New LPG system Boiler

[david.cawkwell]

Hi Group,

I going to replace the central heating boiler in my house so I'm after recommendations on a replacement boiler.

1. Reliability. I want it put in and forget it.
2. 30 radiators in the house. Big house most of the existing piping is 28mm.
3. I'm switching from oil to LPG.
4. I will be removing all the loft tanks and going to a mains fed hot water tank.
5. NO combi boilers. I dislike them. In practive when ever I've used them you loose patience waiting for the hot water to get hot and then when it is the flow is useless.
6. Ideally a boiler with hot water and central heating outlets.

By the way if there is a corgi plumber out there who can install a LPG boiler please contact me. I am near Doncaster. I am completely disillusioned with the plumbers in my area. I have contacted about 10. About half can't even be bothered to return a call. Out of the rest none of them can turn up to a meeting at an agreed time. The only 1 that actually turned up then wrote to me a week later saying he had got a contract and wouldn't be able to do it for 3 months!!

[Tim Downie]

Hope you've got deep pockets! It's going to be a *lot* more expensive to run.

Tim

[david.cawkwell]

Oil isn't that cheap anymore and it always smells. Got two at work and they are smelly and have been since they were installed.

[Steve Firth]

We replaced out oil boiler three years ago for a more efficient unit. It doesn't smell.

[Staffbull]

I thought oil has more heat output per unit measure due to the higher calorific value ? I know its true of pertol over LPG that is why there is a slight loss in power on LPG converted cars running on LPG

[Ed Sirett]

Keston C55P. (or maybe C40P is the true requirement is under 40kW and/or can be brought down with insulation and draught proofing to that level).

Has separate setting for DHW and CH, weather compensation. System boiler can be use with a sealed or vented primary.

[TheOldFellow]

The CORGI website has a 'finder' that works reasonably. It can find LPG-rated fitters. Of course, all CORGI fitters are equally good ;-) - mine didn't know how to set the regulation on an LPG hob properly (I did it myself in the end).

R.

[Nick]

I know someone who just had an installation - £450 for the (2200 litre) tank supply and installation to the boiler (compare the cost of oil tanks and installations) , £650 for the boiler (oil boiler at approx double) excluding the install, and gas at 23p/litre ( compare oil at around 32p/litre) which is on a sliding increase of 3p/litre per year until it matches the then current rate - and yes I realise LPG is only 80% as calorific... but I reckon its in the same ballpark after those facts are taken into consideration for the first several years

Comparable quotes were £4000 for the bunded oil tank install, boiler at approx £1200 ( installation extra) and oil is currently approx 32p/litre around here.

Nick

[cynic]

Does it bollocks - get it set up properly and keep it serviced!

[cynic]

=A34000? Jesus H C - somebody had his leg lifted!

[Nick]

£4000? Jesus H C - somebody had his leg lifted!

Well actually they didn't - as I told the bloke ( from a local and "reputable" company) that we would definitely not be going that route when tanks cost from a few hundreds of pounds and the labour could be done in a day and that other options were a fraction of that cost....

I just can't believe how some of these guys take the piss out of "little old ladies" and should really know better if they want to keep any of their hard earned reputation. Still wondering if I should compile a case for "Watchdog" but too busy (at the moment anyway)

Nick

[John]

In article , Nick writes

I would advise against a Vaillant Turbomax converted to LPG - we have no end of problems at the Scout Hut it rarely lights on demand and locks out. However it is a Combi so outside the OP's preferences!

[david.cawkwell]

It was the corgi website I got the list of pumbers from! I complained to corgi and suggested they give the plumbers in my area a rocket they said they only look after safety standards. Well I suggest they add customer service to that list of standards.

[Martyn Pollard]

I wouldn't personally recommend a Keston boiler myself after numerous problems I have experienced first hand and heard of with the C25. One c25 owner told me they had been hit with a £500 repair bill from keston with the boiler just 6 months out of warranty.

Yes they are compact, but thats about the only benefit I can see. I even installed one for a relative and that C25 is experiencing ignition failures. If the pcb dies, then I will put a different one in for them rather than keep trying to maintain it.

I have had good experience with the LPG conversion of the Atag boilers. I have done about 3 so far and had no problems. You change the pcb and add a restrictor to the gas valve. A FGA is needed to setup the C02 levels. You can adjust the flow temperature via the software and they have weather compensation ability if you add the outside sensor. This is a dual LPG boiler setup I did last year.

The client wanted a hidden LPG, so we got a minidigger in and used an underground tank.

[Tony Bryer]

If you've missed the threads here, one common reason for this is the electrodes moving apart. Do not try and bend them back when cold. Someone here said that you can straighten an electrode when hot (hold in gas hob flame) but I've not tried this myself.

The biggest downside to Kestons seems to be parts availability

[Michael Chare]

If a domestic oil installation smells then it is leaking - typically either oil or exhaust gas.

The problem should be fixed and then it wont smell.

[Grow Your Own Energy]

I'd recommend supplementing the input to your hot water cylinder with a solar thermal system. This will cut down on LPG costs. In an average 3 bed semi, we estimate that you'd make a =A310,197 profit, adjusted for inflation over the lifetime of the solar panels assuming the cost of LPG goes up in line with the trend.

You can get all these calculations on our web site

.uk where the Financial Benefits Calculator will tell you if each of the renewable energy technologies are viable and will pay back.

[John Stumbles]

Which is practically useless as it doesn't tell you the assumptions it makes regarding the amount of water use, cost of installation of the system etc. Even with Calor gas however I doubt you're likely to make anything like £10K profit on commercially-installed solar water heating and there are almost certainly more profitable uses for the investment you'd have to make, in terms of energy-saving measures.

[John Stumbles]

The CORGI website only lists a few installers who've elected to be on it.

[Ed Sirett]

I thought the default option was that you were on it unless you wanted to opt out. I believe the web site give a random selection of up to 5 fitters who have the relevant qualification and live in the same post code area.