I've recently had my boiler changed and plumped for a Vaillant Ecotec plus 418 fitted. It’s a heat only boiler. Working fine after I found that the engineer had failed to remove a link inside the boiler on installation which I sorted myself while waiting for him to return. Since then I have fiddled a bit more with the system - fitted a Spirovent air separator and changed a couple of thermostatic rad valves as well as draining the whole system and refilling with fresh corrosion inhibitor (did this because I had to drain a fair bit out to change the valves). I had three quotes for a boiler change and only one, British Gas, did some calculations and said a 15kw boiler would be more than adequate. The two others said to replace like for like and as I had an ancient 60,000 btu boiler, they said go for an 18kw one. I did phone Vaillant up and they said I could have the 418 (18kw) but said it could be easily set up when installed by just a few touches of the programme so that it goes to a maximum of 15kw.
A couple of questions: Apart from the difference in price between the different size Ecotec boilers which isn’t much, why don’t Vaillant just make one 18kw boiler and adjust it to the size of the property instead of making 12kw, 15kw and 18kw models? They also do bigger ones - 28kw and 38kw.
Would it be more economical to run it at 15kw and if so, where can I find the manual that tells you how to enter the programme and set up to a 15kw? I don’t want to pester the installer if it’s just a couple of minute programming on the boiler.
A couple of questions: Apart from the difference in price between the different size Ecotec boilers which isn’t much, why don’t Vaillant just make one 18kw boiler and adjust it to the size of the property instead of making 12kw, 15kw and 18kw models? They also do bigger ones - 28kw and 38kw.
Would it be more economical to run it at 15kw and if so, where can I find the manual that tells you how to enter the programme and set up to a 15kw? I don’t want to pester the installer if it’s just a couple of minute programming on the boiler.
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