Your boiler may be the single most important item in your home, particularly around winter, so when it comes to maintaining your boiler or boiler replacement, it’s essential to make sure you get it right.
But when is the right time to replace your boiler, and what should you be looking for in a new model?
Boiler Prices
Your boiler is at the heart of your home and is a complicated piece of machinery.
Consequently new boilers are not cheap and prices vary greatly based on the different brands, sizes and types available. Typically new boiler prices range from close to £500 all the way to £4,500, so it’s important to get all the facts before you decide to buy a replacement boiler.
However, it is worth noting that boiler installation costs and boiler replacement costs are often compensated by the savings you make thanks to your new, more energy efficient boiler. After all, it is estimated that roughly half of what you spend on energy every year is down to your boiler. You can find more information on costs and savings below.
How much could I save each year?
This will depend on how old and inefficient your existing boiler is and the fuel your boiler uses. Below are some examples of potential savings for a home heated by gas central heating.
Upgrading an old gas boiler with a programmer and room thermostat, with a new A-rated condensing boiler with a programmer, room thermostat and thermostatic radiator controls (TRVs) could save you:
England, Scotland and Wales
How long it will take to make back the cost of a new boiler in savings?
While piece of mind is vital when it comes to buying a boiler, the key question many of us face when assessing whether an upgrade is worthwhile is how long will it take to pay for itself.
If you decide to install a new boiler in the place of an old energy-inefficient one, you can expect to save some money on your gas bills. The boiler installation costs or boiler replacement costs are likely to be significantly outweighed by the savings you are in line to make.
We’ve pulled together the most important variables to give you an idea of how much you could save below.
If you opted for a new boiler with 90% efficiency costing £1900, here’s how much you could expect to save on a typical gas bill and how long it would take to pay for itself:
The calculations above are based on a home with gas-powered central heating, using an average 17252 kWh gas p/a at a cost of £666 p/a.
It’s also worth bearing in mind that a new boiler could also add to the value of your home, so take this into consideration when you’re looking at boiler prices.
Different Types of Boilers
Combination boiler?
When a UK homeowner decides to get a new boiler, there’s a pretty high chance they’ll opt for a wall-mounted gas combination boiler – or what most of us call a ‘combi boiler’. These small gas-fired boilers make up about 74% of the market for new boilers purchased in the UK.
So what is a combi boiler? A combi boiler is a system that provides both heating and hot water directly from one boiler, hence the name ‘combination boiler’. In the UK when we talk about a ‘combi boiler’, we’re generally talking about one using natural gas. Electric and oil boilers do exist, but should be avoided where possible due to high fuel costs.
There are some situations in which a gas combi boiler is not necessarily the best choice. Let’s take a look at a few:
1. Off the gas grid: Without gas the typical boiler options are electric storage heaters and oil boilers.
2. Simultaneous hot water: If you often need to run multiple hot taps at once, a combi boiler won’t be ideal. For some bigger households in this situation, a system boiler or conventional boiler with a tank is a better choice.
3. Low water pressure: Combi boilers rely on mains water pressure to move hot water about the house. If your water pressure is poor, then a system or regular boiler may be a better option.
If, however, you live in a small- to moderate-sized household on the gas grid, with decent water pressure to boot, then a combi boiler could be an ideal replacement boiler.
Now, to pricing: it’ll help to understand what a new one might set you back.
Changes In Boiler Installation
Over the years since your last boiler installation, standards may have changed. A few areas that are worth being aware of:
• Gas Supply Pipes
• Boiler Flue Requirements
• Condensate Drain Pipe
Gas Supply Pipes
Changes in gas regulations mean that 15mm gas supply pipes may need upgrading to 22mm or even 28mm. The installer should measure the pressure drop between the gas meter and the boiler and if it is too great, or the supply pressure is below the boiler manufacturers minimum operating pressure, the supply pipe will need to be upgraded. If the pressure is too low there may be problems when different gas appliances are operated at the same time. It’s part of the responsibility of the installer to ensure this is correct. If you are switching to a higher output boiler you may also need to upgrade the supply pipe.
Boiler Flue Requirements
Increased safety concerns mean that some older types of boiler flue arrangement may no longer be permitted as they do not meet current industry guidelines. This may require the boiler flue to be modified or replaced.
Condensate Drain Pipe
As highlighted above under condensing boilers, modern condensing boilers require a drain outlet for the condensed liquid they produce. When replacing an older non-condensing boiler a new condensate drain pipe will have to be added. Even if a condensate pipe is fitted, experience has shown that it could be at risk of freezing and the installer may well want to increase its size and ensure that it is properly lagged.
Whats it going to cost?
One of the common mistakes people make when considering a new boiler is to simply google ‘combi boiler prices’ – the search results would have you think a new boiler can be installed for less than £1,000.
Sadly, this just isn’t the case. Depending on the size of the combi boiler required, the difficulty of the labour involved and the need for any extras, you can expect to pay £1,500 – £4,000 in most circumstances – with an average, fully installed boiler costing about £2,300 (according to the Energy Saving Trust).
Let’s say you’ve got a relatively modern flat with an existing gas combi boiler that needs replacing. This might cost £700 for the boiler, £600 for the installation, and another £150 for a magnetic filter, bringing the total to £1,450 – about as cheap an install as you’re likely to get. Add a ‘power flush’ if there happened to be sludge in the system, and you’re quickly up to £1,950 – still, not bad.
At the other end of the spectrum, however, let’s say you have a large home and are switching to a combi boiler in a new position. The boiler will cost £1,500, and the install £1,100. A power flush with lots of radiators might be £700, extra pipe work £300, a new thermostat £200, and a magnetic filter £150. Suddenly, it’s £3,950.
These two examples are, of course, just estimates – but they give you an idea of why prices can vary so much.
Below are some broad costs for various elements of the replacement:
Condensate pump, if access to a drain from the boiler is difficult: £100
Combi or regular boiler?
Combi boilers
A combi (or combination) boiler provides hot water directly, whenever it is required, and does not need a hot water cylinder. Gas, oil and LPG boilers may be combination.
Regular boilers
A regular boiler provides hot water when the programmer tells it to, and then stores it in a hot water cylinder until it is needed.
A regular boiler is more efficient than a combi at producing hot water, but some heat is inevitably lost from the hot water cylinder, so a combi may be more efficient overall.
Different types of boilers that we can install:-
System boilers
If you live in a home with more than one bathroom or require more hot water than can be provided by a combi boiler, then a system boiler could be your perfect heating and hot water solution.
A system boiler pumps hot water to the radiators and a sealed hot water storage cylinder. Most of the major components of the heating and hot water system, including the pump and expansion vessel, are built into the boiler, making installation easier, tidier and more efficient, and also simplifies servicing.
System boilers combine high efficiency and high performance with exceptional ‘green’ credentials. The reliability, versatility, convenience and ease of installation offered by a system boiler also contribute to its popularity.
Regular Boilers
Regular boilers (also known as ‘conventional’ boilers) heat your central heating system directly and produce hot water for your cylinder.
If you are replacing an older model of boiler, the chances are that you will have a regular (also known as ‘conventional’) boiler.
A typical regular boiler system incorporates a boiler, external controls, a hot water cylinder which is often fed by a cold water storage cistern located in the loft and a feed and expansion cistern – also located in the loft.
High pressure (unvented) systems
These are generally installed in larger houses where the hot water demands of a large family may outstrip a combination boiler’s capacity. Generally they would be replaced like-for-like although the same consideration needs to be given to whether a system boiler or a heat only boiler is the better option. Your heating engineer can guide you on this.