Cost to update electric heating/ rewire a flat?

[DS3R]

looked at a 3 bed flat yesterday, great space (1300 sq ft maybe), but not been touched since built in about 1960. there appear to be two hot water tanks (ensuite & bathroom seem to be fed by one, kitchen the other), which is hardly efficient, and a plethora of storage heaters.

if I pull the trigger I'll probably want to do something about the heating, I can't imagine the existing units are efficient, what are my options with only an electric supply?

Given the wiring is 50 years old, any ideas what that is likely to cost (complete ballpark of course) to get redone?

the whole place needs to be cosmetically overhauled, so once the wiring is done I'll be plastering on top too, which I'm assuming is a separate cost.

any experience??

[shimmey69]

oil filled radiators mixed with night storage heaters would be best bet.

with price a lot will depend on layout etc and where in the country you are

[DS3R]

shimmey69 said:

oil filled radiators mixed with night storage heaters would be best bet.

with price a lot will depend on layout etc and where in the country you are

so oil Rads are an option provided they are self contained? 5th floor flat, no gas now or ever by the sound of it. Bristol, if that helps!

[Slagathore]

Could you have electric underfloor heating?

I think rewire costs seem to be around £2500 - £4k.

Let me know if you need a decent electrician. I know an excellent one that covers Bristol and Bath.

[herewego]

In warmer countries people fit air conditioning to flats so it could be possible to fit an air source heat pump. This would greatly reduce running costs and give better control than the overnight storage heaters which are your only other option to keep running costs down.

Edited by herewego on Sunday 6th November 13:47

[DS3R]

Slagathore said:

Could you have electric underfloor heating?

I think rewire costs seem to be around £2500 - £4k.

Let me know if you need a decent electrician. I know an excellent one that covers Bristol and Bath.

Thanks for the reply, underfloor could be a cracking idea... May well take you up on the contact too- thank you. If I have a (3rd) viewing (second was to try and really nail down what needs doing, there appears to be damp- which on a 5th floor flat is a bit (lot) worrying, but it may just have not been ventilated- ever) then it will involve taking a heating guy, damp person & I'll need an electrician too to make sure I can really cost what needs doing. I thought it would be easy, "it's only a flat, how much can there be to do!??" FAMOUS last words!

I had a house rewired at a cost of £6k, but it was a 3 story Victorian affair and it took a while, so I have been guessing on about half that given this is a smaller house, so I might be in the right ballpark.

herewego said:

In warmer countries people fit air conditioning to flats so it could be possible to fit an air cooled heat pump. This would greatly reduce running costs and give better control than the overnight storage heaters which are your only other option to keep running costs down.

Interesting. This is why I posted- to get some good lateral thinking!

I'm meeting the management company to discuss the provisions of the lease, to see what the art of the possible is (deceased estate and unsurprisingly the vendors have more important things to worry about than paperwork). They charge a fortune (£4k last year!) but that's because these are high-rise (10 floors) with lifts and sizeable communal grounds to take care of, so I should be able to find out what can & can't be done externally. I imagine if I want something hanging off the side of the building it will be a no, but unless I ask, I won't know, so thank you for the idea!