How To Save Money When Fitting A New Boiler & Heating

Anyone who saw my indignant rantings on Twitter yesterday will know that 2024 started off for me with a broken down boiler and plumbing rip offs..er….sorry …plumbing quotes. I returned from the xmas break away to no heating or hot water. Great. The problem was compounded by being in holiday season which meant suffering several days of ‘camping indoors’ before I could get it fixed

So, today I’m sharing some basic knowledge about boilers and installations so you don’t get ripped off by plumbers if it happens to you. Forewarned and all that….

Boiler Sizing Requirements

“Combi” boilers come in four sizes 24-25kw , 28-30kw, 33-35kw and 40kw. Flats and small 2-3 bed homes will only need a 24-25kw, which will heat up to 10 radiators. The 28-30 covers a medium to large 3-4 bed house with about 15 radiators. 33-35 and a 40 kw are for large houses with 20 radiators. The more hot water you use, via extra bathrooms etc, the higher demand or kw (kilowatt) boiler is needed. No instant combi boiler can cope with 2 showers running at the same time. Fact.

Where You Put It Impacts Price

Putting the new boiler in the same location as the existing always reduces cost. Less copper pipe = less money. Replacing an existing combi with another combi means all the required pipes will be already be there. Converting from a tank system to a combi requires 2 additional pipes, hence more cost. You will also need a condensing drain pipe outside. The closer to an outside wall it is sited, the cheaper it will be, because the flue ( which takes away gases) needs an exit, and flue pipe is not cheap. ( A straight extension piece for example costs over £1o0.) Asking the plumber to use plastic not copper for underfloor pipes can save at least £200 off an average quote.

Boilers can live quite happily outside the house so long as the pipes are lagged and it’s in an outhouse that is fireproof and watertight. Ideally, in a brick or block shed. We have sited them in old outside loo sheds and they work just fine, plus you have the advantage of not wasting valuable wall space inside kitchens or bathrooms.

Boiler Makes

Most plumbers have their favourite boilers that they prefer to fit. The Rolls Royce of boilers are Vailants & Worcester. Baxi or some Ideal tend to be cheaper but are also considered good, though plumbers seem to think Ideal break down more often. The main difference is the warranty provided and personal choice. A little known fact is that some boilers are renamed but have the same innards as more expensive ones. Some Glow Worm boilers are actually Valiants in disguise, for example, and around £200 cheaper.

Gas Pipes & Controls Are Important

Pipes going in to the combi boiler should always be be 22mm diameter. Boilers fitted with thinner pipe will cause malfunctions and make the boiler burn more gas for less heat output, and thus, will be more expensive to run. You will need a room stat, the cheapest option is a wireless one. Thermostatic radiator valves are a ‘recommended addition’ not essential, and are definitely not a legal requirement. They can push the bill up considerably at £10-15 + VAT for each radiator. Combi boilers need good water pressure which should be tested before any quote is given.

System Flushing

It is possible that your warranty could be void ( though this is a grey area) if your new boiler becomes damaged because of sludge from your existing system. However, most plumbers who do a good job will flush the system when fitting new boilers as a standard practice. You do NOT need a power flush. These are only needed when the system is already very sludgy, and again, will cost considerably to have done.

Man Hours Involved

A straight forward exchange is about 6-10 hours – or 1 day for 1 man. A conversion from a system (tank) boiler to combi can take up to 3 days, depending on how much piping and radiators are fitted and the overall job complexity. Usually done by 2 plumbers.

Boiler quotes can vary wildly. I’ve had quotes from £1800 to £3000 for the same job. A straight exchange should cost between £1400 – £1800 (inc vat) depending on size and type of boiler. A conversion will be between £1900 and £2500, presuming you are not adding radiators and extras such as mentioned above. You can bank on radiators costing about £100-£150 each for standard sizes.

Finally, putting morals about tax aside, I have never met a plumber yet who will not do a cash job by knocking off the VAT, saving you a further 20% of the overall cost. Don’t let a few days of discomfort force you into rash buying decisions. The key to saving money is to research before committing. Oh! One last tip, plumbers love to include “taking away waste” in a quote because copper pipe, old radiators and cylinders fetch great money at recycling centers. Taking the Copper pipes etc to metal recycling can recoup at least £100 in lovely cash

You may also be interested in our Save Money Around The Home article which has more money saving energy tips.

