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Dean
 
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Default How to correctly size combi boilers

Over the years there have been many discussions raised in this NG
about the merits and demerits of combi boilers. I don't want to go
through them again except to note that the message about combi's that
seems to come through loud and clear is that a poorly performing combi
system is usually the result of not being spec'd correctly for the
job.

The problem is that every plumber I have spoken to about replacing my
existing standard, vented system always starts out with "Have you
though about a combi". Never with "Well what do you want from your hot
water supply".

This leads me to believe that they want to foist something onto me
that generates the most profit. Therefore I mistrust combi systems
because I can't be sure that it will meet my needs rather than the
plumbers needs.

But that is not right at all. Anyone who has read the threads on this
NG will see that there are combi installations that are bad (usually
undersized for the job) and those that are good (those sized
correctly).

The point I'm trying to make is where can I go to get a good,
impartial recommendation about the right kind of system, and what
specification that system should be? It's no good talking to a plumber
because all you will get (in my experience) will be "You want a combi,
gov! Sort you out a treat it will!" before they even know how many
bathrooms I have, or whether I have a washing machine and a
dishwasher, or how many people live there.

I don't mind installing a combi, or an unvented system, or a
conventional system as long as it is sized to do the job. Can anyone
tell me where to get fair, balanced advice about what will meet my
requirements?

Thanks,

Dean.
  #2   Report Post  
Andy Hall
 
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Default How to correctly size combi boilers

On 24 Dec 2003 03:53:19 -0800, (Dean)
wrote:

Over the years there have been many discussions raised in this NG
about the merits and demerits of combi boilers. I don't want to go
through them again except to note that the message about combi's that
seems to come through loud and clear is that a poorly performing combi
system is usually the result of not being spec'd correctly for the
job.

The problem is that every plumber I have spoken to about replacing my
existing standard, vented system always starts out with "Have you
though about a combi". Never with "Well what do you want from your hot
water supply".

This leads me to believe that they want to foist something onto me
that generates the most profit. Therefore I mistrust combi systems
because I can't be sure that it will meet my needs rather than the
plumbers needs.

But that is not right at all. Anyone who has read the threads on this
NG will see that there are combi installations that are bad (usually
undersized for the job) and those that are good (those sized
correctly).

The point I'm trying to make is where can I go to get a good,
impartial recommendation about the right kind of system, and what
specification that system should be? It's no good talking to a plumber
because all you will get (in my experience) will be "You want a combi,
gov! Sort you out a treat it will!" before they even know how many
bathrooms I have, or whether I have a washing machine and a
dishwasher, or how many people live there.

I don't mind installing a combi, or an unvented system, or a
conventional system as long as it is sized to do the job. Can anyone
tell me where to get fair, balanced advice about what will meet my
requirements?

Thanks,

Dean.


It's not that difficult and you have already outlined the issues.

I would work backwards from what you want to begin with.

Assuming that you already have a system and the number of bathrooms
with baths and showers that you intend to have, then you can do the
measurments.

With a measured container and stop watch measure the flow rate of hot
water at the bath. Are you happy with it? Does it fill the bath
quickly enough for you?
Do the same for a shower. As a rule of thumb, 15 litres/min of water
at 40 degrees is a starting point for a shower in my opinion - I
prefer 20-25. Others are happy with 12-15, and yet others with an
electric shower delivering 4.

Bear in mind that in the winter, with the mains water at 5-8 degrees,
the flow rate that you will get from a shower at 40 degrees matches
the standard 35 degree temperature rise that a combi is specificed to
produce. Are you happy with that in the light of the above?

Do you have two bathrooms and need to have them operational
simultaneously? If so you need to account for that.

Would you like to have greater flow rate and pressure on anything in
the bathroom than you have today?

These are really the major consumers of hot water. You can virtually
ignore the washing machine because most are cold fill or where they do
have both, the hot is only used for the hotter programs which are
fairly rarely used by most people. The same is true for dishwashers.
If they do still use hot water, it is quite little, as is what people
typically use at the sink.

Once you've worked this out, you need to assess whether the mains
supply can deliver an adequate flow rate. If it can't then the
choice is to upgrade the supply (can be expensive or not technically
possible) or to use a vented roof tank system.

You can run some combis from roof tank supplies if needed.

If the water supply is adequate, then the next step is deciding how to
heat it. You can buy pretty powerful combis of 40kW or more which
will deliver water at a temperature lift of 35 degrees at a rate of
20lpm or more. Manufacturer's data sheets will help you here.

