[SS[_2_]]

My situation..selling house (downsizing) this is likely to be my last move
before I pop my clogs.
Income will be very low from pensions but will be mortgage free.
So what to look for when buying another property as I dont want to spend £ks
after a couple of years.
My bid would be dependent on the life of some of the things below, in other
words if a combi lasts on average 12 years and it is already 10 years old
then I need to take that into account.

What is average life of a combi type gas boiler?
What is average life of a tiled roof?
What is average life of double glazing units?
What is average life of radiators (rusting through)

I am ok for general maintenance but dont want a big hit with lots of expense
if any of the above are on their last legs (average)
Anything else I should be looking at (assuming a survey will cover wood rot,
general building etc)

Any thoughts on this would be helpful.
thanks

[Skipweasel[_3_]]

In article ,
says...
What is average life of a combi type gas boiler?
What is average life of a tiled roof?
What is average life of double glazing units?
What is average life of radiators (rusting through)



In all cases, at least twice what the sales-rep on the doorstep would
have you believe.

--
Skipweasel - never knowingly understood.

[The Natural Philosopher[_2_]]

SS wrote:
My situation..selling house (downsizing) this is likely to be my last move
before I pop my clogs.
Income will be very low from pensions but will be mortgage free.
So what to look for when buying another property as I dont want to spend £ks
after a couple of years.
My bid would be dependent on the life of some of the things below, in other
words if a combi lasts on average 12 years and it is already 10 years old
then I need to take that into account.

What is average life of a combi type gas boiler?

25 yrs?

What is average life of a tiled roof?

60 years before some maintenance needed. about 100 for full replacement.

What is average life of double glazing units?

Abourt 15 years IME.

What is average life of radiators (rusting through)


15-25 years probably. they dont rust. The same water crculates and there
is no air.


I am ok for general maintenance but dont want a big hit with lots of expense
if any of the above are on their last legs (average)
Anything else I should be looking at (assuming a survey will cover wood rot,
general building etc)


Almost any house over ten years old needs about 1% of its cost spent er
year on maintenance.


Any thoughts on this would be helpful.
thanks

[Andrew Gabriel]

In article ,
The Natural Philosopher writes:
SS wrote:
My situation..selling house (downsizing) this is likely to be my last move
before I pop my clogs.
Income will be very low from pensions but will be mortgage free.
So what to look for when buying another property as I dont want to spend £ks
after a couple of years.
My bid would be dependent on the life of some of the things below, in other
words if a combi lasts on average 12 years and it is already 10 years old
then I need to take that into account.

What is average life of a combi type gas boiler?

25 yrs?

Only for a top spec one. Could be as low as 10 years for a
low build quality one, and installation workmanship can affect
this too.

You can ask on here about particular models where there's quite a bit
of experience. Also, look at the state of the boiler casing. If it's
got signs of corrosion, that's generally not good for longevity.

What is average life of a tiled roof?

60 years before some maintenance needed. about 100 for full replacement.

Yes. Leadwork will require replacement at 60-75 years, and will
likely need some maintenance 1 or 2 times during its lifetime,
such as redressing back into brickwork.

What is average life of double glazing units?

Abourt 15 years IME.

I'd say 25 years for uPVC (and for first generation aluminium, but most
of that has been replaced now). You might need to replace one sealed unit
glass during that time.

What is average life of radiators (rusting through)


15-25 years probably. they dont rust. The same water crculates and there
is no air.

Depends heavily on age. If the radiators are = 50 years old, they'll
last forever even without inhibitor. Over the intervening years, they
have been manufactured progressively thinner, and consequently with
steadily reducing lives. Nowadays they won't last any time at all unless
the system is kept properly dosed with inhibitor. Also look at the
radiator tails, where poorly made connections can seep very slowly and
corrode through.

Replacing one radiator is not a major expense, although if they're all
going, that's a different matter.

I am ok for general maintenance but dont want a big hit with lots of expense
if any of the above are on their last legs (average)
Anything else I should be looking at (assuming a survey will cover wood rot,
general building etc)

Almost any house over ten years old needs about 1% of its cost spent er
year on maintenance.

Yes.

In your position, I would also look at insulation levels for the
purpose of cost of heating the place. You want somewhere which either
is already, and can easily be, well insulated. Avoid a house which
cannot be easily insulated. In theory the EPC should give you this
information, but unfortunately they are useless because the assessors
are clueless.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

[SS[_2_]]

"John Rumm" wrote in message
o.uk...
On 15/01/2011 22:10, SS wrote:
My situation..selling house (downsizing) this is likely to be my last
move
before I pop my clogs.
Income will be very low from pensions but will be mortgage free.
So what to look for when buying another property as I dont want to spend
£ks
after a couple of years.
My bid would be dependent on the life of some of the things below, in
other
words if a combi lasts on average 12 years and it is already 10 years old
then I need to take that into account.

What is average life of a combi type gas boiler?

anything from 6 to 30 years probably, depending on who made it and what
sort of generation of technology it is.

What is average life of a tiled roof?

100 years if looked after.

What is average life of double glazing units?

Depends on what you mean by "life" - for example they can loose their
hermetic seal and mist up, but they will stiff function as DG units - just
look a bit cloudy.

As to loosing their seal, if in full sunlight and installed badly, they
could last as little as 5 years.

What is average life of radiators (rusting through)

If the system has inhibitor and is installed correctly (i.e. not pumping
over etc), 30 years+

I am ok for general maintenance but dont want a big hit with lots of
expense
if any of the above are on their last legs (average)
Anything else I should be looking at (assuming a survey will cover wood
rot,
general building etc)

Survey will cover rot if its immediately visible...

Any thoughts on this would be helpful.
thanks

Its a difficult call - there are so many things that can bite you, its
hard to know where to start. In reality, chances are only a few will.

I would make sure the place you buy is not on low level ground -
especially in a flood plane. If a glance at the consumer unit shows
rewireable fuses and lots of black rubber cables emerging, then factor in
a rewire. (look for sockets as you go round as well - too few could
indicate an ageing wiring system etc).



Thanks for the tips.