Combi Boilers... any good?
Discussion
I swapped from a hot tank setup to a combi boiler a number of years ago. I like the combi setup; it's cheaper to run and you can't run out of hot water. You also get mains pressure hot water which is a bonus if you have decent mains pressure.
Plus I could extend the bathroom into what used to be the airing cupboard so I had space for a decent bath and separate shower. I do occasionally miss having an airing cupboard though, usually when making bread.
Plus I could extend the bathroom into what used to be the airing cupboard so I had space for a decent bath and separate shower. I do occasionally miss having an airing cupboard though, usually when making bread.
kambites said:
I do occasionally miss having an airing cupboard though, usually when making bread.
...and for airing clothes! Doesn't anyone do that these days?I'm not a fan of combis but they seem to be expected these days, especially in smaller houses. Both my daughters houses have them and they cope well with family life, bathing kids etc and the CH warm-up time is a revelation compared to my old fixed output boiler.
Twig62 said:
The only issue I have with my combi boiler is that with it being in the loft about 3 bowlfuls of (metered) water go down the plug hole before any warm water comes out the tap !
Save it for flushing the toilet. Mind you, it's probably worse getting stored hot water to our downstairs cloakroom as it's quite a tortuous route.The thing that seems counter-intuitive to me is for the boiler to have to fire, with all that that entails, every time a hot tap is turned on. In a family house it must be on and off dozens of times per day.
TooMany2cvs said:
Sheepshanks said:
...and for airing clothes! Doesn't anyone do that these days?
So put a small radiator in the airing cupboard.More seriously - having a rad in there is an accepted thing, my in-laws have one. Great in the winter when the heating is running most of the time, but pretty useless the rest of the time.
I suppose you could go really mad and do what they do in bigger houses and put it on the towel rail loop, but that's bonkers for most people.
Twig62 said:
The only issue I have with my combi boiler is that with it being in the loft about 3 bowlfuls of (metered) water go down the plug hole before any warm water comes out the tap !
Just crack the tap open until you get warm water then open fully to fill the bowlEdited by Twig62 on Wednesday 24th May 15:01
Sheepshanks said:
You could put a big one in there and use it to store hot water!
More seriously - having a rad in there is an accepted thing, my in-laws have one. Great in the winter when the heating is running most of the time, but pretty useless the rest of the time.
I suppose you could go really mad and do what they do in bigger houses and put it on the towel rail loop, but that's bonkers for most people.
you can use the immersion heater electrical supply to power a heating element in a towel radiatorMore seriously - having a rad in there is an accepted thing, my in-laws have one. Great in the winter when the heating is running most of the time, but pretty useless the rest of the time.
I suppose you could go really mad and do what they do in bigger houses and put it on the towel rail loop, but that's bonkers for most people.
Problem solved if you have a long run on your hot water. Fitted a few now good bit of kit
https://www.unventedcomponentseurope.com/teddingto...
https://www.unventedcomponentseurope.com/teddingto...
chil84 said:
Problem solved if you have a long run on your hot water. Fitted a few now good bit of kit
https://www.unventedcomponentseurope.com/teddingto...
How does that work then?....by slowing the flow till the water temperature is sufficiently high?https://www.unventedcomponentseurope.com/teddingto...
We have a combi boiler in our house and hate it. There is no airing cupboard, if you are in the shower and someone flushes a toilet, outs the washing machine on etc you are leaping around as the water temperature changes.
The combi that was fitted when we bought the house was remarkably unreliable and every part of the boiler except the outer case was replaced at least once under our British Gas service contract. In fact they came out so often they agreed to replace it at "cost". Not sure it was true cost but it was certainly less than local independents would fit it at.
The replacement has been a lot more reliable but I am not sure how long it will last.
The combi that was fitted when we bought the house was remarkably unreliable and every part of the boiler except the outer case was replaced at least once under our British Gas service contract. In fact they came out so often they agreed to replace it at "cost". Not sure it was true cost but it was certainly less than local independents would fit it at.
The replacement has been a lot more reliable but I am not sure how long it will last.
littlebasher said:
chil84 said:
Problem solved if you have a long run on your hot water. Fitted a few now good bit of kit
https://www.unventedcomponentseurope.com/teddingto...
How does that work then?....by slowing the flow till the water temperature is sufficiently high?https://www.unventedcomponentseurope.com/teddingto...
Really easy to fit and cheap certainly worth a try.
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