There is a limit on most domestic gas supplies of approximately 60kW,
so if the flow rate that you need implies a combi or combis exceeding
that then you would have to use a storage system in part at least.

You could use more than one combi boiler in a very large house or use
one to provide the downstairs supply and a storage cylinder to provide
the bathroom supplies.

Storage systems do not fundamentally have a flow rate limit,
especially if fed from a vented roof tank, but there is a finite
amount of stored water. On the other hand it is stored, then that is
at 60 degrees and more cold water is mixed with it than with a combi..
If you use a thermal store, then the stored water is at 75-80 degrees
and warms the mains water via an efficient heat exchanger. Thus more
energy is stored in a given amount of space. The other factor with
any storage system is how quickly the boiler can replenish the heat.
As soon as you start to use it, the boiler can start adding a lot of
heat, but ultimately the stored energy will have been used up, so what
comes out equates to what goes in.

If you start from your requirements and work from there, it is not
difficult to arrive at what will match your needs. There is really
no magic in any of this - it ultimately comes down to the simple
physics of heating water and for that the formula

Energy gained = mass x specific heat x temperature rise

gives you what is theoretically possible.

You can also easily work out the resulting temperature of mixing water
of different temperatures together, Again you can decide whether you
want to design for worst case, or whether you will accept a lower flow
rate from a combi in the winter should you choose one that will
deliver the goods for the rest of the year.

I haven't considered space use, because you have indicated that you
have no preference between types of system, and I assume that you do
have space for tank and cylinder if that is the most appropriate for
your needs.


..andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl
  #3   Report Post  
Dave Plowman
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

In article ,
Dean wrote:
But that is not right at all. Anyone who has read the threads on this
NG will see that there are combi installations that are bad (usually
undersized for the job) and those that are good (those sized
correctly).


Remember that it's not just the size of the boiler that matters, but both
the gas and water supplies into it - and the water feeds out. And these
can cost *far* more to update than the difference in price between boilers.

--
*Growing old is inevitable, growing up is optional

Dave Plowman London SW 12
RIP Acorn
  #4   Report Post  
Set Square
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Andy Hall wrote:

I haven't considered space use, because you have indicated that you
have no preference between types of system, and I assume that you do
have space for tank and cylinder if that is the most appropriate for
your needs.


.andy


Neither have you considered space *heating* requirements. There seems to be
a general assumption with combis that if you size them to deliver sufficient
hot water, they will automatically heat your house ok. Nevertheless, you
really need to validate this - as for any type of boiler - by calculating
heat losses for each room and adding them up to arrive at the total space
heating requirement. If this turns out to be bigger than the water heating
requirement, you will need an even bigger combi!
--
Cheers,
Set Square
______
Please reply to newsgroup. Reply address is Black Hole!


  #5   Report Post  
Jim
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

Very sensible questions. I eagerly wait on seeing a few "nonbiased reply's




  #6   Report Post  
Ed Sirett
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

On Wed, 24 Dec 2003 03:53:19 +0000, Dean wrote:

Over the years there have been many discussions raised in this NG
about the merits and demerits of combi boilers. I don't want to go
through them again except to note that the message about combi's that
seems to come through loud and clear is that a poorly performing combi
system is usually the result of not being spec'd correctly for the
job.

I'm not sure that has been said at lest by a majority of posters.
Probably something more like: "In all but the very biggest homes a combi
boiler will be adequate for the heating but you are well advised to buy
a quality unit."


The problem is that every plumber I have spoken to about replacing my
existing standard, vented system always starts out with "Have you
though about a combi". Never with "Well what do you want from your hot
water supply".

This is not the best way to run a heating business IMHO.


This leads me to believe that they want to foist something onto me
that generates the most profit. Therefore I mistrust combi systems
because I can't be sure that it will meet my needs rather than the
plumbers needs.

Yep, less work to install and much less external controls to wire up.


But that is not right at all. Anyone who has read the threads on this
NG will see that there are combi installations that are bad (usually
undersized for the job) and those that are good (those sized
correctly).

As a regular poster that has not been my impression, but it is possible
that I have skipped over the threads that looked like plain "to combi or
not to combi", since that is well covered in the FAQ.


The point I'm trying to make is where can I go to get a good,
impartial recommendation about the right kind of system, and what
specification that system should be? It's no good talking to a plumber
because all you will get (in my experience) will be "You want a combi,
gov! Sort you out a treat it will!" before they even know how many
bathrooms I have, or whether I have a washing machine and a
dishwasher, or how many people live there.

