Locating a boiler

[Rustychain]

Following on from another thread (whether to get a combi or not), I have another query that I'd appreciate your thoughts on.

The boiler is currently located on an external wall in the garage. We're just having an extension done, so I have the opportunity to re-locate the boiler into the new utility room - but at a cost! (I've not enquired what that cost is yet).

Is it worth bothering, or not? The way I see things are:

Good
1. It's cheaper to keep the boiler located in the garage
2. There's more room in the garage to 'work' on the boiler if needed

Not so good
3. Loss of heat as pipes pass through garage to the house (negligible?)
4. It gets cold in the garage and the frost protection means the boiler kicks in through the night at this time of year, which sometimes wakes me (light sleeper, the pinging radiators get me!)

 

[chrishutt]

If the pipes to the boiler are insulated there will be very little heat loss to worry about. Noise from nigh time operation on the frost stat is another matter. Perhaps you have the temp setting on the existing frost stat too high - no reason for it to be much above 0°C really. Also can the garage be better insulated and draught proofed to reduce frost stat operation?

A new boiler might have an integral frost stat that won't trip so readily. Also it's likely to have a two stage operation - firstly only the pump operates which brings warmer water from the pipework in the house back to the boiler so warming it slightly. Only if the temp continues to fall will the boiler burner cut in, so noises from thermal expansion in the house would be less likely.

If the noise remains the problem then it might make more sense to tackle that directly. What is causing the noise - is it the pipework in the house creaking as it expands and contracts? You could avoid this by fitting a by-pass circuit around the boiler controlled by a motorised valve wired to a frost stat so that when the boiler fires up the hot water mainly circulates in the garage so more rapidly warming it without affecting the pipework in the house.

 

[Rustychain]

The boiler has a Honeywell frost thermostat fitted on the wall above the boiler. I've just taken off the cover, it's set at the lowest temp (which is 5 degrees - no wonder it cuts in!).

You have a good point about insulating the garage. The boiler is under the eaves, and there is a fair old draft that comes in, directly on to the thermostat - so probably a combination of problems.

I will wait for the new boiler to be fitted before doing anything further - it sounds like with a little draught proofing and an internal frost stat my thermal expansion problems should be over. The main problem is hearing the pump which is in the loft above our bedroom, and the noise of copper on wood! As I said, I'm a light sleeper...

 

[gas4you]

This frost stat should be fitted in series with a pipe stat on the boiler return.

If the air temp drops to freezing, or nearly the boiler will not fire unless the actual water temp in the return gets cold, usually set to about 10C.

This reduces a lot of unnecessary boiler firing during the night, as once the pipes have been slightly heated the boiler will switch off again.