Baxi Bermuda back boiler

[Vicario]

Installed 1985(!). Has had new gas valve, thermocouple, and last year a new heat exchanger. Serviced every year. My Corgi gasman says that he can keep it going indefinitely if parts remain available and he wouldn't bother changing it at the moment for a new shiny modern one. Used for a tiny amount of hot water in the summer (we have an electric shower) and heating in the winter for a few hours morning and evening. What would you do? (The heating is thermostatically controlled and the loft etc. well-insulated.)

 

[Watchmaker]

It seems to me that you have the perfect installation. A good, basic boiler, a helpful technician who knows that these boilers are well constructed and parts are still available, and an arrangement which suits your heating and hot water needs. Presumably you have a tank, with an immersion heater, and, unlike many of the "modern" boiler systems, your domestic hot water could be obtained by electricity instead of gas. The boiler might not be as efficient as a "shiny modern" one but, a replacement boiler, it's length of life, it's complexity and potential for frequent breakdowns, and, above all, the very high financial commitment, do not bear thinking about. You only have to look at many of the postings on this forum, and the investigative TV programmes which have highlighted the crudeness of boiler components and the failure rate of PCB's (which your system, fortunately, does not have) to appreciate that there are many householders who would willing swap your system for theirs.

 

[Vicario]

Thanks for that. In fact, the worst problem we've had is that the gap under the fire (behind which the boiler sits) gets clogged up with cat hairs and I do a bit of careful hoovering (pilot turned off first) every few months. About 5 years ago we had no juice going from the timer to the boiler. Turns out that the cat had brought in a mouse, which had escaped under the fire and had made a nest in the trunking and eventually bitten through the cable. It wasn't fried because the timer was on an 'off' cycle. Seems like the moggy causes more boiler trouble than the boiler itself!

 

[DP]

If you do not already have a thermostat fitted to HW cylinder, HW is on gravity primary and do not have a roomstat, fitting all these will reduce gas consumption.

TRVs on rads do disconnect the rad from the boiler (if set to 2 or 3) but boiler will continue to cycle to maintain constant flow temperature. Pump will also run for the duration. Fitting a roomstat (programmable roomstat even better) will result in boiler and pump switching off (no waste of gas or electricity) until roomstat calls for heat due to ambient temperature dip below the set point.

Converting a gravity HW primary to pumped and installing a cylinder thermostat will give faster heating of hot water and also result in boiler and pump switching off when cylinder water reaches a preset and safe (often 55 degrees C)

Why was the heat exchanger replaced? Cheaper to replace the rubber gasket (did one last week)

 

[AlanE]

Why was the heat exchanger replaced? Cheaper to replace the rubber gasket (did one last week)

Thought that as well. Gaskets easily obtainable and have them here in stock.