I'd prefer to deal with the sole trader. At least you'd know the guy who surveys your property, agrees with you what is going where, and gives you a quote, is the same one who will actually do the work. Also a personal recommendation (if that's what you've got) is much more meaningful when applied to an individual.
Old combi boiler (c2006) needs to be replaced.
There are two local installers for the boiler I have in mind, both approved by the manufacturer:
2) A company with several gas safe engineers
Pros and cons? Any views?
My replacement boiler was by a local company with a couple of gas safe engineers. Total number of staff in the company = 2.
I had a written quote detailing* all the work I specified and what was recommended. Type of boiler, moving the boiler to a new location, changing from an open system with a loft tank to a sealed system, removal of redundant pipework and associated tanks etc., disposal of all waste including old boiler, power flush of CH system, addition of corrosion inhibitor .....
The installer also arranged the manufacturers guarantee and building control notification.
The question about the possibility of an asbestos flue lining in a chimney was raised but in the old boiler location the chimney was lined with stainless steel. I did note that the old boiler (30+ years) disposal was passed on to a third party.
The company came by recommendation but I had to wait a good number of weeks for the install because they were so busy. The installation, flush and commissioning took 1.5 days.
I believe these days a new boiler requires a house heat loss check to be made so it can be correctly sized. Historically a lot of boilers were oversized and a lot of properties now have better insulation than when a
20+ year old boiler was fitted. A new boiler is not necessarily a like for like with the old boiler and may not work efficiently if oversized. *The owner of the company who provided the quote did most of the list on his computer while on my premises discussing the job. Apart from a signed paper copy of the quote all communication was via email and text (text reminders of the time/date of installation). Invoice was via email and payment via BACs.
From my experience with personal recommendations for boiler servicing I've come to a conclusion that Joe Public doesn't have (much of) a clue. That seems to apply to recommendations for most things that require a bit of specialised knowledge. I was fairly set on taking up a golfing associate's recommendation and the engineer came out to have a look at the problem I was experiencing. We broadly discussed a Worcester Bosch replacement (he was accredited). I emailed him to clarify some of the pre-install procedures which I hadn't quite followed and about 6 weeks later he responded with "happy to come round and explain it all at £50/hr" !!!
Anyway, I've drifted off-topic. What happens with 10yr guarantees such as WB offer if the original installer is no longer around? Or what happens if you need to call out the sole trader because of a fault and he's on holiday/sick/busy?
Sounds good. Not in the East Midlands/Nottigham area by any chance?
The plan is to have the install over late spring/summer hence starting now.
In message snipped-for-privacy@news.eternal-september.org>, AnthonyL snipped-for-privacy@please.invalid writes
I had a WB boiler installed ~5 years ago by a small local firm (nowhere near the East Midlands). That came with a 10 year warranty. A few months later, it developed a fault. I contacted the installer who looked at it and said "warranty issue". He got hold of WB who sent someone out to fix it. So I'm making a bit of an assumption that WB will sort out the warranty issues regardless of whether or not the installer is still around.
Adrian
No, sorry. I'm sure the company I would recommend would not travel from SE Essex :)
My 10 year boiler guarantee is from the manufacturer (2 years for the other work carried by the installer). The small print in the guarantee is that the boiler must be serviced annually.
Good to know. Reading up a bit there is apparently a difference between guarantee and warranty. I would intend to have the boiler install and service such that the 10yr guarantee applies if for no other reason than to ensure my wife has no problems in that time period if I'm not around to deal with things.
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