Boiler siting

[Peter Balcombe]

Our potterton gas back boiler is about 16 years old. Although professionally serviced annually and currently working OK, it will obviously require replacement at some point. I understand that with a legal requirement after

2005 for boilers to be of the condensing type back boilers will disapear from the market?

Looking at possible sitings for a wall mounted boiler my options are a little limited.in my semi detached chalet bungalow The most convenient wall internally would be a side kitchen wall but this would place the flue under a carport externally - would this be permissable?

[Dave Plowman]

It's also possible to fit them in the roof void.

[Andy Hall]

This is quite restricted.

Have a look at Keston boilers web site and download the install manual for the Celsius 25.

Like most boiler install manuals it gives you figures and diagrams with dimensions on what you can do in terms of siting.

The second point is that this unit, like a few others can use a flue of 50mm high temperature waste pipe which can be run very long distances. The pipe is cheap of course.

Undoubtedly others will come onto the market, but this should give you some food for thought on what can be done

.andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl

[Gin Smith]

I am in the same position, old backboiler in kitchen with hot water cylinder in airing cupboard in room above. I was wondering whether it is possible to fit a boiler in my loft. The kitchen is shaped such that i would lose precious cupboard space if i had a wall mounted boiler. I do have some space for a floor standing boiler - but access would be difficult as washing machine would have to be pulled out to get to the front of any boiler - top access would not be a problem.

additionally, i wouldn't know where to start when choosing a boiler that would be ok for fitting in a loft and whether I would still need my hot water cylinder and tank.

Anyone recommend a trustworthy boiler person in hertfordshire.....I currently use British Gas for servicing but i know they are expensive for boilers.

TIA

Gin

[Christian McArdle]

Very easy. Any wall mounted boiler. Loft mounting is a very good solution, although rarely the cheapest. It clears up space in the house proper. The condensation plume goes out through the roof (or the gable end) without causing a nuisance. Any noise from the burner and pump is well away from living areas.

However, mounting in lofts does have some issues. In particular, I believe there must be lighting, boarded floors, a permanently mounted (but retractable if desired) loft ladder and handrails around the hatch. Many of these features are useful, though. Other bad points are that significant runs of primary circuit pipework must be diverted up there. These should be insulated to avoid losses. Combi boilers would have a huge dead leg that would take ages to clear at typical combi flow rates. Also, it is much better to insulate the roof than the loft floor joists, as otherwise, the pipework and boiler are in an area subject to freezing.

Christian.

[Ed Sirett]

Flues may be in car ports but the minimum distances to various features e.g. (door/window say) are quite large.

Boilers which use plastic flue pipes (several makes since a conversion adaptor is available ). The maxmum lengths for plastic flues are really impressive and should offer you all sorts of locations. Loft installation is also possible at some cost/inconvenience.

[Colin Wilson]

IIRC one of the boilers I had a datasheet had a minimum of about 300mm horizontally from a window... seemed an awful small gap to me (I think it was a Bosch Greenstar)

[Ed Sirett]

Typically the gap is 300mm to a window/door/vent - but this is for a fanned flue appliance where the gases are going away from the building.

In a car port the minimum distance is 1200mm.

[Andrew]

In article , Christian McArdle writes

They are also bloody heavy - so get a friend to help you haul it up there.