Combi boilers, winter hot water...
Discussion
I am blessed with a combi boiler, which produces an adequate supply most of the year. It doesn't like a combination of winter and low mains pressure.
When the inlet water temp is cold - 3c ATM, it doesn't produce a steady enough supply of hot water for SWMBO to have a shower without howling. Anyone else in the house who runs a tap or flushes a toilet is in danger
How can I make it work better - there isn't room for a header tank, and a bigger (or second) boiler is expensive, which is what a plumber suggested.
I'd thought a pre-heater for the inlet water would do the job, say a steady 15c or similar would solve all the problems - a tank & immersion heater/thermostat for winter. Cheap, easy and effective, I thought, but the 'heating engineer' says no chance, it requires serious money.
How hard (expensive) can it be? Anyone else had this problem?
When the inlet water temp is cold - 3c ATM, it doesn't produce a steady enough supply of hot water for SWMBO to have a shower without howling. Anyone else in the house who runs a tap or flushes a toilet is in danger
How can I make it work better - there isn't room for a header tank, and a bigger (or second) boiler is expensive, which is what a plumber suggested.
I'd thought a pre-heater for the inlet water would do the job, say a steady 15c or similar would solve all the problems - a tank & immersion heater/thermostat for winter. Cheap, easy and effective, I thought, but the 'heating engineer' says no chance, it requires serious money.
How hard (expensive) can it be? Anyone else had this problem?
eldar said:
I am blessed with a combi boiler, which produces an adequate supply most of the year. It doesn't like a combination of winter and low mains pressure.
When the inlet water temp is cold - 3c ATM, it doesn't produce a steady enough supply of hot water for SWMBO to have a shower without howling. Anyone else in the house who runs a tap or flushes a toilet is in danger
How can I make it work better - there isn't room for a header tank, and a bigger (or second) boiler is expensive, which is what a plumber suggested.
I'd thought a pre-heater for the inlet water would do the job, say a steady 15c or similar would solve all the problems - a tank & immersion heater/thermostat for winter. Cheap, easy and effective, I thought, but the 'heating engineer' says no chance, it requires serious money.
How hard (expensive) can it be? Anyone else had this problem?
Bigger burner you need, basically a bigger combi boiler.When the inlet water temp is cold - 3c ATM, it doesn't produce a steady enough supply of hot water for SWMBO to have a shower without howling. Anyone else in the house who runs a tap or flushes a toilet is in danger
How can I make it work better - there isn't room for a header tank, and a bigger (or second) boiler is expensive, which is what a plumber suggested.
I'd thought a pre-heater for the inlet water would do the job, say a steady 15c or similar would solve all the problems - a tank & immersion heater/thermostat for winter. Cheap, easy and effective, I thought, but the 'heating engineer' says no chance, it requires serious money.
How hard (expensive) can it be? Anyone else had this problem?
But then you might need bigger gas pipe installed all the way through.
Edited by King Herald on Friday 2nd January 20:48
King Herald said:
eldar said:
I am blessed with a combi boiler, which produces an adequate supply most of the year. It doesn't like a combination of winter and low mains pressure.
When the inlet water temp is cold - 3c ATM, it doesn't produce a steady enough supply of hot water for SWMBO to have a shower without howling. Anyone else in the house who runs a tap or flushes a toilet is in danger
How can I make it work better - there isn't room for a header tank, and a bigger (or second) boiler is expensive, which is what a plumber suggested.
I'd thought a pre-heater for the inlet water would do the job, say a steady 15c or similar would solve all the problems - a tank & immersion heater/thermostat for winter. Cheap, easy and effective, I thought, but the 'heating engineer' says no chance, it requires serious money.
How hard (expensive) can it be? Anyone else had this problem?
Bigger burner you need.When the inlet water temp is cold - 3c ATM, it doesn't produce a steady enough supply of hot water for SWMBO to have a shower without howling. Anyone else in the house who runs a tap or flushes a toilet is in danger
How can I make it work better - there isn't room for a header tank, and a bigger (or second) boiler is expensive, which is what a plumber suggested.
