The Perks of the Combi Instantaneous Boiler

Although perhaps not the most exciting subject to have a chat about, your choice of boiler is going to affect your daily life more than you may realise.  From the Combi Instantaneous Boiler to a System Boiler, you need to make the right decision.  Take my own boiler for instance – when I first moved into my current flat and stepped into the shower for the first time, I thought I’d hit the jackpot: the water pressure was amazing, the temperatures where spot-on and I could – and did – stand under it for far longer than necessary.  The heating was perfect, too – heating my radiators extremely quickly with just one touch of a button.  Mine is a Combination boiler, which means that it generates hot water instantly for both your taps and central heating simultaneously whenever you need it, so no space-invading water tank to cut your kitchen or bathrooms size in half!  Not only does it push all the necessary buttons to make me as comfortable as possible, it is much more energy efficient – I learned, after a quick search engine session – than a system boiler (the water tank type) because system boilers generate a lot of heat loss and Combi’s don’t, thanks to their instantaneous hot water that doesn’t require a massive copper tank.  This appealed to the little hippy within me, making me feel secure in my carbon footstep karma! 

If I had to point out one disadvantage, it would be the flow rate reduction I experience if I – for example – try to run a bath while the washing machine is on.  This can be a slight annoyance, but in the grand scheme of things, it’s far overshadowed by the pros of the little Combi boiler number!

It’s a Tough one: System Boilers vs. Ariston Boilers

If you’re shopping around for a new boiler – something you hopefully won’t have to do more than once in your lifetime – it’s a good idea to get to grips with the different choices available to you out there.  If you’re anything like me, you won’t have the first clue of the pros and cons of boilers, and it wasn’t until I needed to replace my own that I did a bit of research on the subject.  It was then that I started to take a look at System Boilers vs. Ariston Boilers.

The boiler I needed to replace was a System boiler – AKA. ‘closed’ or ‘sealed system’ boiler – which basically stores hot water, meaning you need an airing cupboard for the tank.  Now, whilst this is a fantastic choice for those of you with lovely big houses, it’s not so good in a one bedroom flat (as it was in my case) so if you ever get the chance to replace your system boiler, it’s a good idea to have a look at the other options available to you.  Because of my lack of knowledge on the subject, I hit the search engines, and came up with what looked like a good little deal – an Ariston Boiler.  Ariston make gas boilers in the form of the aforementioned system boilers, but they also provide Combination Boilers, which are perfect for smaller homes and provide hot water for your taps and baths as and when they’re needed – hence the name and the fact that they don’t require a stored hot water facility.  Perfect for my little flat, which now has a slightly bigger bathroom!  

Worcester Bosch Boilers top class!

When I moved into my new house, the last thing I was checking was to see if I had a Worcester Bosch Boiler.  But, after a few weeks living in my new flat, I noticed that my boiler was far more efficient than the one at my old flat.  My hot water was lasting longer, the heating somehow made the house a lot warmer.  It was much better, so one day I wondered why my heating service had improved so dramatically.  When I checked, it turns out I had a different brand and size of boiler and I now had a Worcester Bosch.  Well now I could run a bath and then my flat mate could run one straight after me.  This was something we were not able to do previously!

So the main point is, if you are able to pick a replacement boiler, try and pick a Worcester Bosch.  They have a huge range of different boilers to suit most household sizes and shapes.  They are top of the range and really concentrate on getting the most out of your hot water.  Some boilers tend to waste the heat in the surrounding air, but these boilers make the most out of the heat and leave your house warm and cosey.  The boilers are top of the range and provide you, the user with a lot of control and flexibility.

So if you have a busy household, get your heat from a Worchester Bosch boiler!

Saunier Boilers vs. Condensing Boilers

As I lived in my last flat, I noticed that my Gas and Electricity bills were a lot more reasonable than when I had been a student and paying ridiculous amounts.  One day there was a problem with the boiler and someone came out to fix it.  It was at this point the worker told me I was lucky to have a Condensing Boiler which was much more energy efficient and better for the environment.  I was quite happy that my boiler was helping me do my bit for global warming.  I looked into it and realized that my Condensed Boiler was reaching  90% levels of efficiency which in comparison to years gone by where boilers would struggle to get 50 %, is fantastic.

I recently bought my first property and was hoping that it would be a condensed boiler I’d be met with, but instead it was a Combination boiler made by Saunier.  The boiler is good in terms of keeping the heat for when I need to use it and keeping my monthly cost relatively low, but I had grown to the idea of using an energy efficient boiler.  I checked online and Saunier don’t do Condensing boilers.  In the end, I made the choice to replace my boiler for a Condensing one.  These boilers are dominating modern-day boiler manufacturing and I want to continue to be a part of it.  So, unfortunately until Saunier produce condensing boilers, I won’t be using their brand.  