Try the main FAQ of uk.d-i-y

--
Ed Sirett - Property maintainer and registered gas fitter.
The FAQ for uk.diy is at www.diyfaq.org.uk
Gas fitting FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/GasFitting.html
Sealed CH FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/SealedCH.html


  #7   Report Post  
Ed Sirett
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

On Wed, 24 Dec 2003 14:30:50 +0000, Set Square wrote:

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Andy Hall wrote:

I haven't considered space use, because you have indicated that you
have no preference between types of system, and I assume that you do
have space for tank and cylinder if that is the most appropriate for
your needs.


.andy


Neither have you considered space *heating* requirements. There seems to be
a general assumption with combis that if you size them to deliver sufficient
hot water, they will automatically heat your house ok. Nevertheless, you
really need to validate this - as for any type of boiler - by calculating
heat losses for each room and adding them up to arrive at the total space
heating requirement. If this turns out to be bigger than the water heating
requirement, you will need an even bigger combi!


IMHO when a home is so big that a 24kW (smallest combi)[1] boiler is
inadequate for space heating it will invariably be wrong for a combi to be
installed.

Every aspect of the house must match the overall size and status of the
building and that includes the plumbing. It's a bit like putting vinyl
seats in a Roller/Merc/BMW/Jag.

[1] OK there are/were some 18kW units on the market.


--
Ed Sirett - Property maintainer and registered gas fitter.
The FAQ for uk.diy is at www.diyfaq.org.uk
Gas fitting FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/GasFitting.html
Sealed CH FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/SealedCH.html


  #8   Report Post  
Dave Plowman
 
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Default How to correctly size combi boilers

In article ,
Jim (remove $ ) wrote:
Very sensible questions. I eagerly wait on seeing a few "nonbiased
reply's


I've given you one. But consider it one of *replies*.

--
*If PROGRESS is for advancement, what does that make CONGRESS mean?

Dave Plowman London SW 12
RIP Acorn
  #9   Report Post  
Michael Chare
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

The point I'm trying to make is where can I go to get a good,
impartial recommendation about the right kind of system, and what
specification that system should be? It's no good talking to a plumber
because all you will get (in my experience) will be "You want a combi,
gov! Sort you out a treat it will!" before they even know how many
bathrooms I have, or whether I have a washing machine and a
dishwasher, or how many people live there.


I have not read previous posts on the subject (but I have read the faq). So here
are my thoughts:

The size of a boiler needs to be matched to the size of the radiators etc to
which it will be attached.

The heat loss from each radiator depends on its area. If you cant find this in
a radiator catalogue or else where try a factor of 170 Btu/sq ft /hour


You can also work out the heat loss from the pipe work. Say 10 Btu/hour per foot
lenght for 15mm piping.

Do you have an indirect cylinder and will you be keeping it? A ball park figure
for an indirect cylinder is 12000 Btu/hour

Calculate the total heat loss and then maybe add on a safety marging say 20% and
this will give you an idea of what size boiler to use. The look to see what
size boilers you can buy and what the difference in price between a small one
and a larger one is. This will give you and idea of what to do. Also how big is
the boiler that you have now? does it run continously on a very cold day or does
it spend time switched off whilst the radiators cool the water/boiler to the
point where the boiler will start gain.


Alternatively get a few quotes and look what size of boiler is specified.

You might also want to consider a high efficiency condensing boiler. Do you
want to dispense with your expanion tank and hot water tank )which I assume that
you have now)

Happy Xmas
Michael Chare


  #10   Report Post  
Andy Hall
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

On Wed, 24 Dec 2003 14:30:50 -0000, "Set Square"
wrote:

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Andy Hall wrote:

I haven't considered space use, because you have indicated that you
have no preference between types of system, and I assume that you do
have space for tank and cylinder if that is the most appropriate for
your needs.


.andy


Neither have you considered space *heating* requirements. There seems to be
a general assumption with combis that if you size them to deliver sufficient
hot water, they will automatically heat your house ok. Nevertheless, you
really need to validate this - as for any type of boiler - by calculating
heat losses for each room and adding them up to arrive at the total space
heating requirement. If this turns out to be bigger than the water heating
requirement, you will need an even bigger combi!


Agreed. I hadn't tackled that aspect nor did I go into the merits of
condensing boilers since I wanted to cover the ground with hot water
without diluting the content too much.



..andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl


  #11   Report Post  
Andy Hall
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

On Wed, 24 Dec 2003 18:28:40 +0000 (UTC), "Michael Chare"
wrote:

The point I'm trying to make is where can I go to get a good,
impartial recommendation about the right kind of system, and what
specification that system should be? It's no good talking to a plumber
because all you will get (in my experience) will be "You want a combi,
gov! Sort you out a treat it will!" before they even know how many
bathrooms I have, or whether I have a washing machine and a
dishwasher, or how many people live there.


I have not read previous posts on the subject (but I have read the faq). So here
are my thoughts:

The size of a boiler needs to be matched to the size of the radiators etc to
which it will be attached.


It needs to be rated to exceed the sum of the radiator outputs plus a
reasonable margin - typically 20% unless the house is exposed, the
ceilings are high or the heating runs for short periods There are
uplift correction factors for this.


The heat loss from each radiator depends on its area. If you cant find this in
a radiator catalogue or else where try a factor of 170 Btu/sq ft /hour


It also depends on the type of radiator, single/double panel, fins or
not and the model. You can't just pluck numbers out of the air -
they will probably be wildly inaccurate, BTUs are really a
deprecated unit. It is far easier to work in watts, metres etc.

The heat losses for each room should be calculated and radiators sized
to match those losses, assuming -3 degrees outside temperature,
choosing the appropriate derating factor to account for the flow and
return temperatures from the boiler.



You can also work out the heat loss from the pipe work. Say 10 Btu/hour per foot
lenght for 15mm piping.


This is generally not a significant factor and if the pipes are within
the building envelope it simply adds to the radiator outputs.
Outside the envelope or in places where heat is not wanted, the pipes
should be lagged with insulating material of at least the same
thickness as trheir diameter.


Do you have an indirect cylinder and will you be keeping it? A ball park figure
for an indirect cylinder is 12000 Btu/hour


That's old practice and at 3.5kW will lead to very poor hot water
recovery performance. Best practice nowadays with an indirect
cylinder is to use one with a fast recovery heat exchanger and then to
use a diverter valve or switched zone arrangement from the boiler.
When heat is required to reheat the water, the boiler is switched over
and runs at full output for a shortish time. The cylinder can absorb
the full output which may be 20-30kW. This way the boiler runs more
efficiently, the hot water is recovered more quickly and the boiler is
off line from the heating for a minimum period.



Calculate the total heat loss and then maybe add on a safety marging say 20% and
this will give you an idea of what size boiler to use. The look to see what
size boilers you can buy and what the difference in price between a small one
and a larger one is. This will give you and idea of what to do. Also how big is
the boiler that you have now? does it run continously on a very cold day or does
it spend time switched off whilst the radiators cool the water/boiler to the
point where the boiler will start gain.


Quit a lot of modern boilers, both condensing technology and not, are
able to modulate their output dynamically to match the heat demand
rather than switching off entirely. This makes matching to heat
loss less critical as long as the boiler is not grossly oversized,




Alternatively get a few quotes and look what size of boiler is specified.

You might also want to consider a high efficiency condensing boiler. Do you
want to dispense with your expanion tank and hot water tank )which I assume that
you have now)

Happy Xmas
Michael Chare


..andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl
  #12   Report Post  
Owain
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

"Andy Hall" wrote
| I wanted to cover the ground with hot water
| without diluting the content too much.

Very good :-)

Owain
  #13   Report Post  
Michael Chare
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

The heat loss from each radiator depends on its area. If you cant find this
in
a radiator catalogue or else where try a factor of 170 Btu/sq ft /hour


It also depends on the type of radiator, single/double panel, fins or
not and the model.


You can't just pluck numbers out of the air -


I didn't I took it from a reference book, and I suggested using the figure as
the less preferred alternative.



BTUs are really a deprecated unit.


Still surprisinly common in the heating industry. The new Potterton boiler
catalogue that I happen to have gives the boiler ouput in Btuh/hr with the kW
figure in brackets!!


Michael Chare


  #14   Report Post  
Andy Hall
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

On Thu, 25 Dec 2003 00:54:05 +0000 (UTC), "Michael Chare"
wrote:

The heat loss from each radiator depends on its area. If you cant find this

in
a radiator catalogue or else where try a factor of 170 Btu/sq ft /hour


It also depends on the type of radiator, single/double panel, fins or
not and the model.


You can't just pluck numbers out of the air -


I didn't I took it from a reference book, and I suggested using the figure as
the less preferred alternative.


