Would you replace a 22 year old boiler?

KatieXZoe

Moved into my first house in July this year, the house is 22 years old and still have the original potterton suprima boiler. 

Boiler works absolutely fine apart from thermostat system which only has one 7 day setting for presets (therefore cannot set a separate weekend schedule). 

Boiler been serviced every year by previous owner. 

Since I have moved in it's always been in the back of my mind that i thought it really ought to be replaced as it's old, likely inefficient and could break soon. 

I had a plumber come over and take a look today and he advised me that in his honest opinion they are fairly good boilers and that he would not recommend a replacement yet, he said to use it until it breaks then look to replace. He did however offer to replace the thermostat with a Honeywell one. First plumber also said if we book a service and he finds that actually this boiler isn't in that great condition he will not charge us for service and instead replace it (obviously we pay for that part). 

Had another plumber give a quote of 2.8 k to replace boiler and then to add a hive thermostat system. 

My question is, what would you do? Yes heating works but I'm not sure how efficient it will be.. I have slight paranoia it could technically break at anytime but a new one could also. In addition this is not our forever house. It is our first home and we therefore don't know how long we will be here for, but if we are going to replace the boiler then I want to enjoy it before we move and get our moneys worth and also have the view that it could add (a small) amount of value to the house... 

mebu60

I had a Potterton that was c20 years old when I sold the house. Am sure it still had plenty of life left in it.

I would keep it going. If it's still going strong when you come to sell that's a bonus.

A new one would probably be more efficient but it'd have to be dramatically more so to payback over the short term that you intend to be there. 

If you have to replace close to selling time, don't think of it as not having enjoyed it, consider it a plus as a selling point, brand new boiler recently installed. 

Albermarle

Assuming it is not a condensing boiler. They became mandatory 'only' 18 years ago. Also I think the early ones were not so reliable.
In my experience if you have a new condensing boiler you would maybe save around 15/20% on your gas bill as they are more efficient. So maybe about £250 per year in a typical house. New boiler and fitting you say £2,800.
You can do the maths.
If it is not broke do not fix it !

molerat

I have been asking myself the same question since my boiler hit 20 years old ............ 19 years ago

victor2

We replaced our boiler from the last century a few years back. Not because it failed, but more because we expected it to any day. Every year for at least the last 5 years of its life, the engineer who serviced it did the usual sharp intake of breath and said "it's on its last legs you know!"
We don't expect the replacement one to last much beyond its 10 year warranty. 
The guys who replaced it said it would have failed on Christmas Eve, as they always do! 

KatieXZoe

victor2 said:

We replaced our boiler from the last century a few years back. Not because it failed, but more because we expected it to any day. Every year for at least the last 5 years of its life, the engineer who serviced it did the usual sharp intake of breath and said "it's on its last legs you know!"
We don't expect the replacement one to last much beyond its 10 year warranty. 
The guys who replaced it said it would have failed on Christmas Eve, as they always do! 

This is what I'm worried about - breaking on Christmas Eve haha. But I guess a new could break then.... 
Sounds like most people have said to just stick with it for now... If it isn't broke and all that..

twopenny

I had my last boiler for 40yrs and it ran cheaper than modern ones it turns out.
Current one 24yrs old and fine.

Reddleman79

My Myson boiler is about 25 years old and works fine. It's only a youngster compared to my fridge which dates from 1975.

Cloth_of_Gold

Albermarle said:

Assuming it is not a condensing boiler. They became mandatory 'only' 18 years ago. Also I think the early ones were not so reliable.
In my experience if you have a new condensing boiler you would maybe save around 15/20% on your gas bill as they are more efficient. So maybe about £250 per year in a typical house. New boiler and fitting you say £2,800.
You can do the maths.
If it is not broke do not fix it !

All of the above, plus I doubt very much whether having a new boiler (which won't be new anyway when you sell the house a few years down the line) will add anything to the value of your house.

FreeBear

A Potterton Suprima has a SAP seasonal efficiency rating of 78.1%. A WB Greenstar system boiler will be somewhere between 89% and 99% efficient depending on how it is set up - To get the best out of it, you may well need to fit larger radiators so that you can run at a lower flow temperature. This may require bigger flow & return pipes, so both would push your £2800 cost up by quite a margin.

I replaced my aging Baxi back boiler during the summer with a brand new Viessmann combi - Replumbed the heating system and fitted new, larger radiators in most rooms. Waiting for a prolonged cold spell so that I can see just how well the system performs.

One thing that I did do a few years back was to fit a smarter thermostat & control system. Being able to set different temperatures throughout the day along with a pump overrun produced something in the order of a 10% saving. If you were to fit a Wiser or Tado programmable thermostat, you'll probably find it will pay for itself within a couple of years. Should the boiler need replacing, you'll have the thermostat ready & waiting, so a small saving to be had on the installation cost.