Posts Tagged ‘corgi registered heating engineers newcastle’

Boiler installation, exchange and conversion advice - A Must Read

We get asked this question a lot, so I thought I would write this article so you can make a more educated decision.

By law you must choose a high efficiency condensing boiler with a Sedbuk rating of either A or B. A rated boilers have an efficiency of 90% and above and band B boilers have an efficiency of 86% - 90%.

The obvious benefits of a new condensing combination boiler are that they are a lot cheaper to run, and a lot better for the environment, there’s also a good chance that a new boiler installation will add to the value of your property depending on the condition of your old system/boiler.

There are many manufacturers of boilers around some better than others and the price often (but not always) reflects this, my personal recommendations for a good value reliable band A boiler is the Baxi Duo- tec, or Ideal logic +. The Duo-Tec was awarded Corgi and Which magazine boiler of the year in 2007 and has an efficiency of 91.5%, the Logic + is about the same price as the Duo-Tec but comes with a 5 year warranty as opposed to the Duo-Tec’s 2 year warranty., I personally think they are just as good as each other as I have fitted both, it just so happens that Baxi have a better reputation than Ideal. If you have money to burn then you could opt for a Worcester Bosh or Vailant boiler, but I don’t think they warrant the extra expense personally.

Whoever you choose to fit your new boiler must ensure that the following are carried out as part of the installation in order to meet all relevant regulations:

Thermostatic Radiator valves - Used to control each radiator individually and in turn will save you money

Room stat - Normally wireless and used to control the temperature of the room, saves money.

System flush - This is needed mainly for your boiler warranty, there’s two methods one is a powerflush and one is a hot and cold flush, in a nutshell the system must be clean fro sludge and magnetite build-up as newer boilers are more perceptive to sludge damage, another good idea is to get a filter fitted which offers long term protection.

Condensate pipe - on condensing boilers there is a need for a white pipe to leave your boiler and terminate in a drain or waste pipe, you must ensure this happens.

Notification - It is a requirement that your installer notifies the boiler installation with the building regulations.

This is a rough price idea, you shouldn’t really be paying outside these brackets as too cheap I would be weary and too expensive doesn’t necessarily mean a better standard of work, please bear in mind that we carry out boiler installations Newcastle so prices may vary on area.

Boiler exchange (combi boiler swapped for a new combi boiler) £1300 - £2000 depending on boiler
Conversion (back boiler or system boiler for a combi) £1800 - £3000 depending on boiler and location of new and old boiler.
System boiler for new condensing system boiler: £1200 - £2000.

I Always recommend a Combi boiler as opposed to a system boiler, as a combi offers you instant hot water and heating and does not need any tanks etc for it to operate, the only time i advise against one is if you have a high hot water demand as a Combi can only cope with a certain amount of hot water at the same time, so you normally couldn’t have two showers on at the same time for arguments sake.

I hope you found this article informative and if you have any questions regarding boiler installation or anything else, then please do not hesitate to give us a call, please bear in mind we only operate in the North East area.

To see how efficient your boiler is then please visit http://www.sedbuk.com
Gas Angel Heating

 

Boiler need reparing? Check out these 5 tips before calling a North East heating engineer

If your boiler is not working, there’s a good chance one of the following five tips, which you can check yourself, may solve the problem and save you some money in the process.

TIP 1

Check your pressure

All Combi boilers require a certain amount of pressure in the system. If the systems pressue is low (between 0 and 0.5) the boiler may not run, reasons for a pressure drop are as follows:

1) A leak on the central heating system (check radiators and pipework).

2) A defective relief valve on the combi itself (check to see if the overflow outside is wet/dripping).

3) Removal of a radiator for decorating etc.

4) Faulty expansion vessell.

To re-pressurise your boiler simply turn the black tap (illustrated in the diagram above) until you hear water flowing, during this process you should see the dial on the pressure gauge rising, when the black dial reaches anywhere between 1 and 1.5 turn the tap back to the off position(original position).

TIP 2

Check you have a gas supply.

Sounds obvious but you would be surprised how many times we get called out for this, simply turn on a gas cooker or gas fire to check.

TIP 3

Make sure your room thermostat is turned up.

For example if your room thermostat is on 10 degrees, then the boiler wont fire up your central heating until the tempertaure drops to 10 degrees, which is pretty cold, so turn it up.

turn it up!

TIP 4

Is your Pilot light on?

Many boiler’s have permanent pilot lights which means the pilot light is always on, regardless of the demand for heating and hot water. If the pilot light has been extinguished, then it needs re-lighting. To do this simply press and hold the button on the gas valve this is normally grey or green in colour but can vary, then press the spark button over and over again (whilst the button is pressed in) until the pilot light becomes visible through the little window (pilot viewing window), once lit count to 30 then slowly release the button, the pilot should now stay on.

TIP 5

Check you have electrical supply

Again an obvious one but still a very common fault. If a fuse spur is powering your boiler (like in the picture below) then simply remove and change the fuse, if its a plug then again change the fuse

If you stll have no joy, then the problem will need investigating by a CORGI registered Heating engineer

Please do not attempt anything which involves tampering with your boiler, this type of work is only suitable for CORGI registered Heating Engineer’s

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