Air vent for gas boiler

[Jayluvit]

I have a gas boiler in the cupboard in my third bedroom. Its the cupboard that goes over the stairs type.
I believe the previous owners had it fitted there when they had the kitchen extended, personally myself I would of had it installed in the garage but little I can do about that now.
I have 3 air vents for this boiler, 1 in the door going into the bedroom, 1 in the internal wall going into the bedroom and 1 in the ceiling going into the loft.
I want to replace my door but I don't fancy having to put a vent in it so my question is is there a requirement for a certain number of vents to be fitted?
Is it to do with how big the cupboard is to how many vents are required?
The boiler is for a gravity fed system if that makes a difference.
Any advice greatly appreciated.

 

[kevplumb]

I have 3 air vents for this boiler, 1 in the door going into the bedroom, 1 in the internal wall going into the bedroom and 1 in the ceiling going into the loft.

1 is the landing vented to outside ?

2 is the internal space on the other side of the wall vented to outside ?

3 is the loft ventilated ?

sounds like a right hash up by your description

is the boiler room sealed or open flue ?

make / model of boiler please

 

[Jayluvit]

Sorry for late reply, been having probs logging on to this site.
I have found the answer to my question. Come across the instructions for the boiler and it states the recommended vents required for confined spaces so looks like I can get away without having to cut a hole in my new door.
Thanks for the reply.

 

[oldbuffer]

I really think you'd be well advised to get professional advice from a Gas Safe Registered engineer. The rules for ventilation are not simple, particularly when more than one room / space is involved. There is also the issue of the size of the vent, in terms of the total area of vent available for the passage of air (or other gases if you get it wrong).

Why do you think someone cut holes in the door you are replacing?

 

[kirkgas]

Sorry for late reply, been having probs logging on to this site.
I have found the answer to my question. Come across the instructions for the boiler and it states the recommended vents required for confined spaces so looks like I can get away without having to cut a hole in my new door.
Thanks for the reply.

i appreciate it may be just a phrase you are using here, but "get away" and "ventilation" doesnt sit well with me, do us a favour and post the make and model of the boiler, as others have said it is a fairly complex subject, however a vent in the door and ceiling will never be right as it is cross ventilation, source of ventilation MUST come from the same place, so if the cupboard is vented to the loft it will require a pipe to drop down in the cupboard to give low level, with the one in the ceiling giving the high level, this promotes circulation, HOWEVER if the boiler is open flued it will require some careful calculations to ensure the safety of the family

 

[Servotech]

Sorry for late reply, been having probs logging on to this site.
I have found the answer to my question. Come across the instructions for the boiler and it states the recommended vents required for confined spaces so looks like I can get away without having to cut a hole in my new door.
Thanks for the reply.

A balanced flue boiler takes air from the outside and then releases the same air outside with the products of combustion added.
However, some ventilation is required in order to keep the boiler cool and this will be all that door vent is for.

 

[PEDANTICVINDICTIVEMAN]

Hope it's not an open flued appliance, they shouldn't be fitted in a cupboard or compartment situated in sleeping area's.

 

[Jayluvit]

Hi all,
Sorry in delay in getting back. I cant seem to post replies on my PC but I can if I use my PC at work? Have reported it but no response. This has happened before and I reported it twice but nobody replied to me then either. Does anyone know of a phone number I can report this to?
Back to the question in hand.
I have a Potterton 60E.
In the instructions it sates the following:-
"If the boiler is to be installed in a confined space such as a cupboard, the space will need ventilating. Openings must be provided at the top and the bottom of the cupboard each of which should have a free area as shown in the table. Further details for installation of a boiler within a compartment are given in BS 6798."
The table states for my model the air vent area should be 206cm square.
"If the openings draw air from outside the building the free areas may be halved. Refer to BS 5440 part 2 for further guidance."
I have an air vent in the ceiling and 1 in the wall near the floor which is in line to the ceiling air vent. The door is offset to the right with the air vent near the top of the door which would make the vent about 3/4 of the height of the cupboard.
Not too sure if sealed or open flue but have a vent from the back of the boiler going out to the external wall.
None of the other rooms are vented and the loft has some draft as most lofts do but thats as near to ventilated as it gets.
Sorry if it takes me a while to post back but I am having issues with this site on my PC

 

[Agile]

As we expected you have not understood what is required.

First its 206 cm². Thats not the same as you wrote. Its essential that anyone dealing with boilers is 100% competent to work with measurements like this which is why we say that a registered professional is advisable.

Second, even though it was alluded to above, you have not comprehended that BOTH ventilation openings MUST come from the same space!

A room and a loft are NOT the same space!

In any case this boiler is quite old. Why not do the job properly and have a new efficient boiler fitted in the garage?

Tony

 

[Jayluvit]

I would of written 206cm with the "small 2" above it if I knew how 2 do it thats why I wrote the word "Square".
If I had the money I would buy a new boiler but sadly I don't.
How would I know if the job is done "properly" or not if the original central heating was fitted by a "qualified" person? Since renovating my house I hear so many qualified people say 1 thing while another person says another. Gets a bit confusing on whats correct or not.
Not too sure if the garage would be an option as it has no external wall and the roof is a flat felt. Also due to the layout of the house there would be no way of routing the pipework to the airing cupboard.
What I will do is keep the design the same and put a vent in the new door as advised.
Just wanted to know about the rules on vents which has been answered.
Many thanks for the replies.

 

[Agile]

To anyone who is unclear what units mean:-

206cm² is an area and could be just 14.35 cm square!

Its the same as 206 square cm.

BUT

206 cm square is quite large and is a square with a side of 206 cm length. That has an area of 42436 cm² or 0.0424 m²

When RGIs have to do their gas assessments they have to do some calculations on ventilation areas and a few do have some trouble with the simple maths and the concepts of expressing areas.

Tony



PS I hope I did not make any mistakes above!