I'd thought a pre-heater for the inlet water would do the job, say a steady 15c or similar would solve all the problems - a tank & immersion heater/thermostat for winter. Cheap, easy and effective, I thought, but the 'heating engineer' says no chance, it requires serious money.
How hard (expensive) can it be? Anyone else had this problem?
-3c is bloody cold, and the boiler will only raises the temperature by about 30 deg c at any useful flow rate,I would think hot water storage is a more practical solution.
I have a Worcester Bosch and (now the water board have replaced the Victorian mains and a plumber has changed the pipe between meter and boiler for a bigger, Corgi compliant, pipe) I don't have that problem.
I can run two 3kw showers and heating 5 bed, 3 story house whilst outside is -2ish... quite impressive for a little box!
I can run two 3kw showers and heating 5 bed, 3 story house whilst outside is -2ish... quite impressive for a little box!
It's not often it's this cold for this long in this country. If what you have works for 350 out of 365 days most years I'd live with it. Is it really worth spending a load of money just to make 15 days a year a little bit better? Especially if it works as long as no one else uses the HWS.
Errrr isn't this all a bit crap?
I'm no water systems expert but I thought that the idea of combi systems was that they are all singing all dancing modern efficient cheap and all round better than the old hot water cylinder jobbies.
I've got the old type of open system with a HWC and we've got buckets of hot water.
Have some people been done with their combi systems by not having the right size boiler installed?
I'm no water systems expert but I thought that the idea of combi systems was that they are all singing all dancing modern efficient cheap and all round better than the old hot water cylinder jobbies.
I've got the old type of open system with a HWC and we've got buckets of hot water.
Have some people been done with their combi systems by not having the right size boiler installed?
got a combi boiler, gas fired, mains water, comes thru the shower mixed with cold, the hot is too hot to use by itself which is great for general washing as can have it as hot as needed
there are apparently 3 models in the range, like small, med , large, maybe the OP went for the small one to make it cheap and now regrets it ?
there are apparently 3 models in the range, like small, med , large, maybe the OP went for the small one to make it cheap and now regrets it ?
We had our 8 year old combi boiler replaced earlier this year as the previous one broke down regularly and British Gas got bored of paying to fix it!
Interestingky the replacement uses exactly the same amount of gas but we no longer have the situation where you have a shower and find your wife flushes the toilet or similar and it goes cold.
However the hot water is not that hot, so you don't need to mix in much cold water.
When looking to replace boiler it was suggested that a wider gauge gas pipe may be required, stangely as BG were contributing to the cost when it came to it we didn;t need one!
Interestingky the replacement uses exactly the same amount of gas but we no longer have the situation where you have a shower and find your wife flushes the toilet or similar and it goes cold.
However the hot water is not that hot, so you don't need to mix in much cold water.
When looking to replace boiler it was suggested that a wider gauge gas pipe may be required, stangely as BG were contributing to the cost when it came to it we didn;t need one!
My parents have an 8 year old house that has a combi boiler fitted, its rubbish. The whole street has the same problem in winter if you've the heating on you get one short shower out of it if you have it set to continuous hot water, then you have to wait 20 mins or so to use it again.
I lived in the house with my Mrs and a lodger and it wasn't too much of a problem as Mrs would shower and there'd be 40 minute gap until I'd get up so it'd provide just enough for me. Then the lodger was fine as he worked off shore so when back wouldn't get up until mid day.
The house is now rented out to 3 girls who all want to shower one after the next.... it just won't happen and obviously they are complaining.
I suggested fitting electric heated showers as I can't see any other solution being cheaper?
http://www.lphs.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id...
something like this ^
I lived in the house with my Mrs and a lodger and it wasn't too much of a problem as Mrs would shower and there'd be 40 minute gap until I'd get up so it'd provide just enough for me. Then the lodger was fine as he worked off shore so when back wouldn't get up until mid day.
The house is now rented out to 3 girls who all want to shower one after the next.... it just won't happen and obviously they are complaining.
I suggested fitting electric heated showers as I can't see any other solution being cheaper?
http://www.lphs.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id...
something like this ^
Get a megaflow with a coil internally. Feed the coil using your flow and return on the heating side which will act as the primary heating to the hot water inside the cylinder.
