Central heating boilers

Buying A New Boiler

Justification for a new boiler

Studies have shown that boilers are responsible for up to 60% of all domestic carbon dioxide emissions. Therefore, by replacing an older and less efficient boiler with a newer, much more energy efficient boiler, you will be significantly reducing your carbon footprint.

In fact, according to the Energy Saving Trust, if every household in the UK, which currently has a gas, powered central heating system upgraded their boiler to a high efficiency model, 13 million tonnes of CO2 would be saved from being released into the atmosphere. Individually, a household choosing to upgrade their boiler to a high efficiency condensing boiler with a full array of heating controls would make a saving of up to £250 on their annual heating bills and also save nearly 2 tones of CO2 from being released.

Which type of boiler?

If you seek to get a new boiler you will invariably be buying a condensing boiler. All new gas and oil powered central heating boiler systems must be, by law, condensing boiler models. Only in very exceptional standards will a new boiler not be of a condensing variety.

The particular type and the size of any new boiler will be determined by the individual circumstances of the householder, such as the current central heating setup, type of fuel currently used, budget, number of bathrooms, size of the property to be heated, etc. However, as a general rule of thumb, one could say that if you live in a flat or a home where space is of a premium, you would likely want to purchase a combi boiler, whereas if space was not an issue, you would most likely want to purchase a regular boiler system.

Regardless of your level of DIY experience, you will need to have the boiler installed by a Corgi (Council for Registered Gas Installers) engineer/plumber. The installer of the boiler will be able to advise you on the type of boiler best suited and the size that will be needed to adequately provide heat to the home.

Buying the boiler

It is possible to buy a boiler direct from the manufacturers or from plumbers themselves; however, this can be a risky proposition unless you are very confident that the purchase is exactly right for your situation. Due to the fact that you will be likely spending several hundred pounds (if not more) it makes sense to obtain the advice of an expert prior to purchase and installation.

The difficulty with seeking guidance on the boiler purchase process is that you need to be able to trust the advice you are being offered, as it is not unknown for this field to be considered as somewhat "murky".

It would make sense to consult with CORGI plumbers or engineers that have been recommended by friends or family, as word of mouth is typically the best type of referral.

A local firm will likely cost you less than an established nationwide firm, however, with the nationwide firm you are also buying peace of mind. Also, the aftercare is something that should certainly be considered as you do not want to have bought you boiler and had it installed by a firm that subsequently goes out of business.

For this reason, we would recommend that you obtain a free no-obligation quote for your boiler services from British Gas. They regularly provide large discounts and offer free HomeCare cover with each new boiler (a saving of £204).

Recommended boilers

The Energy Savings Trust currently lists the following three boilers in their "recommended products" section.

Vokera Linea HE range

Ideal Imax W range

Grant Vortex Outdoor 26kW VTXOMCOMBI26

The boilers noted have a SEDBUK 'A' rating, with seasonal efficiency of over 90% in each instance - basically among the most energy efficient on the market as of September 08.

Boiler Scrappage Scheme

December 2009 saw the announcement from the UK government that they will introduce a boiler scrappage scheme which will provide a £400 rebate towards replacing energy inefficient boilers rated G or worse with energy efficient boilers. The government has pledged £50 million so far which means approximately 125,000 boilers will be replaced. However, there are 4.5 million households that currently have boilers which would qualify under the government boiler scrappage scheme so if you plan to apply it is incredibly important to do so as quickly as possible because the money for boiler rebates will run out fast.

Government Boiler Scrappage Scheme Summary

In summary, you will likely qualify for the government boiler scrappage scheme if :

1. Your boiler has a G energy rating or worse
2. The boiler is in working order and is the main boiler used to heat the home

Next Steps

If you have found that your old boiler will likely qualify for a boiler scrappage scheme by checking our boiler energy rating database and have found that your boiler is rated at 70% efficiency or G rating or worse, you will need to act very quickly to apply for the scrappage scheme as there are far too many people that would qualify for the scheme compared with the funds that the government have allocated, therefore, you need to apply without delay so that you don't miss out.

You need to:

Research the new A rated energy efficient boiler you would like to buy.

The consumer group Which? have a best buy boiler report which you can currently get for just £ 1. Click here for details.

Get a boiler installation quote

Arrange for a boiler installation engineer to give you a quote for the work.

It is important that you do not have the boiler installed prior to being accepted onto the boiler scrappage scheme as this will invalidate your rebate. You should choose your new boiler, get a quote, apply for the boiler scrappage scheme, and once accepted you will be given a £400 voucher which will be issued to you up to ten days after application from 18 January 2010 onwards. The £400 voucher can then be used as a rebate against your new boiler.

 

Also in this section:

Boiler Products - An A-Z of central heating boilers and energy ratings

Boiler Troubleshooting - How to spot common causes of boiler and system malfunction

HomeCare - Peace of Mind for your central heating system

British Gas HomeCare Review - An honest review of the British Gas HomeCare service

British Gas HomeCare Sign-Up Overview - an explanation of the process

British Gas Home Electrical Care - Peace of mind for your home electrics

British Gas Plumbing and Drains Care - Peace of mind for your plumbing and drains

Central Heating Boilers - Maintenance and energy efficiency

Installing A New Boiler - Replacing your old central heating boiler

 

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