New Boiler Advice

[Bellymcfish]

My Potterton Netaheat 10-16 is on its last legs. My Hotwater cylinder has not worked for years.

I have a 3 bed Terrace house with 2 small kids and another on the way.

As we are short of space we were hoping to upgrade to a new combi boiler in order to save on running costs and space(airing cupb & Loft tanks).Freind of the Mrs reckons her bills dropped significantly when she got a combi but not sure if she has any kids.

Ive got a corgi reg m8 who will do it cheap(without cutting corners) and have been offered a Worcester Greenstar 25SI combi. He did recommend just getting a heat only boiler and replace the airing cupboard tank and contols and pump and said a combi would be much more work and disruption for not so much benefit(he suggested 20% of bills) plus he needs to connect the mains gas(under the stairs) to the combi with a new thicker Pipe which would be a new eye-sore around my kitchen.

Questions i have is will a combi be adequate for my needs and what are the chances of being able to remove my Cold water tank in the loft if its got asbestos or is asbestos free. ie anyone know any estimated costs to remove these tanks.

Any advise on the above points would be helpful.

PS - Great forums BTW - Learnt so much recently about my heating system.

 

[LUNAT]

HI

new condensing boiler are energy effecient but,combis are expensive than
vented system because everytime the hot taps are open the combi boiler fires thus wasting gas.with hot water tank once water is heated there is over 100 litres of reserved water and if you have family best system is boiler with hot water tank.
i had a good vented system which i took out and fitted combi because i needed that extra space to convert into a room so, if you want space then have combi fitted .

 

[Doctor Drivel]

HI

new condensing boiler are energy effecient but,combis are expensive than
vented system because everytime the hot taps are open the combi boiler fires thus wasting gas.
......

What tripe!

It is best he goes for a high flow quality combi. Larger than 25 kW. Saves space and no cylinder standing losses. Never runs out of hot water. Great when having two kids.

 

[gas4you]

God I hate saying this, but for once I agree with you DD

 

[mikej2005]

combis are expensive than vented system because everytime the hot taps are open the combi boiler fires thus wasting gas.

They're using gas to heat the exact amount of hot water that you need. How is that 'wasting' gas ?

with hot water tank once water is heated there is over 100 litres of reserved water and if you have family best system is boiler with hot water tank.

Sure - you're (almost) getting your hot water for nothing in the winter, but in the warmer months when you don't have the central heating on, you're having to heat that full cylinder of water whether you need it all or not. Now I'd call that a potential waste of gas !

OP - if you need to run regular baths for the kids, then I'd be tempted to go for a more powerful combi, as DD suggests. The 30kW model (for example) will give you a more powerful hot water flow rate, however you'd have to ensure your cold water flow and gas supply is sufficient.

One other benefit of a combi if you're running numerous baths is that it won't run out of hot water !

Incidently - if you've currently got a 15mm gas supply to your current boiler, then you may find you need that upgraded to 22mm whatever boiler you choose.

 

[heatingman]

If you have the space, keep the cylinder with immersion back-up. With a growing family always best to have a fall back in case boiler goes awol.
Nothing worse than smelly wife & kids.

 

[Doctor Drivel]

God I hate saying this, but for once I agree with you DD

This is encouraging - you are actually learning. Hope is there indeed. Allalulahhhh!

 

[cowboyplumber]

This is encouraging - you are actually learning. Hope is there indeed. Allalulahhhh!

What's up Drivel? Did you trap an appendage in your keyboard?

 

[gremlin16]

go for greenstar 30Si or better still a greenstar 30Cdi

 

[cozzmic]

Just remember your mate has to GWN your boiler to comply with regs and he's not allowed to do it if he doesn't have his own corgi ticket not his company one, unless he works for himself of cource.

 

[Bellymcfish]

thx for all the advice,

ps - yes - my m8's has his own corgi number & works for himself.

I am going for the combi but have found a Urastone Flu in the loft.

I can get rid of my 2 plastic tanks but i guess the flu will be staying as its on the asbestos list (unless anyone has ideas-must be safe & legal of course)- see below :

http://www.asbestos-now.com/trade-names-of-asbestos-containing-materials

keep up the good work!

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

Might be worth getting in touch with the council, my local council offers a subsidised service for disposal of small quantities of asbestos found by householders during renovation works. (This doesn't help me as ive got an entire garage made of the damn stuff. Will cost more to get rid of the existing than it will to build a new one!)

If the service is available, then take suitable precautions, i.e. suitable mask for asbestos dust, disposable overalls, wet the asbestos before moving, DO NOT BREAK it, and double wrap it inside thick polythene, well sealed with tape.