Further to my queries about the Vaillant brand, I have just seen an advert on TV where British Gas offer £100 trade-in on your old combi. Whilst my present VCW 242 is dead, it has some nice parts on it that still work. Should I expect a trade-in price? I am using a local chap who runs his own business to supply and fit a new combi, he hasn't mentioned anything about a trade-in price (yet). I'm wary of letting him cart of the old combi for nothing, only to find that he strips it for spares and sells them on. Fair's fair!
You pays' yar money, you makes' yar choice. A small local company is going to take your old boiler and bung it in a skip to get rid of it quick, before anyone can strip it down. Second hand gas and water parts are not really made to be guaranteed in anyone else's boiler, so I can't see any good installer taking that sort of chance when they can buy new parts for a few pennies and pass the cost on to their customers.
British Gas only make this offer because the boilers and systems they supply cost them pennies to procure, but the scheme sounds brilliant to anyone who doesn't know just how cheap BG can obtain their equipment and then pass their mark-up costs on to the customers. It is called an incentive scheme and is made to make you think you're getting something back from something that's buggered, when in fact, you're actually paying a much higher mark-up price for the equipment in first place, so you're actually, literally, paying yourself back the hundred quid.
I'd personally stick with the local lad, who'll more than likely charge a lot smaller mark-up on his costs than BG ever will.
You can get a new boiler fitted locally for, say, 1100* quid. Or you could get BG to fit it for 3200* quid, with a 100 quid cashback. You pays your money...
Christian.
These are the actual quotes I received for a condensing heating boiler 2 years ago.
From my experience with British Gas, I suggest you get a quote from them. Then you will find that the cost is considerably greater than your local guy and it will wipe out the £100 trade in offer. To be honest if British Gas cannibalise boilers and use second hand parts that is another good reason to avoid them.
If you think your local guy is getting something for nothing then tell him you will dispose of the boiler. If it were me I'd be glad for him to take it away and save me the hassle.
Give me a local guy with a good reputation any day over a large company that's just interested in profits.
Yeah. I've never found central heating installers to be keen to remove the old stuff. They have to pay at the tip. Quite a lot too, which would be passed on, along with their costs in waiting in the van.
A mere £100 wouldn't tempt me anywhere near British Gas. They're damned expensive on the basic quote, and their reputation for quality is pretty dire too.
My missus has just passed onto me thanks from one of her work colleagues who was put onto a local plumbing supplies shop/registered fitters 'cos her boiler had packed up and was without heating.
Not knowing who to turn to she'd initally rung BG for someone to come and fix the thing (she's not on any contract from them, fortunately). "We can get someone out within a month" they said. "But I have no heating". "Oh. We'll try and get someone round within a week then".
Well, person arrived. Looked at the (slightly ancient) installation and immediately diagnosed complete failure, only solution would be to replace the boiler. Quote left for £4,500.
She contacted local shop. Fellow was out the same day, took a look , diagnosed the fault, returned with the part at about 6pm, all fixed, tested and working. Total charge about £45. Advised that she was on borrowed time with the boiler though, but ought to see her through till next year at least.
Guess who'll most likely be getting the replacement work?
British Gas ? Because they're also offering 3 years interest free credit on all installations carried out before the end of April next year, so it's handy to put it on your credit card. :-))
I've received excellent answers here on the NG on the questions I've asked to do with combis. Things are becoming clearer. My local fitter wants about £1200 or so, so it seems he is a better bet than BG, never mind the trade-in. Even so, since he hasn't quoted me properly for the job yet ( says he needs to inspect the crawl-space under the floor for access first - I'm moving the combi from a bedroom to an outhouse ), and he can't start the job for another week, so I'm disconnecting the old combi ( except for gas ), and capping the hot/cold water and the supply and return CH pipes below the floorboards. I know my fitter has a living to earn, but soldering end-feed pipe-joints isn't rocket science, and I should like to stop washing in cold water and wearing two pullovers at home sooner rather than later!
I have only disconnected and capped the CH and water pipes at the old combi position. He gets to put in the new combi, flue, pipework, gas etc. Can't see what problem there would be, I expect he'll need to do a pressure test before he is happy about my work, but then, he'd need to do a pressure test before he is happy about his own work...... He can't complain about the hot and cold water pipe work since I've done all the other joints in the house too! I laid a twin and earth power cable to the old outside loo some time ago anticipating the need to move the combi there eventually; will he insist I remove it and use one he lays in? Ditto for a capped cold water tee I fitted for the same reason; will he not proceed unless it is replaced by one of his own? To be honest, without a good technical reason, if a plumber refused to accept that I'd capped a few pipes whilst waiting 10 days for him to put in an appearance, I'd fit the new combi myself. He has already seen the proposed new position ( old outside toilet ) and pronounced it suitable.
Andy
ps; He never turned up on Monday ( as promised ) to inspect the crawl space; did he 'phone and inform me? No. Same with a builder I contacted two weeks ago, "Yes mate, I'll come round tomorrow to give you an estimate, I'll phone first...", ......I'm still waiting for the call........gnash, rant, moan!
What I meant Andy, was, why can't you do the pipework through the crawl space section for him, and then let him do all the connecting up at both ends of the new pipework you've laid in place for him. You don't have to connect anything, you only need to place the pipe needed to extend the boiler to the new position. Maybe it's the crawl section that is putting him off because of the time needed to do this part of the work, but if he knew he could come in and just do all the connections, then he might just have time enough to do the job.
Sorry Big Wallop, I misinterpreted your comment to mean he would be unlikely to want to work on a job where someone not-in-the-trade had done a bit of the less technical work, an attitude I would find odd since it's my house ( hence the rant ). Yes, I am between-jobs at the moment and have lots of time but need to conserve money money so I will suggest it to him ( if he answers his 'phone )!
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