Install a couple of 2 ports valves and you might have to install a new programmer and theromstat depending on the boiler type.
The clylinder will also have a immersion incase it ever breaks down so you will still have hot water.
The hot water going away from the boiler can still be used as the hot to the kitchen etc.
ALl the deoends on the way the system has been piped.
Best of luck!
PS There are quite a mew cylinders on the market. Megaflow is one of the leaders however keston and salon master also do some good one at slightly cheaper than the megaflow.
Install a couple of 2 ports valves and you might have to install a new programmer and theromstat depending on the boiler type.
The clylinder will also have a immersion incase it ever breaks down so you will still have hot water.
The hot water going away from the boiler can still be used as the hot to the kitchen etc.
ALl the deoends on the way the system has been piped.
Best of luck!
PS There are quite a mew cylinders on the market. Megaflow is one of the leaders however keston and salon master also do some good one at slightly cheaper than the megaflow.
Herman Toothrot said:
My parents have an 8 year old house that has a combi boiler fitted, its rubbish. The whole street has the same problem in winter if you've the heating on you get one short shower out of it if you have it set to continuous hot water, then you have to wait 20 mins or so to use it again.
I lived in the house with my Mrs and a lodger and it wasn't too much of a problem as Mrs would shower and there'd be 40 minute gap until I'd get up so it'd provide just enough for me. Then the lodger was fine as he worked off shore so when back wouldn't get up until mid day.
The house is now rented out to 3 girls who all want to shower one after the next.... it just won't happen and obviously they are complaining.
^
I don't understand that. I have a Gas combi, if I run the hot tap 24hrs per day, I get VERY hot water 24 hrs per day. It doesn't wait to heat a tank of water it simply heats the water as you run it. Are you sure your's is a 'combi' ? I have no hot or cold water tanks in the house.I lived in the house with my Mrs and a lodger and it wasn't too much of a problem as Mrs would shower and there'd be 40 minute gap until I'd get up so it'd provide just enough for me. Then the lodger was fine as he worked off shore so when back wouldn't get up until mid day.
The house is now rented out to 3 girls who all want to shower one after the next.... it just won't happen and obviously they are complaining.
^
Herman Toothrot said:
My parents have an 8 year old house that has a combi boiler fitted, its rubbish. The whole street has the same problem in winter if you've the heating on you get one short shower out of it if you have it set to continuous hot water, then you have to wait 20 mins or so to use it again.
I lived in the house with my Mrs and a lodger and it wasn't too much of a problem as Mrs would shower and there'd be 40 minute gap until I'd get up so it'd provide just enough for me. Then the lodger was fine as he worked off shore so when back wouldn't get up until mid day.
The house is now rented out to 3 girls who all want to shower one after the next.... it just won't happen and obviously they are complaining.
I suggested fitting electric heated showers as I can't see any other solution being cheaper?
http://www.lphs.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id...
something like this ^
That doesn't make much sense. Combi boilers hear mains cold water on demand, so they don't have a store of hot water. As long as you supply them continuously with gas and cold water they should generate an unlimited amount of hot water for as long as you want. It sounds more like you're talking about a traditional type of boiler where you have a tank of hot water which needs time to reheat if it gets used up...?I lived in the house with my Mrs and a lodger and it wasn't too much of a problem as Mrs would shower and there'd be 40 minute gap until I'd get up so it'd provide just enough for me. Then the lodger was fine as he worked off shore so when back wouldn't get up until mid day.
The house is now rented out to 3 girls who all want to shower one after the next.... it just won't happen and obviously they are complaining.
I suggested fitting electric heated showers as I can't see any other solution being cheaper?
http://www.lphs.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id...
something like this ^
I've got the smallest size of combi boiler available, supplied by a small bore gas pipe (15mm) and it can still supply water to a shower hotter than I need it. The only disadvantage I can see is that while it's supplying hot water it can't run the heating at the same time, but this is a minor disadvantage really.
Gassing Station | The Pie & Piston Archive | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff