Replacement Gas Fired Boiler -Which one

[starrin]

I am about to replace a 50 year old oil fired water boiler in a 3 BR ranch in Virginia Beach, VA. Because natural gas is now available to me, I will be using a natural gas fired boiler. Replacement boiler will have a tankless coil, and will heat the house through installed baseboard radiators Now there are reasons that I am looking into boilers of the type I will name. I do not want the WhizBang 99% efficient model. On the other hand, reliablility will be important. My wife could wind up in the house by herself, I I would like to leave her with as few problems as possible. Also, I have a recently installed 16i heatpump, which will provide most of the heat, except on those ocasions when the outside air gets below 35 and we shift to boiler. Local contractors have thus far provided me bids on the Utica MGB series, the Columbia EMG series, and the Crown Cayman series. Any experience that could qualify or disqualify that particular series and/or the manufacturer would be appreciated. Any recommendations of similar series by other reliable manufacturers would also help. Thanks much starrin

[cshenk]

"starrin" wrote

Dang, finally someone local to me posts, and it's a topic I know nothing about! Nice to meet you though ;-)

[ransley]

has 'the wall' where boiler pros answer, or alt.hvac is where alot of "nice" boiler pros [hacks] are. There are alot of reliable condensing boilers, you need a condensing unit to get the efficency for any tax credits. I would go to "The Wall" and ask whats reliable, Weil Mclain has a good name.

[Lefty]

"ransley" wrote in

. I would go to "The Wall" and ask whats reliable, Weil Mclain has a good name.

I was going to say the Weil-McLain 98% unit is really nice, but the OP said he had no interest in the high-efficient jobs, and did'nt ask about that brand name :-/ Other lower efficiency W-McL units are good though, too.

[Ed Pawlowski]

You realize that is not the best system. Tankless coils are very inefficient compared to an indirect fired water heater ork in the case of gas, any gas water heater. The tankless coil is a potential source of heaaches and the cost of operation is considerably higher than other methods.

I can undwerstand that, but don't leave her with higher operating costs either. You can get a $1500 tax credit and possibly rebates and 0% finanicing on Energy Star models. Put that money in the bank for the woman you love.

If I was buying today, I'd stick with my System 2000 from

but most antything from Crown, Buderus, Peerless, or Weil-McLain is goiing to be good and reliable. Just get rid of that tankless coil. With a heat pump it is going to be even more inefficient year round. Get a plain old gas fired water heater.

[starrin]

I forgot to say that I had a W-Mcl bid on a CGT5, but a recommendation for their Ultra 105, with an indirect tank. I may get a rebate, but the extra cost will eat it up. Plus, I am concerned about the 15 year warranty on the aluminum innards, while research indicates these boilers are subject to corrosion problems. To keep ahead of that, a gent who owns one tells me that W.McL says water must best tested yearly, and that feed water (i.e. city water) must meet certain specs for ph, salinity and hardness. Doesn't sound too trouble free to me. Thanks, you have me thinking starrin

[Van Chocstraw]

Utica makes a nice whizzbang efficient model.