Mr twin Keston's again I'm afraid !

[charlesa61]

Good morning all, I'm afraid it's me again ! Thank you for all the help the other day( Tony (Agile), Dan Robinson, Simond, Andrew (Muggles) and others).
I have decided to ditch the Kestons. My Honeywell friend took one of the PCB's out and could find nothing wrong so I am left with 2 knackered Keston's with the twin "gas valve faulty" diagnosis !
What to replace them with ?
I have done some research re replacements but thought I would just describe the current set up:

• Large 16c Grade 2 listed oak framed draughty/cold building
• 6 bedrooms but realistically only one in constant use
• 2 bath/shower rooms with power showers; 1 bathroom; 1 shower with P/S
• We very rarely use more than 2 at any time as the children have left but would like decent capability just in case we were to try B&B
• About 30 radiators
• Currently 2 Keston K130s at 38.1 KW
• The boilers are next to each other in the cellar with a large HW tank
• Another smaller HW tank upstairs in different part of house (only feeds 1 bath/shower room but too small to cope with 2 bedrooms)
• 1 outdoor swimming pool that we use June through end September which has partial, limited heating from solar panels
• My understanding is that the Kestons were put in for ease of associated pipework. The flues go up a chimney , having gone through various angles first, but I would ideally like to avoid this as I think that they are causing damp in a chimney breast

I am fully aware that there are many opposing views as to potential replacements but I have on my list WB, Vaillant, Viessmann and ATAG currently. I am looking at alternative positions for the boilers too, potentially a narrow concealed corridor with direct outside wall access.

I am in the process of getting names of local Heating Engineers but obviously not an ideal time of year !

Sorry it's a long post and please don't spend any time on it but grateful for thoughts if you are able.

Many thanks and best wishes
Charles

 

[Dan Robinson]

A pair of Intergas SB30's (they do a 40, but from the sounds of it that would be overkill).

Or Vaillant.

The Intergas are better boilers, but Vaillant can give you a fully integrated control system.

Where in the country are you? Is it mains gas or LPG?

 

[charlesa61]

Hi Dan,
I'm RG29 North Hampshire near Hook. Thank you I have never heard of Intergas. I have mains gas.
Bw
Charles

 

[Agile]

The Keston boilers have a capability for simple economic flues which are not really matched by any other current boiler which is why they are so often found in basements.

It would really be far better to find a new location with an outside wall nearby or in the loft with a vertical flue.

I do presume that you really want to actually heat all of your 30 rads at the same time? That seems a very extravagant requirement.

Tony

 

[Dan Robinson]

Bit far for me I'm afraid especially in my current medical condition.

If you PM me your contact details I can point in the direction of a couple of firms that could help.

 

[Dan Robinson]

I do presume that you really want to actually heat all of your 30 rads at the same time? That seems a very extravagant requirement.

eh?

"So missus..... I see you have a radio in your car? Do you expect to be able to drive and listen to music at the same time? That's jolly profligate of you. I suggest you only use a third of your car's features at any one time. No reason. Just makes sense to me is all.".

You do make me laugh Tony .

 

[charlesa61]

Hello Tony,
no I certainly do not want to heat them all at the same time ! My family (and friends) take the p*** out of me constantly for being tight with the heating. I am out all day working and my wife has a warm kitchen thanks to the gas aga.
My ideal would be to have the heating coming on twice a day but either off or on absolute minimum in individual rooms unless I have an occasional house full (if that makes sense).
As I think I mentioned I think there is scope to place them in a small hidden corridor that has an outside wall.
Bw
Charles

 

[muggles]

A second vote for a pair of Intergas here, a well-proven boiler with a seven year warranty that will serve you excellently. They're also only 240mm deep which might suit your proposed narrow corridor location very well. You could go for a 30 and a 40 if you're concerned about capacity, but a pair of 30s should be OK and also gives you a greater scope for installers - domestic installers are limited to 70kW so you're looking at chaps with a commercial ticket once you go over that.

If you like to have tight control of your heating system, have a look at Heat Genius. You can control each radiator individually off an app if you want to...

 

[charlesa61]

Thanks Dan and Andrew for the Intergas suggestion. Dan I would send you a PM but I don't think I have posted enough on here to be able to do that.
Of course I could be that I am being thick and can't see the PM button !
Bw
Charles

 

[charlesa61]

Could I just ask what is the minimum space requirement between two Intergas SB30s or 40s ?
Thanks
Charles

 

[muggles]

Click on @Dan_Robinson then click "Start a conversation". Dan's a very good chap, his advice is well worth taking

 

[muggles]

Could I just ask what is the minimum space requirement between two Intergas SB30s or 40s ?
Thanks
Charles

About 10mm, everything is serviced from the front so there's no need to have access to the sides beyond having enough room to put the casing on

 

[Agile]

You will only need the full boiler power when the temperature outside is at -1 C which is usually only one week or so a year.

Just 30 kW will provide 1 kW per rad which will be enough to heat the whole house for most of the year when its only about 10 C outside.

Dan, he said he normally only uses one bedroom which would usually mean only occupied by two people.

It is a lot of extra complexity just to fully cover your "full house" during January and February.

If it was mine I expect I would just fit a single 40 kW Intergas boiler and also try to improve the insulation.

Tony

 

[Dan Robinson]

Not if you factor in the pool, and potential for B&B. Why on earth you would size a system that couldn't cope on purpose is beyond me, and two boilers is hardly a massive jump in complexity.

Oversizing is bad, yes, but it needs to cope.