RJ wrote:

"IMM" wrote in message news:btp98a$937

Replace it with a heat bank. They operate at low pressures. Forget an
unvented cylinder.


If the cylinder needs replacing - then I guess that is a reasonable
idea. However I've read that these [may] need descaling every couple
of years or so - and hence the running costs are very expensive?


Install a water softener - a proper one - and forget de-scaling.

Without getting onvolved in heatbanks, I had the opportunity to
completely design HW and CH for the new house.


The numbers of baths and showers really meant that combi/heatbank looked
more expensive than a smaller boiler (hate wasting space) driving a
mains pressure system. Plus if I ran out of oil, I could immersion heat
the HW.

I insatlled a water softener and mains pressure system. Its fabulous.
Only downsiode to teh water softener - apart from filling it with 5 quid
of salt a month - is that peak flow rates are reduced a little.

If you have to start ripping stuff out, I'd strongly recommend you fit a
new pressurised tank, and an ion exchange water softener. No scaling on
your equipment, no nasty scum on your bathwater, use less soap on teh
washing...its works as advertised.

My softener is quite large, and so is my tank. About 500 quid each from
memory. Its at least a days work to plumb the tank, less for the
softener. You SHOULD vave all the pipes there you need, but you MAY need
to extend and adapt them.

I shold get planning and researching and hope that your bodges hold up
long enough to get the job planned properly for the spring.