On Sun, 29 Apr 2007 12:49:42 +0100, Bob wrote:


"Vista" wrote in message ...
Andrew Gabriel wrote:
In article ,
Vista writes:
Hi all.
My parent's house (4 beds) needs a new gas boiler. Quotes for this and
to "modernise" the heating system range from just over 3K-4K - seems a
lot of money.
I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on the way to proceed. Is
this a reasonable price? How do I watch for rip-offs etc? What *needs*
doing from a legal point of view?
My ideas are 1) scrap the gas completely and go all electric (is this
possible with a water-based radiator system? Is it feasible on the cost
front? Perhaps going with economy 7 for hot water (currently have a
lagged tank in the airing cupboard).

Start by giving much more detail of the current system.

Boiler make/model/size/age, condition of pipework, radiators
(do they look fine, or like they're all just about to rust
through?), do they have thermostatic radiator valves, is there
a room stat somewhere?

Also number of rooms, number of baths/showers and usage pattern,
normal number of house occupents. Does the existing system cope
(or did it when it was working properly)?
Why does it need a new boiler now?
Who did you get quotes from, and what do they include?

Boiler make - will look today, at least 20 years old.
Occupants: 2
Showers: 2 a day (one each), baths once a week (each person)
Radiators - mainly good condition 9one small leak on inlet (nothing
serious)
pipework: OK
rooms: 4 beds, kitchen, dinning, living, hall, 2 bathrooms, storeroom.
existing system: working OK, but very old and very expensive to run
Quotes (don't actually have them but will report back)


A new gasboiler isn't that expensive, you can get a combination one for
around £600

One that's worth fitting where you aren't about to sell the property
immediately costs a bit more. Budget £750+ for a good make.

Your parents could get a simple replacement boiler (made by Ideal) for £400

On which planet is that?


I had mine done as I didn't want a combination boiler.
It was put in a cupboard by the bathroom. A gas pipe was fitted, then the
pipes feeding the old back boiler behind the living room fire capped off and
the inlet/outlet connected to the heating system and tank. A new pump and
valve were added. It took about 5 hours to sort out as a new programmer and
thermostat were installed.
A certificate was issued by the Corgi fitter and that was it! The flue just
goes out of the wall and sticks out about 8 inches. The condensation drain
drops in to a nearby hopper for the rainwater.

Properly insulated I hope.

Sounds from the EDF quote as if the OP's parent's CH system needs bringing
up to current energy efficiency standards (Building Regs Part L) with
TRVs, a fully pumped DHW system and time and temperature control of CH and
DHW.


The whole job including the supply and fitting of a condensing boiler should
cost no more than £800 as a maximum.

The boiler plus other parts will cost that alone.

If your parents are getting on a bit tell them to apply for a "warmfront
grant" and they can get the boiler replaced for free (if they meet
certain requirements)

Only if their system has broken down and they're pretty poor.