Central Heating Boiler questions

[clive penfold]

Right, here goes.

My old central heating boiler is a 25 year old Potterton cast iron lump which, touch wood, has been very reliable. I now want to replace it. Looking at the Potterton website, they do a range of condensing system boilers and a cast iron one which is described as "long life" this suggest to me that condensing boilers are not long life. Here are some questions:

Can any knowledgeable person out there suggest what the life might be.

As I understand it you are not allowed to fit a non-condensing boiler these days though i believe they are still available. Is this true.

What is the realistic gain in efficiency between condensing and non-condensing.

What is a good make to go for, and what are the makes to avoid.

That should do for the time being! All informed and relevant comments welcome.

Clive

[Dave Plowman (News)]

They are, aren't they? Mine is older but still working well. With the escalation of gas prices replacement becomes more attractive, though.

I'll be interested in these answers too.

Beware of claims which also involve the updating of other things which aren't just down to the boiler efficiency.

However, if you have at present an RS boiler with modern controls you'll get a saving of about 20% of gas use simply by changing to a decent comdenser. Obviously more if your system controls are less than decent and you update those too. Similarly, if your present boiler is a CF type, or the heat it produces locally wasted, expect bigger savings.

I'd add to beware of those who give blanket answers without knowing exactly what your installation is, or requirements are.

[Ed Sirett]

The BoilerChoice FAQ was written for you.