new boiler

[kettle]

i am looking at replacing my old baxi wall hung boiler,i assume i will have to have a condensing boiler fitted now. i have a couple of local firms coming to give me a qoute.3 bed semi, 8 rads, on an open vented, fully pumped system.
The existing boiler is on an internal wall with the flue going into a liner up a chimney.will i still be able to have it there or do new ones have to go on an external wall? how much of the existing system can be used? I have just had the system fully flushed and new cylinder, pump and one zone valve fitted.

any other info you wonderful people can give me will be gratefully received as i like to have a bit of knowledge before the quoters come round.

cheers
Chris

 

[Slugbabydotcom]

i am looking at replacing my old baxi wall hung boiler,

What model is it and what is wrong with it that makes you want to replace it?

Mine is an old thorn olympic that I wont replace until it can't be fixed any more. The old ones generally have less in them to go wrong and any energy saving claims of new boilers are often outweighed by their repair and installation costs.

 

[kettle]

its a baxi 55/3 wm. about 18 years old. we have had problems with down draught when the wind has been blowing lately,though this has happened before. occaisionally there is a smell of gas. had BG out but couldnt find any thing , had corgi chap out, couldnt find anything.The flue terminal is an asbestos looking one, which the BG guy said was ok . the wife is now worried about the potential dangers.

there is also some rust type stains at the end of one of the cast iron heat exchangers. i dont really want to spend too much on a boiler that will still be 18 years old.(dont want to spend shed loads on a new one either )

 

[Agile]

I have seen several of these suffering from condensation but always assume that was the user allowing short cycling.

Properly used and serviced they are pretty reliable even if not efficient.

Tony

 

[Slugbabydotcom]

Apart from the gas valve theres not much to go wrong in it. If the burner is in good nick and its not leaking it could last another 18 years.

A modern boiler will have a fan, pcb, and lots of other interesting expensive bits in it in addition to a more expensive, harder to obtain gas valve. It will have a lifespan of about 10 years not to mention the part L requirements ie. it must be condensing, TRVs and stats must be fitted etc and it must be registered as compliant with building regs. The system will need flushing to comply with the manufacturers guarantee and additives are imperative.

I dont want to put you off energy saving measures such as TRV's and thermostats as they are a good idea; as is using an inhibitor. However to change the boiler for a condensing one IMO is not generally economically viable or worth the hassle unless you are a real hardcore earth hugger or are undertaking a larger building project such as an extension or alterations.

My view is that you should get it serviced and keep fixing it. Buy a carbon monoxide detector to allay your wifes fears

Occasionally I come across one where the gas valve does not shut off properly. This could account for your occasional whiff of gas and if yours is 18 years old you could be due a new one. When you get it serviced ask the guy to do a tightness test on your gas system just to be sure its ok.

 

[kettle]

Thanks for all your replies.i will look into getting it serviced (last done 10 months ago ) again and gas valve checked out.

is there any where i can get these parts from other than baxi or is it a baxi only part? and what sort of price are they.(not going to fit em meself)

is there somewhere i can get part numbers from?

cheers
Chris

 

[Slugbabydotcom]

The part numbers are available from partsarena.com/baxi

Dont buy 'em if you dont need them yet. Theres no harm checking them out though just in case.

Gas valve on these is usually a standard grey button v4600c or occasionally the less popular green button v4700? type. At 18 years a pilot injector and burner are often warranted especially if there's a bit of yellow in the pilot flame. Grab a thermocouple if you havent had one in for a few years. You should have change out of £100 for those bits. Lots more change if you search the net and look for places that like to 'keeptheheaton' or some 'europeanspares'


A little bit here to prove my point. I am looking at a receipt for a gas valve for a Halstead combi which cost £179.20 inc vat

 

[kettle]

cheers for all the info, much appreciated