were any other issues that might come to light?

Some who don't know bring this up, talk to your service engineer.

McKneff

I echo everything Wall bash has said about Warm Air Heating.


I am in a place thought where there are no service agents within a 50 mile radius so have a service agreement with British Gas, my present boiler is 20 years old and BG have never had a problem with it.


I would recommend every time.


The only thing I would say is while you have this kind of boiler in, don't put wooden floors down, because while it is working its fine but you may want to change to Radiators etc when it breaks down so the floor would have to come up, use carpets till that time.

southcoastrgi

if it's 1980's you won't have asbestos in the flue as it will be metal twin walled going upto a ridge vent, however it is almost certain that the warm air unit will contain it

catterlen

Good info, really useful thanks. I will ask some questions of the vendor when I go round tomorrow with regards the services etc and who does this/ how frequently. I think all the houses on the estate have this system, so it hopefully wouldn't be a problem finding an engineer.

wallbash

If you do find a neighbor that is helpful, ask them about the horizontal filter that needs a 'little' maintenance. Just side out an give it a slap..
I do mine every few weeks when I remember.

But its easier to see in action rather than trying to describe.

My last service came to £70 plus vat.