Buying a new boiler online

Bendy_House

martin1976 said:

Yes to all. I put on there flue on outer wall as I have gable end.

The stack pipe is in the loft so the condenser pipe is easy enough.

Did you also mention the loft as being the new location?

Bendy_House

Converting from a vented system to a sealed combi is a very straight-forward job.*

Relocating a boiler is more complex, as this will involve a new flue, a new gas pipe (almost certainly a larger size for a combi), and a condensate pipe, as well as all the other pipes (but very good chance many are already up there!). And the loft 'might' be the most awkward location of all - although also could be very convenient, as horrible jobs like wall-chasing for pipes shouldn't be required.

So, provided access is good and safe and well-lit, this should be a breeze. (Apart from the lack off - it'll be stewing up there.) The on-line quotes of £3.2-ish k sound perfectly acceptable, imo, for this job, and not 'cheap'. It'll take them probably 2 days?, and will earn them nearly £2k as far as I can see. They WILL have earned it, tho' - it seems fair.

I cannot get my head around the local guy's quote of £5.7k. The boiler and parts will be the same - around £1.5k's worth? - so he hopes to pocket over £4k for this job?

Have I missed something?


*( It can, tho', bring with it other issues, as the system will now be under greater pressure, and this can expose bad/weak joints, rusted radiators, etc.

This 'risk' is standard, most likely WON'T cause any issues, and the plumber will just need to tackle any leaks if they occur, and will charge accordingly.)

Alnat1

If you plan on staying in the property for some years you'll need to consider what is likely to happen in 15 years time when the boiler needs replacing again. Gas boilers will be banned and you'll need a hot water tank to go with your air source heat pump. 

You'll be moving the boiler and re-routing pipework back from the loft as an ASHP is installed at ground level. Space for a hot water tank will need to be found. Big expense all over again.

You could consider having heat-only condensing boiler now and replacing the old tank with a modern well insulated dual coil one. We have this set up and the boiler is set to heat hot water for just 40 mins a day, plenty for a couple of showers, hubby's shave and the evening dishes. Uses less than 4kWh of gas a day. If we want a bath we can put the tank on manually for another 15 minutes. The dual-coil allows the possibility of linking in electricity from solar panels in the future.

With fuel prices as they are now, you need to consider efficiency to save money in the long run.

shiraz99

Alnat1 said:

If you plan on staying in the property for some years you'll need to consider what is likely to happen in 15 years time when the boiler needs replacing again. Gas boilers will be banned and you'll need a hot water tank to go with your air source heat pump. 

You'll be moving the boiler and re-routing pipework back from the loft as an ASHP is installed at ground level. Space for a hot water tank will need to be found. Big expense all over again.

You could consider having heat-only condensing boiler now and replacing the old tank with a modern well insulated dual coil one. We have this set up and the boiler is set to heat hot water for just 40 mins a day, plenty for a couple of showers, hubby's shave and the evening dishes. Uses less than 4kWh of gas a day. If we want a bath we can put the tank on manually for another 15 minutes. The dual-coil allows the possibility of linking in electricity from solar panels in the future.

With fuel prices as they are now, you need to consider efficiency to save money in the long run.

There's no imminent plans to ban the use of existing gas boiler installs. Anyone installing a new boiler today will be pretty much fine for the life of that boiler.

Alnat1

That's why I said "in 15 years time when the boiler needs replacing again"

Ganga

Alnat1 said:

That's why I said "in 15 years time when the boiler needs replacing again"

Knowing the government it will take them 25 years to get this implemented.

martin1976

Thanks for the comments.

Yeah the prices include pipework and disposal of old cylinders.

15 years is a long time, and that's assuming it breaks down and is unfixable, and assuming the government do actually ban them 😂

It doesn't include boarding work in the loft. I can do that though. I did the rest before we had the insulation upgraded and is even easier nowadays if you use those plastic loft legs. I had to extend the joists back in the day. The local guys said it doesn't need to be boarded for them to do the install, but my plan was to board up to where I want it before the install date.

And yeah, the questions ask you where boiler is now, and the new location.

ChilliBob

I had very similar done recently. Cost me 6.5k all in and took three days labour for two blokes. 

Replace combi in loft eith a new combi, Bosch Life 40kw. But, different flue, installed two Google Nest thermostats, needed to switch gas from 22 to 28, which involved going from loft down to main, which was a task. On and replaced underfloor heating manifolds as these were done wrong last time. If I had not done that last bit it would have been about 5.2k.

Worth pointing out this is London/South East prices 

Bendy_House

A combi for a combi, and that's over £5k? Lawdie.

Yes, I can see it was more involved than many, but still.