Bungalow with WarmAir Heating / Immersion Options

[bmouthboyo]

Hi Everyone,

Wondered if people could pitch in with options for my current home setup.

My wife and I live in a 70’s bungalow with 2 bedrooms and one bathroom. We have an old warm air heating system which we actually really like. It is nice not having radiators and it warms the home quickly. Replacing this is not really an option as we do not want to switch to radiators.

This unfortunately means we currently have a 140L hot water immersion cylinder for out hot water. This is mainly for a pumped shower and 2 sinks. We run this for 4 hours a day but wondered if it is financially worth looking into alternative methods for hot water.

Our current HWC is in the same cupboard as the gas warm air unit so there is a gas supply in there and would be space should the cylinder be removed. I assume the warm exhaust vent might be able to be shared?

Is it possible to have a gas boiler just for the hot water needs we have, or is it not worth it when not using for central heating etc?
Are there gas boilers which work with current immersion tank installations?
If there are any boiler options what kind of costs would they involve (ball park figure), and would it be able to use our existing 3 bar pumped shower setup?

 

[flameport]

it is financially worth looking into alternative methods for hot water.

No.

If you want to keep the pumped shower, a gas option would be a boiler heating a cylinder, which means you need a gas boiler, a new cylinder and the installation to go with that.

A cheaper and substandard option would be a gas water heater which means no cylinder, but you can forget about the pumped shower. Water would be heated on demand which will severely reduce the flow rate available compared to what you have now.

Gas is cheaper than electricity, and a direct comparison between gas and electricity would mean probable savings of £100s per year based on prices today. However the installation cost of a gas boiler will eliminate any savings for many years, there will be annual servicing costs to pay, and that also assumes that gas will remain cheap and electricity will be expensive for ever, neither of which are likely.

 

[bmouthboyo]

No.

If you want to keep the pumped shower, a gas option would be a boiler heating a cylinder, which means you need a gas boiler, a new cylinder and the installation to go with that.

A cheaper and substandard option would be a gas water heater which means no cylinder, but you can forget about the pumped shower. Water would be heated on demand which will severely reduce the flow rate available compared to what you have now.

Gas is cheaper than electricity, and a direct comparison between gas and electricity would mean probable savings of £100s per year based on prices today. However the installation cost of a gas boiler will eliminate any savings for many years, there will be annual servicing costs to pay, and that also assumes that gas will remain cheap and electricity will be expensive for ever, neither of which are likely.

Thanks for the reply flame, that was my gut instinct. I guess a better option may be solar in the future with some kind of diy build that heats my immersion a bit.

 

[flameport]

Solar PV (electric) can be used with your existing immersion heater, and could also power other items during the day.
However it still has a substantial initial cost even if DIY.

 

[bmouthboyo]

Solar PV (electric) can be used with your existing immersion heater, and could also power other items during the day.
However it still has a substantial initial cost even if DIY.

That's a shame, I had hoped a diy installation would be much more affordable.

Oh well, old school immersion it is

 

[JohnD]

This unfortunately means we currently have a 140L hot water immersion cylinder for out hot water.

Why do you consider it to be unfortunate?

 

[bmouthboyo]

Why do you consider it to be unfortunate?

Well because heating water with electricity seems to be considered the most expensive method and with electricity costs so high soon adds up.

 

[ianmcd]

If your WAU is a Johnson & Starley you might be able to add a Janus or Hi-Jan water heater, that was the normal way to do it, post a pic of your Warm air unit or give us the model number

 

[flameport]

electricity seems to be considered the most expensive method

Currently it is, but that's only because historically, gas and other fossil fuels have been ridiculously cheap at the point of sale.

Electricity is also very expensive currently because the way it is sold is based on a system of a single price for all generation everywhere, regardless of how much it actually costs or where it was generated. Another left over from the fossil fuel era when coal and gas accounted for the vast majority of electricity generation.

Both of these problems will be resolved in the near future.