Options for new boiler / system

SillyOne

Hi, could I ask your advice on options for a new boiler / heating system? Opinions on what I should do?


Current situation -
- Standard (not "combi") boiler fitted 10 years ago, no problems with it so far, but becoming less efficient.
- Hot water tank/cylinder which is extremely scaled up and needs urgent replacement, this is in a cupboard in the bedroom. The tank wasn't replaced when the boiler was, I think it is probably about 20-25 years old.
- We don't use much hot water as the shower, washing machine and dishwasher are all cold water fed electric, so it's only used for the occasional bath, hand washing, washing up small items etc. So the tank is storing / maintaining temperature of hot water 'unnecessarily' a lot of the time.


Options:


- get the hot water tank replaced but keep the overall system (and boiler) as-is - haven't had costs for this option but perhaps £1000? - and at a later date get the boiler replaced with a similar one as/when it needs replacement in the future. In this case I would have the "regular" boiler / hot water cylinder setup indefinitely as they would be on a different 'cycle'..


- get the boiler and HW cylinder replaced with a combi boiler and on-demand hot water - complete replacement of thermostat, controller etc - this would be a more efficient use of heating water (don't need to store it) and free up storage space (cylinder cupboard) which I am quite short of, also quite an expensive option though (£3000 due to need to do some "non standard" work to get it installed)


- there isn't a "do nothing" option as the HW tank definitely does need replacing with "something" ...


Do any of you in the forum have a suggestion as to which option is better?
I'm worried that I would be replacing the boiler 'prematurely' with the combi option, although perhaps 10 years is a good life for a 2005 boiler and better to replace it before parts start to go wrong?

nofoollikeold

If the existing hot water cylinder has an immersion heater, or a blanking plug where an immersion heater could be fitted, it might be possible to remove the heater or plug. You could then use a wet vacuum cleaner to suck out all the old lime scale, which is usually lying loose at the bottom of the cylinder.

Might get a few more years out of the cylinder and put off the decision until the boiler definitely needs replacing.

richy999

£1000 seems rather expensive for a new hot water tank. At a guess I would imagine £500-£600 fitted.

I paid £2800 to have my conventional boiler, with HW cylinder and header tanks taken out and replaced with a combi boiler.
It was necessary to upgrade the gas pipe to the boiler which had knock on costs for new flooring/redecorating and countless other little jobs.

Your 10 year old conventional boiler, although less efficient that a new combi, is also less complicated and probably give you another 5-10 years of service.

Unless you desperately need the space created by taking out the HW tank, I would sort out the hot water tank and live with your current boiler until it goes pop.

macman

Is your gas supply and flow rate even suitable for a combi? Only an RGI can determine that with a site inspection.

SillyOne

Had a reputable company come out and quote for a combi - gas and water pressure etc are in order yes. I'm concerned about the cost; can afford it, but is it the best use of money?

southcoastrgi

make & model of boiler ?

SillyOne

Potterton Suprima 50 HE. The reputable local company are proposing to replace with a Bosch Worcester (not sure of model).

HappyMJ

SillyOne wrote: »

Hi, could I ask your advice on options for a new boiler / heating system? Opinions on what I should do?


Current situation -
- Standard (not "combi") boiler fitted 10 years ago, no problems with it so far, but becoming less efficient.
- Hot water tank/cylinder which is extremely scaled up and needs urgent replacement, this is in a cupboard in the bedroom. The tank wasn't replaced when the boiler was, I think it is probably about 20-25 years old.
- We don't use much hot water as the shower, washing machine and dishwasher are all cold water fed electric, so it's only used for the occasional bath, hand washing, washing up small items etc. So the tank is storing / maintaining temperature of hot water 'unnecessarily' a lot of the time.


Options:


- get the hot water tank replaced but keep the overall system (and boiler) as-is - haven't had costs for this option but perhaps £1000? - and at a later date get the boiler replaced with a similar one as/when it needs replacement in the future. In this case I would have the "regular" boiler / hot water cylinder setup indefinitely as they would be on a different 'cycle'..


- get the boiler and HW cylinder replaced with a combi boiler and on-demand hot water - complete replacement of thermostat, controller etc - this would be a more efficient use of heating water (don't need to store it) and free up storage space (cylinder cupboard) which I am quite short of, also quite an expensive option though (£3000 due to need to do some "non standard" work to get it installed)


- there isn't a "do nothing" option as the HW tank definitely does need replacing with "something" ...


Do any of you in the forum have a suggestion as to which option is better?
I'm worried that I would be replacing the boiler 'prematurely' with the combi option, although perhaps 10 years is a good life for a 2005 boiler and better to replace it before parts start to go wrong?

I'd go with the do nothing option. The reason to replace a hot water cylinder is that there's so much scale build up that you don't get much hot water but you hardly use any hot water so that wouldn't matter.

I'm also of the opinion if it's not broke don't fix it. Save your money wait until the boiler is beyond economical repair then replace it.

HappyMJ

SillyOne wrote: »

Potterton Suprima 50 HE. The reputable local company are proposing to replace with a Bosch Worcester (not sure of model).

That's a very efficient condensing boiler. You won't save much if any at all on your energy bills by replacing it.

SillyOne

Thanks @HappyMJ - I'd heard there is a risk that the thing could disintegrate and cause all kinds of water damage etc? What do you think about that? (No, I didn't hear this from the company I called out to quote!!!)

southcoastrgi

you already have a condensing boiler so must be over 90% efficiency, fitting a new boiler isn't suddenly going to save you hundreds a yr, if you don't need much hot water then change the timer to an hour in the morn & an hour at night or even just once a day for an hour,

who told you it's full of scale how did they check ?