Our ethos is to help people to really understand property investing without all the guff and marketing hype and bias. We are proud to be wholly independent and ethical. No nonsense advice about tax, pensions, property investment and finance via our blogs and social media channels.
If you like our articles, please comment below, join us, or forward them to your social media fans

Janet Trowell Discountletting.co.uk Join me on Twitter LinkedIn Google plus

By editor |January 3rd, 2024|Categories: Health & Safety Issues , Mentor Moments , Property Development |Tags: boiler , central heating , combi boiler , Fitting , heating , money , new , save , warranty |3 Comments

Louise This is the best site with all info I wanted on one page – ta very much!
michael woods Boiler sizing requirements should not be based on numbers of radiators, to get the best efficiency from a boiler and heating system the rooms have to be sized and a heat requirement for the room should be worked out ..(google search radiator sizing chart/calculator and lots will come up for you to use free), this takes into account the heat loss from each room the type of flooring you have (carpets with good underlay less heat loss, wooden/laminate floors tend to be colder) so you may require a slightly higher output radiator to heat the room properly. Once you have the total number of kw/btu’s you need for the heating for exmple 3kw for the living room 3kw for the dining room 2kw kitchen 2kw bedrooms x 2, 1kw bathroom 1kw hallway total 14kw. Now you have the heating output requirement for your property, depending upon which boiler manufacturer you choose the technical data should tell you how much of the boilers kw/btu output is used for hot water generally they use between 10-15kw on combi boiler so for a 24 kw boiler 10kw for hot water 14 kw for heating, there are many good gas engineers/plumbers out there they may not be the cheapest but you get what you pay for and with heating engineers/installers the better they are they will probably cost you a little more, at least you will have peace of mind knowing your boiler has been fitted correctly and it has been sized correctly to give the optimum efficiency and performance, therefore reducing your gas bills by 30-40% (none condensing to condensing upgrade if sized and fitted correctly) …use of plastic pipes on heating systems is something i would not recommend plastic pipework i have found that eventually over time the fittings allow miniscule amounts of water to escape sometimes not enough to become noticeable but enough to evaporate once the heating is turned on, and due to the constant pressure top up and introduction of fresh water into the systems this causes magnatite/sludge and cause boiler breakdowns over time. Most of your advice is good some unfortunately ill informed. A boiler should last between 10-15 years if installed correctly and serviced at regular intervals as recommended by the manufacturers so spending a little more to get the best possible advice and gas engineers/plumbers who will fit better with better quality materials should be at the forefront of your thoughts when making a decision on who or what to choose. you quoted correctly with the prices even for a decent gas engineer/plumber and quality materials with a decent mid range boiler manufacturer £1400-£1800 is good and this can be with 5yrs gurantee on some new boilers too, all taken into account not bad i think…you my ask who am i to say all of the above!! 15years of experience in the heating industry british gas trained apprentice british gas technician now ex british gas currently running my own gas company in yorkshire… hope this helps
- https://www.mypropertymentor.co.uk/ Janet Trowell This article is rough guide about saving money, not about spending as much as you can on a heating installation.
  Plumbers generally are one of the biggest home expenses and charge ridiculous fees for the work done, and, as I said, vary wildly for the same job with the same fittings.
  We have fitted plastic piping before and never had an issue with it. All fittings can cause issue, even copper. Copper joints can split especially in cold weather.
  I don’t believe that ‘you get what you pay for’ as regards to gas engineers. If they cost 30-40% more as fitters, and often charge more for the same boiler to make a fast buck, then you are not saving anything.
  
  Plumbers already make 30% on wholesale cost of the boiler/fittings so adding more is just a rip off to the customer.
  Lastly, if a boiler can last 15 years then the manufacturers should offer a 15 yr guarantee and plumbers the same for their work. Now that would be fair.

Banking Debt Problems

Username

Password

Remember me

Forgot Password?

Join Us

Password Reset Please enter your e-mail address. You will receive a new password via e-mail.

Email:

How To Save Money When Fitting A New Boiler & Heating

Boiler Sizing Requirements

Where You Put It Impacts Price

Boiler Makes

Gas Pipes & Controls Are Important

System Flushing

Man Hours Involved

Categories

Featured Posts

How To Save Tax On Your Property Income

Why Banks Want You To Fix Your Mortgage

Why Tax Is About Knowledge Not Morals

Why Angel Investors Can Be Your Best Investment

Blogroll

Banking Debt Problems