Potential Boiler / Heating Options Going Forward 31 December 2022 at 12:58PM in In my home (includes DIY) MoneySaving 18 replies 397 views

pmartin86

@benson1980 - Thanks for confirming I'm vaguely on the right track at least! My efforts to find a plumber at all willing to engage in the area have so far been limited (been here just over a year)  - They all seem to want to "do it all" and dont want the odd couple of days work here or there - While I understand they would prefer a 2 week run instead of 2 days now, and 2 days in 2 months, I'm not in a position to do everything at once. I'll start looking for specific heat pump / "modern" plumbers and see if anything new turns up

@ThisIsWeird - This is intending to be our "forever" home - we're both mid 30s, 2 young kids (6 and 3) and both work from home (I work in IT so this is unlikly to change much going forward, and the wife has been told that the "long term" plan is for offices to be reduced so WFH is the new "normal") - We pushed a little outside the comfort zone for the larger house so we have a sizable and comfortable office etc - That in mind, yes, there is a LOT of thought going into the long term planning of the house - if things go to plan, i can see us being here 30+ years - So investing into Solar Panels now for example seems like a no brainer. Interesting to know the boiler can potentialy act as a system boiler too - Id really rather not spend that money "yet" and if i can get 5+ years out of it before we move the GS/AS-HP then that would be the ideal scenario. I'll have a work with my solar installer this week and see what he things about the "3rd" link in the chain - Their very flexible with changes and additions, so nows the time I suppose.

@Miser1964 - This is exactly what I was hoping for, those 2 youtube chanels have gone onto my watch list and some of the terms youve used have opened up some google rabbit holes! Id allready read that ASHP were a bit "lacking" at times in winter, which is why ive sort of left it till "last" -  im hoping the market matures over the next couple of years and more comprehensive systems are more common - I just dont want to miss out on anything "obvious" I can do "now".

ThisIsWeird

pmartin86 said:

Interesting to know the boiler can potentialy act as a system boiler too - Id really rather not spend that money "yet" and if i can get 5+ years out of it before we move the GS/AS-HP then that would be the ideal scenario. I'll have a work with my solar installer this week and see what he things about the "3rd" link in the chain - Their very flexible with changes and additions, so nows the time I suppose.

I am pretty sure that this is the case, but it's not exactly a common scenario. You may even find that some plumbers will just say 'No'.

Not sure where I read about it - perhaps on this forum, possibly another.

Hopefully a proper plumber will appear to confirm (or not...)

Yes, the MSE advice is almost always to keep whatever you have going for as long as possible, as long as it actually works, and that's def the case with boilers. So if it is possible to convert your combi into a system boiler, the additional parts - 2 external valves and controls - will be transferrable to its replacement, so no waste.

Keep up posted, please - a very relevant thread for these times.

FreeBear

pmartin86 said: - Id really rather not spend that money "yet" and if i can get 5+ years out of it before we move the GS/AS-HP then that would be the ideal scenario.

I did a "what if" study here with a GSHP installation. Got a reasonable sized garden, but not really enough space for a slinky heat collector. Boreholes would make better use of the space, and would probably take just a few days to install - On sand over a very thick layer of chalk, so drilling down isn't going to be that difficult. Reckoned I'd need about 250-300m of borehole. The only bugbear is access. Could get a Dando Terrier in, but it is limited to a max depth of ~40m. To get a larger drilling rig in would require the partial demolition of a garage...

markin

With the levels of insulation you have, This thread came to mind.  

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6377030/ditching-gas-going-electric-immersion-only-a-wee-project/

pmartin86

FreeBear said:

pmartin86 said: - Id really rather not spend that money "yet" and if i can get 5+ years out of it before we move the GS/AS-HP then that would be the ideal scenario.

I did a "what if" study here with a GSHP installation. Got a reasonable sized garden, but not really enough space for a slinky heat collector. Boreholes would make better use of the space, and would probably take just a few days to install - On sand over a very thick layer of chalk, so drilling down isn't going to be that difficult. Reckoned I'd need about 250-300m of borehole. The only bugbear is access. Could get a Dando Terrier in, but it is limited to a max depth of ~40m. To get a larger drilling rig in would require the partial demolition of a garage...

Do you mind me asking what resources you used to determine the borehole size etc? I'm fortunatle that I've got a reasonable amount of space, but its still a "normal" house if that make sence, but still measures in sq ft not half or full acres, ha. Ive seen that GSHP are "better" than ASHP, but thats about as far as my research has taken me so far!

pmartin86

ThisIsWeird said:

pmartin86 said:

Interesting to know the boiler can potentialy act as a system boiler too - Id really rather not spend that money "yet" and if i can get 5+ years out of it before we move the GS/AS-HP then that would be the ideal scenario. I'll have a work with my solar installer this week and see what he things about the "3rd" link in the chain - Their very flexible with changes and additions, so nows the time I suppose.

I am pretty sure that this is the case, but it's not exactly a common scenario. You may even find that some plumbers will just say 'No'.

Not sure where I read about it - perhaps on this forum, possibly another.

Hopefully a proper plumber will appear to confirm (or not...)

Yes, the MSE advice is almost always to keep whatever you have going for as long as possible, as long as it actually works, and that's def the case with boilers. So if it is possible to convert your combi into a system boiler, the additional parts - 2 external valves and controls - will be transferrable to its replacement, so no waste.

Keep up posted, please - a very relevant thread for these times.

Happy to keep you updated, but this is a long term project, so don't hold you're breath! ha

FreeBear

pmartin86 said:

FreeBear said:

pmartin86 said: - Id really rather not spend that money "yet" and if i can get 5+ years out of it before we move the GS/AS-HP then that would be the ideal scenario.

I did a "what if" study here with a GSHP installation. Got a reasonable sized garden, but not really enough space for a slinky heat collector. Boreholes would make better use of the space, and would probably take just a few days to install - On sand over a very thick layer of chalk, so drilling down isn't going to be that difficult. Reckoned I'd need about 250-300m of borehole. The only bugbear is access. Could get a Dando Terrier in, but it is limited to a max depth of ~40m. To get a larger drilling rig in would require the partial demolition of a garage...

Do you mind me asking what resources you used to determine the borehole size etc?

Rough back of fag packet calculation - Adding up the output capacity of the radiators gives me a consumption of 7-8KW. Depending on geology, a borehole will provide 35-80W per metre, so a minimum depth of 230m required. Best case would be just 90m, but my luck is never that good...

pmartin86

FreeBear said:

Rough back of fag packet calculation - Adding up the output capacity of the radiators gives me a consumption of 7-8KW. Depending on geology, a borehole will provide 35-80W per metre, so a minimum depth of 230m required. Best case would be just 90m, but my luck is never that good...

Thanks - Interesting to know, I'm a few whiskeys too many deep to calculate my house needs at the moment, especialy as its half done, half not, but ill try and work that out in the coming days! Thanks