Help! Boiler choices?

[sgarden]

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Does anyone have experience with the Biasi oil-fired boiler? Am changing out an really old worn out system and am installing a wood/coal boiler as the primary heat source, and need a oil fired system as back-up.

My next door neighbor is a pipe fitter and he will help me put these in. His brother is a plumber who can get items only avaialbel to contractors. They both like Weil McLain and recommend a big old one pass Weil McLain system that weighs 595 pounds, has 14.9 gallons of water content, and requires a 7" flue. They also recomend Beckett burners. Total about $2700 plus copper and some parts.

Spending a few days on the internet I find the Italian made Biasi is now widely available. It's a 3 pass unit that is better insulated, weighs 307 pounds, contains only 4.7 gallons of water and comes with a Riello burner for $1650 plus copper etc. Seems like a more efficient design. Very resonable cost for a back up unit.

Or since I am not young, should I put in the better Buderus 3 pass boiler, also very well insulated, weighs 403 pounds, contains 10.8 gallons of water with a Reiello burner. Cost is now about $3500 with all the copper, etc., but a tried and true unit.

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[ransley]

Or maybe a System 2000

[RBM]

I just had a similar conversation with my oil burner service tech. He is starting to see a few Biasi units, and a few Buderus units, but refuses to stock parts for either. I work in NY and a good portion of my business is residential and commercial boiler wiring. Peerless and Weil-Mclain are still the most common boilers around here, as are Beckett burners. I wire Buderus logamatics, and Tekmar boiler high efficiency controls, as well as wall hung condensing boilers, etc. , and they are pretty efficient, but for my buck, I'd prefer something a little less high tech, a little less efficient, but a whole lot more reliable. I want the thing that every service guy has parts for on the truck, and knows how to install and adjust. I see the writing on the wall, an do believe that in the near future, higher tech more efficient boilers will be common, but until that point, I'd go with your neighbor's recommendation