Potterton Prima F Boiler Question

[rezzler]

I hope someone can help with this - I'm wanting to buy a new shower and I have no experience with plumbing. It's part of a loft conversion I'm having done soon and I would want a radiator up there too.

My boiler is a Potterton Prima F. No idea about it as it was in the house when we moved in a few years ago. Not that it would mean anything to me anyway...

The shower I want to buy needs a combi boiler with 1.5 bar pressure or something. It accepts both hot and cold, so it's not an electric shower. Don't worry I wouldn't be fitting it myself, but I don't want to buy this and find that I can't end up using it.

As far as I know this boiler does both my C/H and my hot water (ie when it needed fixing earlier this year I had neither.) The bathrooms place were confused because when I turn on the hot water it doesn't fire the boiler up to heat the hot water straight away. I'm sure it works on a timer and goes into a tank like an immersion heater would work, when I do the washing up after a sunday roast there isn't enough water to bath the kids.

Will this enable me to have a radiator in my loft as well - and if not what do I need ??

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

 

[baxpoti]

Bath the kids first, this will allow enough time for the hot water tank to be re-heated to allow for washing up.

 

[baxpoti]

Probably best to invest in a new combination boiler.

 

[gas4you]

Your boiler is not a combi, therefore without any alterations you require a shower that is suitable to work on gravity hot water.

Unfortunatley a gravity shower will only work if the cold storage tank for the hot water is above the shower head, a minimum of 1M usually.

The same applies to putting a radiator in the loft. The header tank will need to be at least 1M above the radiator.

You really need to change your heating system to a pressurised system, assuming that you are allowed to do this with this boiler.

Your simplest option for a shower is to fit an electric one.

 

[rezzler]

Thanks for your replies - so does anyone know if this boiler can be made to work as a pressurised system? How would I do that and what would be the approximate cost vs installing a new combi boiler?

 

[Dan Robinson]

They have an overheat stat so it is probably OK - check with Potterton first though.

 

[giblets]

If you have a copy of the Installation instructions they will tell you if the boiler is suitable for a pressurised system.

With regards to how much between pressurised & combi - how long is a piece of string?