Back boiler grants

Swafe

Just wondered if anyone has any experience on boiler grants? I keep seeing a lot of adverts on Facebook, etc saying get a free back boiler replacement but I'm pretty sure these are either a scam or an upsell opportunity.

I work so I doubt I'm eligable for any means tested grants but I wondered if there were any eco driven grants for this type of thing?

I'm pretty sure the boiler is old as the house so it could be pushing 50 now, I know these are inefficient but my usage is low and I've never had a problem with the boiler so I've not had an incentive to replace it, infact, if I replaced it when I moved in a combi would have died by now while this one is trooping on. This said it makes me wonder whether I actually want to replace it but I am a bit worried that it's very long in the tooth now so replacing it does seem a sensible move and it would help from am emissions point of view. Just wondered if there were any genuine schemes that could help towards the cost. I did look a few years back and got quoted 4k so expecting that to now be 5k+ which is a lot of be forking out at this time, especially when I will only be saving 2-300 a year based on usage.

QrizB

Free boiler replacements are under the ECO4 scheme:

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-and-social-schemes/energy-company-obligation-eco/energy-company-obligation-eco-support-improving-your-home/faqs-domestic-consumers-and-landlords

See the "Am I eligible for ECO4?" FAQ.

Or, if you aren't eligible for ECO4 but still want to rip it all out and get a heat pump, there's a £5k grant towards the cost of one from the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. Be aware that the total cost is likely to be £10k+ so you're going to have to make a sizable contribution.

Swafe

Thanks for the links. They don't make it easy to understand, my reading is that it's basically for people on some sort of benefit, which I'm not, or for someone in social housing, which I'm not so that counts me out.

I'm aware of the heat pump grant, 5k is a big enough cost for me to swallow so 10k is even less attractive unfortunately.

FreeBear

Swafe said: I'm pretty sure the boiler is old as the house so it could be pushing 50 now, I know these are inefficient but my usage is low and I've never had a problem with the boiler so I've not had an incentive to replace it, infact, if I replaced it when I moved in a combi would have died by now while this one is trooping on. This said it makes me wonder whether I actually want to replace it but I am a bit worried that it's very long in the tooth now so replacing it does seem a sensible move and it would help from am emissions point of view. Just wondered if there were any genuine schemes that could help towards the cost. I did look a few years back and got quoted 4k so expecting that to now be 5k+ which is a lot of be forking out at this time, especially when I will only be saving 2-300 a year based on usage.

Just been through the process of changing from a Baxi back boiler to a combi - I had been getting quotes of £8K or more... Ended up replumbing both the central heating system and hot water, fitted some new, larger radiators, and then got an online company to fit the new boiler. In doing the plumbing myself, I used 22mm for most of the CH with an eye on the future when heat pumps are the only option. Most of the radiators have been oversized for that reason (also enables me to run at a lower flow temperature). Doing the bulk of the plumbing work myself, the total cost came in around the £3K mark.

Over the last few years, I had been pruning my gas consumption down from ~8,000KWh per year. Fitting a programmable thermostat/timer that allowed for different temperatures throughout the day cut some 15% off. Having a thermostat on the DHW tank and only heating it to 45-50°C on the days when the bath was going to be used saved another big chunk. Turning the pilot light off during the summer months knocked another 1,000KWh of annual usage. Got down to ~3,300KWh last year, but then heating was being supplemented by a multifuel stove.

I have yet to tune the heating & control system with the new boiler, so can't say how much energy I'll be saving. It will depend on how cold it gets outside and how often I light the stove.

Swafe

Looks like reducing my usage is the way to go then, I'm already very conservative and if I'm honest, I hardly use it other than maybe the 3 winter months and the odd blast of hot water.

It's a shame as I'd like to reduce my carbon footprint but with minimal usage the financials just don't stack up, unless I lose my job of course and can get some sort of benefits 🤦‍♂️