Quote for new gas boiler £3850? - Competititve?

Keen_Saver

Hi All,

Firstly I hope I have put this in the correct forum as it doesn't really come under gas utilities but couldn't see where else to put it (mod/admin please move to relevent section if wrong).

Basically we have a very old gas boiler, nearly 30 years old, it works fine at the moment but as you can imagine it's very uneconomical and our gas bills are high so we would like to replace it.

Today British Gas came out (we are not with them for our Gas Supply) to do a free quote, they quoted £3850 for a replacement boiler, to me that sounds a lot - is it competitive, for the record it's a 4 bedroom detached old house and the boiler is quite a big one, just wondered if anyone can advise an alternative?

Thanks

david29dpo

BG are a rip off. Try a local company.

magyar

Keen_Saver wrote: »

Hi All,

Firstly I hope I have put this in the correct forum as it doesn't really come under gas utilities but couldn't see where else to put it (mod/admin please move to relevent section if wrong).

Basically we have a very old gas boiler, nearly 30 years old, it works fine at the moment but as you can imagine it's very uneconomical and our gas bills are high so we would like to replace it.

Today British Gas came out (we are not with them for our Gas Supply) to do a free quote, they quoted £3850 for a replacement boiler, to me that sounds a lot - is it competitive, for the record it's a 4 bedroom detached old house and the boiler is quite a big one, just wondered if anyone can advise an alternative?

Thanks

As the previous poster says, BG are very expensive and IMO no better than most local plumbers.

Are you talking about a condensing (combi) boiler? If so I'd imagine £3000 is the most you should be paying, but it will depend a little on how much work it will be to plumb in, route outflows etc.

I would suggest asking friends for recommended plumbers (failing that find local plumbers, make sure they are Corgi registered etc.). Then get three quotes and compare them.

markdavey

david29dpo wrote: »

BG are a rip off. Try a local company.

I agree BG are a rip off.

I have just had a quote from a local Corgi registered Gas installer to rip the Warm air heating out of my 3 Bed house and install a completely new Radiator based system along with a new hot water cylinder and condensing boiler for £4,700 all in.

Definately try a reputable local installer.

david29dpo

I have just bought a perfectly good boiler, A rated for £500. Got the local guy in it fit for £250.

pigeonpie

just had BG around to my flat and have a quote on a 24W BG combi boiler plus 1 year's guarantee for £4295. Worcester boiler, modified apparently for BG. It's a 90m2, 2 bed top flat with 5 radiators but very high ceilings (into the roof) and the boiler needs to move location in the flat by about 8m on to an outside wall (so pipework etc needs redoing or doing too; not just a replacement). The boiler is £1500 of the cost which seems exhorbitant. BG say other cheaper boilers which retail at about half that price are less reliable, have less essential features (sep HW and CH controls and temps; no timers) and will need changing every 5 years - is that right? I am getting another quote from another heating company. How do you check CORGI registered as they all say they are?
Anyhow your house quote is cheaper than my flat quote although I am in London where the prices are always higher, presumably even for national companies. That price includes £300 off too.
If the other local company quote comes in at the same price, then I will know once again it's London time
My neighbour is paying £4gs for his new boiler in a smaller flat with more normal ceilings from Gas Serve Direct. Anyone know if they are any good?
sorry was going to post own thread then saw this one asking essentially the same question.
What did BG say your gas bill saving would be from your current boiler? I got suspicious as he first said he didn't know anything about my current boiler (Powermax 155; huge thing), then he said the new one was going to save 30 - 40% a year in gas bills. Did you get the same schpiel?!

Keen_Saver

Thanks for the replies guys,

We are going to get some more quotes from local heating engineers (Corgi) and then decide on what to do.

What did BG say your gas bill saving would be from your current boiler?

He said that basically we are currently wasting 50% of our gas as the pilot light is using too much to keep it ticking over and is obviously on 24/7, I can sort of believe this as it's such an old boiler but at the same time I don't believe the quote to be competitive but will know more once we have had more quotes that I will arrange soon.

midflight

He said that basically we are currently wasting 50% of our gas as the pilot light is using too much...

That figure is likely to be a wild exaggeration, in an attempt to persuade you to part with £3850 of your hard earned cash. See recent discussions on here regarding how much a pilot light costs. Sure, it can add up after a while, but 50% of your gas usage!? That's ridiculous, but then again - British Gas are a very ridiculous company. I wouldn't let them fit a boiler for me if they offered to do the work for free.

I had an old boiler replaced last winter by a local plumber. Did an excellent job. Worcester Bosch Greenstar 28i Junior. Very pleased. £1350, and that included a few other little jobs too (TRV's etc).

You just need to find someone local & reliable. Maybe not as easy as it sounds, but certainly a lot easier than getting any sense whatsoever from British Farce...

midflight

The boiler is £1500 of the cost which seems exhorbitant. BG say other cheaper boilers which retail at about half that price are less reliable, have less essential features (sep HW and CH controls and temps; no timers) and will need changing every 5 years - is that right?

Again, this is almost complete nonsense.

The price they are quoting for the job (£4295) is MILES too high, and the price they are saying the boiler costs (£1500) is a lie.

Shame you didn't show them this website:

http://www.buycentralheating.co.uk/

Worcester Greenstar 24i Junior - £578.90(Exc. Vat )
Worcester Greenstar 28i Junior - £659.95(Exc. Vat )

...and that's the price we'd pay. BG will be able to get them far cheaper still!

Oh, and I reckon you might need a 28i rather than 24i.
The 24i would do the job but would be pushed harder, and you might find your water not getting hot enough in winter. The 28i would do the job without having to break a sweat. It's always better to be slightly over-powered than slightly under-powered. The difference in price is neither here nor there, considering the boiler should last you 10 years+ at the very least...

pigeonpie

Can't get the thanks button to work, sorry. Must've been serviced by BG :S
the salesman who came was a real Willy Loman type. I felt a bit sorry for him. Not sorry enough to sign for a boiler though; I did show him a Which article from the Guardian which has boilers made by Worcester, Potterton and Vaillant for much less - think £900 was the most expensive one, retail price as you say.
Am getting local quotes in the week. Supposed to have had one lot come around today though but they didn't turn up
anyone know - I have an annual homecare whatever with BG @ £9 per month. Will they agree to transfer it to a different model of boiler if we do go ahead (ie not with them)?

fermostock

I have a 4 bedroom detached house & I had a quotation this week from British Gas for £4300 after discount to supply & fit boiler in loft plus thermostats electronic timer etc & I will have to fit a loft ladder & put floor boards down from the hatch to the site for the boiler.

EON have also given me a quote (which I am going for) of £1419.34 & they will lay the down floor boards to work from & it also includes cavity wall insulation. Also I can pay monthly with interest free credit over 12 months so my money can stay in the bank earning interest.