replacing a back boiler

[alan rose]

I need to change my old back boiler and I've been told I can but I need to qualify in order to exempt me from having to fit a condensing boiler, which leads me to the 2 questions I have. 1) is there such a thing as a condensing back boiler and if so who makes it, and 2) what conditions do I have to meet in order to allow me to replace my old conventional back boiler with a new conventional one

 

[gremlin16]

1, no there is not a condensin BB unit available.

2, Do you have to have a condensing boiler?

No. You should have a condensing boiler fitted if it is reasonable to do so, but the law recognises that non-condensing boilers are acceptable if it would be too difficult to install a condensing boiler in your home. Your installer will tell you whether your circumstances are too difficult.

Yet to find it difficult to fit any condensing boiler,

 

[totalshell]

you dont have to have a modern condensing combi BUt it would have to be impossible to fit it for you to qualify
i fit in community housing, flats, semis etc and have yet to find the right circumstances not to fit a combi

 

[Deleted member 105431]

get a combi in your airing cupboard and vertical flue it thru the loft, condense can be pumped if nessecary. save a fortune on gas bill. . . .

 

[alan rose]

thanks for the advice lads. it seems by what you've told me that it would be better and less hassle to have a condensing boiler, but i'm really confused now as there seems to be three different types , the conventional, the system and the combi. from what I've been able to read so far a combi doesn't require any hot water cylinder and is mains fed but what the hell are the other two about. sorry if i sound a bit thick but this is like a minefield just trying to choose the right option.

 

[gas4you]

Combi is as you have described.

System boilers are a sealed system that has an expansion vessel in them so do not need an open expansion tank in the loft. Basically a combi without the DHW bits fitted.

A conventional boiler is on that still needs the open vent and expansion tank in the loft.

 

[D_Hailsham]

I need to change my old back boiler and I've been told I can

Why do you need permission to change your boiler? Do you live in rented property? If so the boiler is your landlords responsibility

there seems to be three different types , the conventional, the system and the combi. from what I've been able to read so far a combi doesn't require any hot water cylinder and is mains fed but what the hell are the other two about.

Your old back boiler is a conventional boiler, but it is not condensing. Conventional boilers are sometimes called "heat only" boilers as they provide heat to the radiators and, via the coil in the HW cylinder, heat up the water for the HW taps.

System boiler are similar to conventional but are used with sealed systems and have the pump etc incorporated in the case.

If you don't want to lose your HW cylinder, you can put the boiler in the loft (assuming you have one); but you will need proper lighting, floor and a loft ladder.

Combi boilers have advantages, mainly the space saved by removing the HW cylinder; but they have one big disadvantage: if they go wrong you have no hot water. If you have a HW cylinder, you can always fall back on the Immersion Heater.