How much for a new boiler? Worth extra for Valliant/ Worcester? Pigletjohn's advice especially welcome!

[mumonaptamission]

Our boiler is buggered and has been turned off as unsafe and we need a new one fairly quickly.

I have two boilers (long story - from before our time in the house) and the downstairs one was replaced about three years ago and has had a few problems already.

The plumber who came to sort out the upstairs one strongly recommends Valliant and is an approved installer so gets a longer warranty but the quote he has given is very high (3k - London and he admits he is expensive but friends recommended him and he is very thorough and good).

I am going to get some more quotes but dh thinks a boiler is a boiler nowadays and that it isn't worth paying the extra for the good two brands (Valliant and Worcester). Is that correct?

We have just ( today actually!) had/having a worcester 350 fitted for 1.6k. But we are midlands not london.

How long did it take them to do?

I would guess (and it is a guess) then that we should be looking at 2k for the London price con adjustment then.

They started at 8am this morning and said they should be done by 3ish.

Great - gives me a good idea of labour cost involved. How many people are there?

We are getting close to needing a new boiler but the engineer says is should get us through the winter!

We have been quoted £900 for a Vaillant with 9 year warranty and it would then be a day's labour at £45ph on top - so about £1200 - £1400 depending on any problems they find (old house and odd pipes!)

We are in South East.

Have you thought about intergas? We are really really happy with ours and I love the fact I can have a box of spare parts waiting to go if need be.

Cost just about 2 k, installed.

www.intergasheating.co.uk/site.php?page=combicompacthre0

Isn't it 2k too much for a boiler and installation. My advice is to ask several companies for a free quote and make a comparison. Expensive doesn't always mean quality.

Here is a new company that I believe can give you a quote and in my opinion it will be cheaper. A friend of mine had some problems with the drains and the plumbers did a great job.
www.myhandymanservices.co.uk/plumbing/

But always trust your intuition cause more money is not a guarantee for better work.

Good luck.

Where is PigletJohn?

We had a boiler (Worcester/Bosch greenstar 42i) fitted, and no, a boiler is not a boiler, there are huge differences.
We paid £1.4k for our boiler, bought online at directheatingsupplies, then had a plumber fit it. The local heating shop sold the same boiler for £300 more.

Don't know exactly how much fitting was, because we had all new pipes etc done as well, but I don't think more than £300. We're in London.

Check what your requirements are, how many bathrooms, showers etc, I wanted one with a high flow rate/output (?) so if I have a shower and someone turns the washing machine on, I still have water left.

There are a lot of opinions about boilers, but most people reckon that Vaillant and Worcester Bosch are pretty good.

Now that the warm weather is ending, all the summer prices will stop, and heating engineers will soon be flat out mending and replacing neglected old boilers.

It's always worth asking your gas and electricity companies for a price. BG can usually be depended on to be by far the most expensive, but you may find a special offer or an interest-free deal.

If your old boiler is open-vented (no pressurage gauge on the front) then you can expect the pipes and radiators to be full of rust and sludge. It is vital to have this cleaned out, because if your dirt blocks your new boiler, the warranty will not cover the problems it causes. A proper powerflush takes the best part of a day, though two men can do it in half a day. Tipping in a litre of cleaner afterwards is not as good.

I strongly recommend having a System Filter fitted to catch any future sediment before it gets into the boiler. Many installers will encourage you to have one as it reduces complaints and callbacks. Ask to be shown how to empty out the trapped dirt. You will be astonished and delighted to see how much it traps.

If you currently have a cylinder, and/or have two bathrooms, you are under no obligation to change to a combi. If you do, ask the installer to tell you how many litres per minute your water main provides to the taps before you agree to it.

Thanks as ever (you have given me wonderful advice before Piglet - I've namechanged recently)

Our existing boiler that this one replaces is a combi so the last bit is not an issue. The other one isn't but we need to stick to two boilers really or it will become more complicated.

I will ask them about the powerflush.

Sorry, only just logged back on. We had two men fitting the boiler.

Cost us 2.7k for a Worcester Bosch, three new rads, a new gas supply and quite a bit of pipework. Mind you, less than three years later, we're paying over a grand to have the fucker moved up into the loft conversion. So fitting does seem to be quite expensive.

also have no heating or hot water until Weds because plumber is useless arsehole who didn't check the job out properly before agreeing to do it and it's more complicated than he thought

boiler in loft

2.5k for an oil fired Worcester boiler

It took an afternoon to fit.

We have just been quoted :
Worcester Bosch 30si condensing ‘combi’ boiler with 8 year warranty. Magnetic "sediment trap", system flush, thermostat valves fitted on all radiators, Worcester, and a thermostat in the room the boiler is connected, for 2500 plus vat from local plumber.

Compare to 3800 from BG inclusive of vat, minus 400 scrapping bonus for old boiler (so 3200), green deal inspection, loft insulation, cavity wall insulation, smart meter, "magnetic sediment trap" and a device submitting electric pulses that will make limescale form and be flushed out with hot water.

What is the better deal?

We've got a mahoosive freestanding Worcester Bosch (CDI440) boiler as we have quite a few rads, 3 bathrooms and the washer on constantly. I can honestly say we never struggle for hot water or loose pressure. I would really recommend it. We bought the boiler from a local plumbers merchants for £1700, and luckily have a nephew who is a gas fitter so just paid him for his time.

We've done both. Cheaper (Alpha, pile of crap) and Vaillant this time. No question, I'd go Vaillant again.

I don't think 3k sounds far off the mark. We paid 2400 3 years ago in London at around this time of year and that was the middle quote.

I think we paid between 2k and 2.5k for a decent vaillant boiler which we got installed by a local plumber in London. Maybe get a couple more quotes?

a device submitting electric pulses that will make limescale form and be flushed out with hot water.

Hahahaha

Magic!

BTW fill your boots with loft insulation, wall insulation and draughtproofing, regardless of what (or any) boiler you get.

The gas and electricity companies often offer subsidised or even free insulation offers. They should not be linked to purchase of a boiler. Look at several websites, not just the one you buy energy from.

Yeah, that is how he explained it.... It is the Hydroflow HS38 scale reducer, surely you have heard of it???

Here it is, Magic... www.hydropath.com/products/hydroflow-hs38 to the tune of £149.

Ion-exchange water softeners work. Magnetic "conditioners" are magic.

People who sell these magic devices are compelled to guarantee that if you find out it doesn't work, they will refund your money. They get to keep it otherwise.

May people wear copper bracelets to ward off rheumatism, they work equally well.

Does this hydroflow work? Or is it a con?

I wouldn't buy Vaillant. I bought one several years back and within 2 years it needed very expensive repairs. When I looked online it seemed the fault my boiler had was very common with Vaillant and was basically a design fault. When I complained to Vaillant you can imagine how helpful they were. So I had to shell out hundreds of pounds to repair a boiler which had cost thousands only a couple of years earlier.