Glow-worm any good?

[jdey]

I've got what seems like a good quote back so far from a HVCA/Trustmark approved organisation. They've quoted me £3545 (inc VAT) for a complete new central heating system consisting of:-

1. Glowworm Micron 50FF
2. 6 Barlo Round-Top radiators
3. 5 VT117E Traditional radiator thermostat
4. Fan assisted flue
5. Grundfos 15/50 pump
6. Honeywell programmer
7. Honeywell room thermostat
8. New pipework throughout
9. 1 Year HVCA double guarantee
10. 15% deposit

I may go back to them and ask them how much extra it would be for a condensing boiler, as they're insistent on doing the whole system. Bearing in mind this is SW London, do you think this is good, and how do you rate Glow worms?

 

[corgiman]

mm a glowworm micron 50ff is that part l complient I dont think so

have you been exempted from the Part L of the building regs then jdey?

what about your steel pipes??

as for the micron, am now changing their pcb's like no tomorrow

 

[andsam]

Now now Im sure its only pcb 9 they are on.

 

[corgiman]

carry on like that and they will be up there with potty's

 

[andsam]

Ive got a couple of spare boards but they are no7 absolutly no good to anyone .Saying that may try Ebay.

 

[Mikeyboy]

jdey , you are one really funny guy . You have gave me more laughs than TGM . , . Anyway , back to your thread , as you should know by now , all new boilers fitted , to comply with current regulations ,have to be energy efficient , and must therefore be a condensing boiler.End of story .Any other boiler , ie , the glow-worm , which you have been quoted for , does NOT comply to current regulations .Get another quote from a reputable business and let all of us , overcharging rip off merchants ,as we are , in your OPINION ,know the outcome .

 

[chrishutt]

all new boilers fitted............ must therefore be a condensing boiler.End of story .

Not so, Mikeyboy. There are circumstances when exemptions to this requirement are allowed. You should study the guidance given in the link that jdey provided. Exemptions are most likely to apply to flats, particularly where the existing boiler is a back-boiler.

 

[Paul Barker]

I poresume you chose that boiler because it is small. Very bad idea. Buy a boiler which is well made and fit your flat around it.

Glowworm Micron pcb's go on average every two years, buy a good stock of them, only takes 5 minutes to change.

Local Persimon estates keep me in work changing Micron pcb's when there is nothing else going on.

Thank goodness for Glowworm.

 

[jdey]

Ok, I think I'll go back to them & insist on a Vaillant or Worcester/Bosch. Are these two types just good for Combis or are they also good for regular boilers too? I've got my boiler price list from the Energy Saving Trust. They claim it saves me 35-55% off the retail price, but then again the installer has to drive about 20 miles to pick 1 up. What's the chances of that happening, eh?

Looking at the government's plans it seems that they're going to strongarm all of us in to meeting stricter & stricter energy efficiency levels over the next few years. It's not just boilers, but every new window has to meet the highest standards of double glazing, and 30% of light fittings will have to be of a type that only accepts low energy light bulbs. They're also talking about bringing in legislation that all water heaters will have to be solar powered soon. Oh yeh, just in case you've bought new double glazing & think you're alright, part F will insist that you rip it all out again and put in frames with ventilators in them.

Regarding boilers, I note that at 1 time they were going to force everybody who had any part of their central heating system replaced to change to a condensing boiler.

The way they're going to strongarm us is to insist that we have an energy audit done on our house when we come to sell it, with energy efficient houses thereby attracting a premium.

It's obviously "fill yer boots" time for tradesmen in the next few years.

 

[jdey]

I poresume you chose that boiler because it is small. Very bad idea. Buy a boiler which is well made and fit your flat around it.

Spoken like a true plumber. A house isn't a home, it's a place to store a boiler.

 

[chrishutt]

They claim it saves me 35-55% off the retail price

Retail price - schmetail price. Nobody but a dumb cluck pays retail prices. Just compare real prices.

 

[ChrisR]

A house isn't a home, it's a place to store a boiler.

Glad you think so. It's what I keep trying to tell my wife.

 

[Paul Barker]

I had 4 or 5 reasonable combis in the garden but eventually let the scrap man take them. Very next day I needed a pcb for a Genus, which I would have had on one of those.

Reminds me of the time I had to sell a poor old bloke a new boiler because the heat ex on his classic was leaking, and I'd only the week before dumped a classic in mint condition (now realising I should have kept it for myself, and I don't care who knows it or I wouldn't say it here.... all this is a massive waste of resources!

Anyhow you just can't keep them can you?

If anyone takes out an lpg classic I have a non corgi plumber mate wants me to find him a reliable lpg boiler for his future swimming pool. I got a good Elan, but you can't buy the lpg kit for them any more.

 

[Paul Barker]

I was being a bit flipant about the glow worm, last pcb I changed was a totally new beast Glowworm claim it's now fixed with this new design of pcb. Time will tell.