Boiler recommendations please.

[Charl]

Hi, i have a very old back boiler, prob at least 20/25 yrs. I've got no hot water (second time in two years). A local plumber has been to look at it and says down to an electrical fault which he will fix tomorow (no time today due to personal commitments, he even tried contacting someone else to fix it today but no luck). He seems to think it'll still last several yrs after fixing and with regular service, although a new boiler would be more energy efficient saving me on the gas bill.
He gave me a rough estimate for fitting a new boiler (costing £600 ish) as between £900-£1000. Although he did say it was a quick/rough estimate and would do a proper quote when he has more time and i know what i want. He also mentioned could be £200 cheaper or more expensive, depending on the boiler. Does this sound like a reasonable quote?
I can afford to spend £600-650 on a boiler and would like an A grade if possible. I've looked on the screwfix website to get an idea of what is avaliable, but im still clueless what im looking for. What boiler would you recommend?
Would i also need to replace the fireplace or could this be reconnected minus the boiler? Are there any questions i need to ask the plumber before the work is done?
Its a 3 bed semi house and i have a young family so use quite a bit of hot water. Sorry for the essay and thanks in advance for your help.

 

[gas4you]

Sounds way too cheap to me, even with the £200 added.

Look at the Broag Avanta 28C or 35C.

 

[KevC1]

Sounds like a good estimate. It does depend on the boiler. I would avoid looking on screwfix for boilers, the ones they sell aren't too good.

I would suggest that you let your installer supply the boiler, as he'll get a better deal on it.

You'll get lots of different opinions on boilers on this website, just as you would when choosing a car.

My own reommendation would be to get a viessmann or a Remeha. You can get 5 years part and labour on the viessmann if it's installed by an installer who's gone on the viessmann day training course.

A cheaper boiler can also be reliable if it's been flushed properly, and installed correctly.

 

[mickyg]

Good Band A Boilers on a budget:
Biasi Advance HE
Gw Ultracom CXI (good price from merchants with account)
Vaillant ecotec Pro (bit more)

 

[gaspro1981]

bite his arm off but don't expect anything regarding the installation to be of any standard or quality

 

[Charl]

thanks for the advice so far
some of you seem cynical about the price? is it too cheap for it to be a decent job?
ive had a second quote today for £1500. this guy is also on about installing 2 radiators downstairs and replacing the gas pipe as he said it wouldnt be big enough for a new boiler. he said about £800 for labour costs, so seems to be a higher price to the first guy, but doing more work. he also check all our radiators before quoting to see if they would be ok but didnt mention replacing any. this guy has left me a buisness card as he's local and does all sorts of domestic plumbing repairs. ive checked his number on the gas safe register and he is registered.
does this sound like a better deal? thanks

 

[namsag]

Yes price does come into it but what you should be going for is recommendation ask friends family workmates..
Cheap does not always mean rough same as expensive doesnt always mean quality but if you listened to some on here they try and justify prices by slagging off anyone cheaper than them.

 

[mickyg]

if he's quoted for more work than the other guy then their prices are comparable. I agree with namsag about price, its not relevant. I've seen some shocking jobs done at premium prices and quality ones done for buttons.
Try and get a recommendation if you can, but failing that, go with your gut feeling. If someone is local, and gonna be on hand for any problems(landline no is useful) thats a good start. If they're checking the gas suppply, radiators, trv's etc.. it means they're likely to make sure the job is up to standard.
Given the age of the system, it will probably need fluishing as well. I would have expected this to have been mentioned at some point also.

 

[bengasman]

Search the forum for boiler recommendations; must be the most frequently asked question.
£1500 pound ish for conversion from bbu to wall hung boiler, with all the pipework needed for that, and cleaning all the crap that is no doubt present in such an old system, seems really cheap to me.
Could be an indication of his lack of quality, or his lack of work. If just picked from an add, it is a matter of: you pays your moneys, you takes your chances.
Personally, I would politely suggest anybody giving me that amount as a price indication to find someone else to do the job.

 

[Agile]

Surprising that no one has commented on or asked you exactly what they are quoting for!

A replacement regular boiler retaining the hot water cylinder should be about £1500 or so depending on where the new boiler can go.

Converting to a combi requires much more work and usually comes to around £2000.

Ideally a new boiler should be accompanied by thermostatic rad valves. If its to be a sealed system then replacing all the rad valves would be a good idea.

The Biasi Band B ( M96 ) range of boilers are very reliable and economically priced but they must be fitted on a pressurised system whereas the appropriate Viessmann, Vaillant or Worcester can be fitten on an open vented system which works out rather cheaper although those makes are more expensive than the Biasi.

Tony