Electric hot water and central heating?
Discussion
Can anyone offer any firsthand experience? I live in a 2 bed purpose built flat that is currently heated by a couple of economy 7 storage heaters and uses an enourmous copper cylinder with an immersion element in for water.
The whole system is tedious to use (although it does work pretty well) and
To replace the lot my first choice would have been a good gas fired boiler but for a few factors:
Ive got concrete walls /floors /ceilings so putting in the pipework would be a real PITA.
The cost for all the rads, new boiler etc is a lot!
Since everythings been double glazed Paolow towers I suspect could be heated very well by a couple of better placed and much smaller wall mounted convection style heaters - avoiding the need for the above
That then is a workable solution for heating but what for the water? I know that instant water heaters exist - you use them for showers etc - and they have bigger brothers that can be used for electric on demand hot water.
Does anyone have any firsthand experience of this kind of thing? it sounds and elegant solution and i have stonking water pressure where i live avoiding the need for a power shower.
I do have at the back of my mind though the thought of my electric meter spinning at 1000 rpm while i enjoy my shower but is that offset sufficiently against the huge cost of GFCH not to mention the gas itself?
The whole system is tedious to use (although it does work pretty well) and
To replace the lot my first choice would have been a good gas fired boiler but for a few factors:
Ive got concrete walls /floors /ceilings so putting in the pipework would be a real PITA.
The cost for all the rads, new boiler etc is a lot!
Since everythings been double glazed Paolow towers I suspect could be heated very well by a couple of better placed and much smaller wall mounted convection style heaters - avoiding the need for the above
That then is a workable solution for heating but what for the water? I know that instant water heaters exist - you use them for showers etc - and they have bigger brothers that can be used for electric on demand hot water.
Does anyone have any firsthand experience of this kind of thing? it sounds and elegant solution and i have stonking water pressure where i live avoiding the need for a power shower.
I do have at the back of my mind though the thought of my electric meter spinning at 1000 rpm while i enjoy my shower but is that offset sufficiently against the huge cost of GFCH not to mention the gas itself?
paolow said:
...I do have at the back of my mind though the thought of my electric meter spinning at 1000 rpm while i enjoy my shower but is that offset sufficiently against the huge cost of GFCH not to mention the gas itself?
How long do you intend living there?Do you own the joint?
I would leave the hot water alone - however more insulation round the cylinder will help your standing losses and set the thermostat to around 50 degrees which will also help reduce costs.
For heating consider a heat pump - but this could only be fitted if you have sufficient outdoor space. A good unit would be over 300% efficient.
For heating consider a heat pump - but this could only be fitted if you have sufficient outdoor space. A good unit would be over 300% efficient.
Do you have mains gas piped to your house?
If so, I'd seriously consider going down the gas route.
If you are planning on staying there for a long time then the cost savings will help pay for the install.
If you are planning on selling, gas central heating is a nice tick in a box to have.
If so, I'd seriously consider going down the gas route.
If you are planning on staying there for a long time then the cost savings will help pay for the install.
If you are planning on selling, gas central heating is a nice tick in a box to have.
Thanks for the replies guys; I do own the place and I will probably stay here another 4 or so years after which time Ill probably end up renting it out.
My current water demands are modest - a couple of baths a week and a bit of washing up. when the bathrooms finished however Id like a decent shower which would probably place the system under the most load.
I do have piped gas to the flat but its in the 'wrong' place for a boiler though i know it has been done (from my neighbours) but chasing the pipework through the concrete is not easy.
Probably the most significant thing for me is that the electricity infrastructure is already in place - and I can have auto switches to take advantage of economy heating when its around combined with the hideous cost of GFCH along with other PHers complaints that come up here from time to time lamenting 4 figure bills for dead boilers.
I do think the gas route would be the generally agreed best solution but I also know that I simply dont know enough about the alternatives!
My current water demands are modest - a couple of baths a week and a bit of washing up. when the bathrooms finished however Id like a decent shower which would probably place the system under the most load.
I do have piped gas to the flat but its in the 'wrong' place for a boiler though i know it has been done (from my neighbours) but chasing the pipework through the concrete is not easy.
Probably the most significant thing for me is that the electricity infrastructure is already in place - and I can have auto switches to take advantage of economy heating when its around combined with the hideous cost of GFCH along with other PHers complaints that come up here from time to time lamenting 4 figure bills for dead boilers.
I do think the gas route would be the generally agreed best solution but I also know that I simply dont know enough about the alternatives!
paolow said:
Thanks for the replies guys; I do own the place and I will probably stay here another 4 or so years after which time Ill probably end up renting it out.
My current water demands are modest - a couple of baths a week and a bit of washing up. when the bathrooms finished however Id like a decent shower which would probably place the system under the most load.
I do have piped gas to the flat but its in the 'wrong' place for a boiler though i know it has been done (from my neighbours) but chasing the pipework through the concrete is not easy.
Probably the most significant thing for me is that the electricity infrastructure is already in place - and I can have auto switches to take advantage of economy heating when its around combined with the hideous cost of GFCH along with other PHers complaints that come up here from time to time lamenting 4 figure bills for dead boilers.
I do think the gas route would be the generally agreed best solution but I also know that I simply dont know enough about the alternatives!
Get a recommended plumber to come have a look and explain what you can do, and give a quote. I was worried about getting a new combi boiler fitted because the gas pipe goes under the concrete kitchen floor, and it needed up-sizing to modern regulations if I changed the boiler for a new one. The gas uy showed me how we could run the pipe a different route with no problems.My current water demands are modest - a couple of baths a week and a bit of washing up. when the bathrooms finished however Id like a decent shower which would probably place the system under the most load.
I do have piped gas to the flat but its in the 'wrong' place for a boiler though i know it has been done (from my neighbours) but chasing the pipework through the concrete is not easy.
Probably the most significant thing for me is that the electricity infrastructure is already in place - and I can have auto switches to take advantage of economy heating when its around combined with the hideous cost of GFCH along with other PHers complaints that come up here from time to time lamenting 4 figure bills for dead boilers.
I do think the gas route would be the generally agreed best solution but I also know that I simply dont know enough about the alternatives!
I'll be having it fitted when the weather gets better, as the heating will be off for a couple of days and we have a crumblie and a rug rat in the house.
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