It's very less preferred. If you compare a single panel with a
double convector (e.g. in Myson's Premier range) the range is 3:1.



BTUs are really a deprecated unit.


Still surprisinly common in the heating industry.


Mmm. One noted for its conservative ways. Many of its
practitioners do not seem to be able to able to do arithmetic anyway.

I recently helped a neighbour with selecting an installer for a
replacement heating system. It had been badly neglected over the
years, and one or two radiators had sprung a leak. The Glow Worm
boiler was at the end of its useful life (if it ever had one in the
first place. Essentially it was replace all the system except the
pipework.

We put together a requirements document to give to the contenders
including a number of points:

- Description of the house and exisitng system
- List of requirements for heating operation
- List of requirements for hot water, including number of bathrooms,
pattern of use.

we asked contenders to provide:

- References of installations that we could contact
- Details of proposed systems, vendors used
- Evidence that the proposed systems could meet the specifications.

The six responses made entertaining reading, two contenders having
decided not to quote.

Two of them totally ignored the requirements document and proposed a
fairly small combi boiler - 15lpm. This was totally inadequate for
the hot water needs and they hadn't bothered to check that the mains
cold supply is poor where we are. They had both proposed large
double convector radiators in places where it was not necessary.

Another two proposed a pressurised hot water cylinder, but didn't
check the mains supply. They did bother to do so form of heat loss
assessment but one got the numbers wrong and proposed radiators in a
couple of rooms which were too large and the pipework would have been
inadequate to supply. They did get the boiler size about right
though.

The final two proposed a vented storage cylinder, with fast recovery,
larger than the existing one to meet the demand. They both presented
detailed heat loss figures for each room, a radiator proposal and
pointed out that in one large room the pipework would need to be
upgraded to support the radiator's requirements.
Both produced references.


In the end he selected one from the third group, the lower price of
the two, and because the person was able to do the work a little
earlier as well.
These two were not the most expensive nor were they the cheapest. The
most expensive proposal was in the first group and was the least
suitable. It was from a very well know national firm.




The new Potterton boiler
catalogue that I happen to have gives the boiler ouput in Btuh/hr with the kW
figure in brackets!!

I'm not surprised. Potterton has been noted for trading on its past
glories and producing junk products. A search through Google Groups
will reveal some of their more recent horror products.



Michael Chare


..andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl
  #15   Report Post  
Set Square
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Andy Hall wrote:

On Thu, 25 Dec 2003 00:54:05 +0000 (UTC), "Michael Chare"
wrote:


The new Potterton boiler
catalogue that I happen to have gives the boiler ouput in Btuh/hr
with the kW figure in brackets!!

I'm not surprised. Potterton has been noted for trading on its past
glories and producing junk products. A search through Google Groups
will reveal some of their more recent horror products.




I'm sure it's good for marketing hype too! Since 1 kW is equivalent to about
3.4 kBThU/Hr, you get a number that's 3.4 times as big (or even 3400 times
as big - depending on how you express it) if you quote the output in old
units.

For example some may be misled into believing that 68,000 BThU/Hr is better
than 20 kW!
--
Cheers,
Set Square
______
Please reply to newsgroup. Reply address is Black Hole!




  #16   Report Post  
Michael Chare
 
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Default How to correctly size combi boilers

"Andy Hall" wrote in message

It's very less preferred. If you compare a single panel with a
double convector (e.g. in Myson's Premier range) the range is 3:1.


Maybe because a double convector (i.e. with some type of fin arrangement in the
middle) has a correspondingly larger surface area when compared to a single
panel no fins radiator.


I recently helped a neighbour with selecting an installer for a
replacement heating system.

snip
suitable. It was from a very well know national firm.


Interesting story the OP should note!

And these installers can probably work on your plumbing etc without using a
Building Control Service because they are members of the Institute of plumbers
where as us DIY people can not. (Depending on the exact job).

Michael Chare


  #17   Report Post  
Andrew
 
Posts: n/a
Default How to correctly size combi boilers

In article , Dean
writes
Over the years there have been many discussions raised in this NG
about the merits and demerits of combi boilers. I don't want to go
through them again except to note that the message about combi's that
seems to come through loud and clear is that a poorly performing combi
system is usually the result of not being spec'd correctly for the
job.

Unless its a Baxi Barcelona which performs perfectly (touch wood)
for 9 months then corrodes away and has to be chucked away

snip

Thanks,

Dean.


--
Andrew
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