In two minds about combi boiler

[PogoBob]

Old boiler (Ideal classic FF250 fitted in 1999) has finally died so looking for a replacement. Have a selection of local companies and BG lined up to come quote - first of whom came today and automatically went to the move to a combi boiler position and could not seem to see why I would want something else.

My concern with a combi boiler is the instant hot water issue or should I say lack of instant hot water, from what I have read and speaking to people who have a combi it's more water on demand with a time lag. I am also worried about water pressure as we get around 7.5 litre per minute on kitchen cold tap and an utterly pathetic dribble in the shower when the pump is turned off.

It's a 3 bed house, one bathroom with mixer shower with pump and 7 radiators. Suggested boiler is a Baxi 830 30 kw.

To add to my dilemma the current shower pump leaks, our three port value is broken and there are signs of seeping from one of the pipes in the airing cupboard. A combi boiler would resolve the above issues (assuming the water pressure was enough for the shower) whereas we'd have to pay out for those problems on top of a conventional boiler.

Really don't know what to do - am I being overly harsh on combi boilers here (have had serious bad luck without domestic emergencies recently so have lost all confidence!)

Thanks @MostlyHappyMummy that's good to know.

@PigletJohn - just tested the flow on the outside tap (connected direct to supply pipe slightly above stop tap and it was 9.5l per minute.

We had a leak in our supply pipe not that long ago and looked into replacing the pipe, it's a shared supply running across the back gardens (terraced) and as we've no rear or side access and steps and both the front and back of the house and fiddly layout at the front of the house so there is no way of getting any machinery through so that whole thing would have to be dug by hand making it prohibitively expensive (when you also consider the cost putting the garden back together as well).

Thanks for taking to time to advise and also everyone else who is answering

We had a new boiler a few years ago fitted by British Gas we could not have a combi boiler because we have a power shower

I had the same dilemma, but in the end went for a straight replacement of my standard boiler. I have a power shower so water pressure isn't an issue though. And yes, like you OP, I had people telling me how long it took for the hot water to come through with their combi boilers.

I would always want a combi boiler with its instant hot water. Having a hot water tank means waiting for it to heat and then not having enough for baths or showers for all the family when they want.
The only reason someone gave me for having a boiler with a tank is that, if it breaks down, you will still have a tank of hot water for the next few hours. That's not a sensible reason to me.

No, you don't have to buy a combi boiler. You have to get an efficient, condensing boiler. Some of them are combis and some aren't.

Ah, I thought it was the same thing!

We moved from a house with a combi boiler to one that needed a new boiler.

The plumber advised us not to go combi because when they built the house they laid all the pipes and then poured the floors. So, any slight weakness and we'd have had to dig up the floors for the repairs.

We followed his advice.

@woodlandwalker

A modern boiler can heat a modern cylinder in 20 minutes. That means, by the time you've sploshed about, towelled off, brushed your teeth and cut your toenails, it'll be hot again.

Though modern practice is to have a larger cylinder big enough for two baths, so you could have them at the same time if you wanted.

A cylinder can also be heated with an electric immersion heater on the rare occasions when the boiler breaks down. This means it is a trifling matter, not like the emergency on the more frequent occasions that a combi breaks down.

I would definitely go with combi. We had ours replaced last year as the old one was almost dead-on was over 20 years old when we dug out the paperwork (installed by previous owner). There was a.delay with the hot water as it was old.
We went with another Valiant and the hot water heats up so much quicker, the heating is so much more efficient.
Our boiler man said the top brands are the Vailant or Worcestershire Bosch. He did give us prices for the next level down which included Baxi.

There is a simplicity in the design of the traditional gravity fed system as PigletJohn points out.

Sounds like you’re still going to need the hot water pumped to get a good pressure for the shower.
I’ve never heard of a pump added to a combi system, can PigletJohn comment on whether there’s any reason you could not do that?

If you can’t add one to a combi, and you can’t increase the water pressure in the house , you stick with what you have , upgrading to a modern condensing conventional boiler, no?

you generally can't use a pump to suck from the watermain, as it may cause suction that draws contaminants into the pipe. There are some exceptions.

We moved to a combi boiler fairly recently.

First, we were wary about BG as they have a reputation for being rip-off merchants but quotes were all pretty similar and on-line reviews said that BG don't overcharge in the way that they used to.

There is a small lag with the hot water but it isn't that significant, not much different to waiting for a hot tap to get hot water from the tank. If you are expecting instant hot water, then you will be disappointed. The only person I know who moans about the lag is my MIL and she is a professional moaner.

I am a bit hazy on the details, but when our combi was fitted, there was a concern about the shower which was ancient with a slow drip that we could live with and there were concerns about increased pressure with a combi. We got a replacement shower mechanism before the boiler was fitted. So, if you already have problems with your shower, a combi might make it worse but a plumber would give better advice on this than me!

I'd get some recommendations for someone local. Don't use British Gas. They seem pretty incompetent. Caused a massive flood in my grandparents in laws house and then we heard loads of similar stories