Boiler comparison

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Anyone expert in boilers? I've had two quotes to replace my existing 10yr old Vaillant Ecotec 624.

Same exact replacement £3.3k
Main EcoCompact 25kw £2.3k

Including installation, guarantee etc

Which of these should I go for, or any others I should consider?

I've just replaced my 25 year old (!) Vaillant because the pump went and the parts were obsolete. My Corgi reg installer recommended a Worcester Bosch which comes with a long guarantee and has amazing reviews. WB have an excellent reputation so have a look at those - installer told me they are just as good as Vaillant but not as expensive.

Surprised it is dead at 10 years. What was the reason given for it breaking.

As above - I definitely wouldn't be replacing it just because it's 'old' - actually 10 years for a Vaillant is not old, they are extremely good boilers and should be repairable.

We replaced our ancient Worcester bosch combi this year with a Worcester Bosch Greenstar 4000 30kW . It was £3k total bill, very happy with it. I had such good service from my old Worcester Bosch I wouldn't have chosen any other brand.

It is cycling through several fault codes which makes me think there is more than one thing wrong. I've managed to reset it and after several attempts, heating is working again now but it does seem temperamental

Have you had a heating engineer look at what's wrong with your existing boiler?

He's coming on Friday but sent these quotes over after I explained on the phone what was happening.

It may need a new circuit board if its multiple fault codes.

Your guy sounds like he just wants to flog a new boiler.

Vaillant are one of the better makes so should last more than 10 years.

As for a new one, assuming the same man is fitting them, why is there a 1 grand difference? The boilers wont cost 1k difference.
As for size, 25kW will be too small probably.

Agree, you shouldn't be needing to replace a vaillant after 10 years. I'd get a second opinion.

A Vaillant that’s been serviced every year should live far longer than 10 years.
DH fixes much older boilers that other engineers have ‘condemned’ 🙄
British Gas are notorious for doing this and offer incentives to this end.
If you do end up buying a WB, be aware that they need an in depth service including seals change, every 5 years, to keep up the warranty.

I agree with the PPs, this boiler is easily repairable. You can buy a replacement/refurbed circuit board and replace it yourself. Very simple.

Valliant are considered to be one of the better boilers and I think parts are guaranteed to be available for 15 years, so should be repairable.

If he's pushing for a replacement, get another couple of quotes (unless you really trust him). When our old one packed up, one of the chaps we asked for a quote tried to get it going again (not successful but worth a try).

It might be the area you're in, but those quotes seem very cheap. We had five quotes (didn't expect them all to come out) that came in were £1800, £2000, £3100, £3200 and £4000, fourteen years ago. My DM had hers done sixteen years ago and that was £2300.

If you're considering one of the boilers your chap has suggested, then you want the one that's most suitable for your home, able to heat the whole house and provide sufficient hot water to areas required. Ask him which is best for your property.

Yes planning to buy a new boiler before anyone has been to investigate the fault seems like a knee jerk reaction.

I’d be surprised if it wasn’t fairly
easily and cheaply repairable.

Also an Ectoec 624 costs about £1500 to buy. So £1800 seems excessive for fitting a like for like replacement - all pipes etc already in the right place.

The boiler guy has been to investigate the fault and didn't come to any clear conclusions. He said it could be the gas valve which seems unlikely as it was replaced in May or it could be the PCB as the fault codes coming up didn't tally with the fault code history. He was still saying it would better to replace the whole thing which I agree is an over reaction for a £200 part. Thankfully I have managed to reset it so we have heating at the moment and will try to get a visit from a more trusted gas engineer (who wasn't initially available) before making any decisions.

Glad you’ve managed to get it working again and are getting a second opinion OP. My last Vaillant boiler lasted 17 years, so another saying that you shouldn’t assume you need to replace it at 10.

A fixed price repair via Vaillant should be around £300 and covers up to 3 parts. DH will often recommend this as he can’t do it that cheaply.

Valiant should be able to offer a fixed price repair service if it’s no longer in warranty. If you’re getting multiple fault codes then I would ring them and arrange for one of their engineers to come and do the fixed price repair. 10 years is no age for a Vaillant and you absolutely shouldn’t be writing it off at this point. Your engineer sounds like a chancer!

I should have read to the very end of the thread! That’s exactly what my dh does with this sort of job too - otherwise it can get expensive quickly!

Thanks, that's a great suggestion about the fixed price repair.

Our 10 yr old valiant had the same problem a few months ago. The engineer replaced the PCB board. And works perfectly now.

Heating was okay but the timer wasn't connecting and hot water wasn't kicking in.. or would take ages to heat.

Part cost £250 and I bought a new thermostat too £140