Boiler Insurance - Why you need it

When you move into a new flat, there are lots of things to remember.  Have you packed everything? Did you remember to change over your Broadband and Sky subscriptions? One thing most people don’t realize is the importance of Boiler Insurance.  When you move into a property, you don’t know the history of your boiler.  I mean, the previous owner is hardly likely to tell you any mass problems.  If you take out boiler insurance with British Gas, it means that you can call out a dedicated team to repair your boiler as many times as you need to within the year.

British Gas’ cover means that you don’t need to worry about paying massive amounts of money to get your boiler repaired.  A boiler repair can cost hundreds of pounds depending on the issue.  You can be re-assured with the cover that there will be no bill to pay after it’s been fixed.  The best part is that if your boiler is less than seven years old and is impossible to fix, British Gas will replace it for you at no extra cost.  Remember, with this cover you can have as many repeat callouts as you need and you’ll not have to pay any money for the repairs.

If you want some extra re-assurance you can include the HomeCare plan which includes an annual boiler service for only £10.50 a month for the first year.

If your boiler isn’t covered get boiler insurance today, it could save you a fortune. 

Back Boilers v. Heat Only Boilers

In music there’s the eternal debate of who was the King, Elvis or Michael Jackson, in football it’s Manchester United or Arsenal, but in Gas terms, its Back Boilers or Heat Only Boilers.  This entry will look at both and see which one’s up to scratch.

Back Boiler

The back boiler had gone out of fashion but it’s recently received a rejuvenation.  The back boiler is often found in a dated property and sits in the chimney.  It’s more than capable of fulfilling your heating needs for central heating and hot water.  Because older properties aren’t allowed to change from a back boiler and instead must get a modern one, they’ve come back into style.  The boiler can cope with the many demands of a household with a number of hot taps being used at the same time and there’s no need to take up space in your kitchen with a massive boiler.

Heat Only Boiler

This particular boiler is pretty old fashioned.  It takes up a fair bit of space in your house.  It can provide heat for your radiators directly and produce hot water through its cylinder.  It’s great for larger houses, it has a bigger tank so you get more hot water taps being able to be used.  The downside to this boiler is there’s a limit on the amount of water you can use and it wastes some of its energy.

Example of A Heat Only Boiler

If you are able to choose, the Back Boiler has far more benefits,  so it’s a no brainer, the Back Boiler is the winner.

Condensing Boilers are the best kind

Since we are living in the era of global warming and how important it is to our environment, it’s no surprise that one of the main places we could start making changes are with our gas and electricity. When your boiler packs in, you go ahead and get a replacement boiler. The newest trend, however, is a Condensing Boiler. It’s something that you probably wouldn’t think about when you get a new one but choosing a condensed boiler can not only help you, but can also really help the environment as well.

A Condensed boiler can benefit you financially because it can save you money on your Gas bill; however, it is a great technology and has alone allowed boilers to make dramatic leaps forward in terms of efficiency levels, in a time of increasing energy concerns. In a time, where we’re all eco-aware, a Condensed boiler stops us from using more fuel than is necessary and in turn helps the environment. So, the next time you need to replace your boiler, it’s best to go with a condensing one. These are the boilers of the future. Not Only can it save you money, which if we’re honest, is our primary concern. But, also being able to do are part for the environment and try to conserve energy through these boilers is a small step. But, if we all take notice and make this change, it could have wonderful results on our environment and ultimately our future.

New gas boilers

There’s nothing more frustrating on a cold winter night, when you have the heating up full blast, feeling all cosy and your boiler packs in. This is what happened to me last winter. Our Gas Boiler had been acting tempremental for a while, but with other things like Christmas presents, nights out and bills, there was no rush to fix it. Then one week before Christmas, on a horrendously cold night, the boiler broke. We couldn’t get any heating or hot water. When we called out Gas supplier, we were able to get a new boiler fitted, just before Christmas at such an expensive cost, I won’t write it on this blog. The lesson of the story is, if your boiler packs in, get it replaced when you can, otherwise it will stop working completely one day and you’ll need to pay an astronomical amount to have it replaced.

British Gas are offering a fantastic deal at the moment on Gas Boilers, that could save you tons of money. You can trade in your old boiler and replace it with a new one and save up to £400! This will come in very handy when the other option is in the future to pay well over £400 to get it replaced if your current boiler breaks down completely. The other benefit to replacing your boiler is that with a new high efficiency boiler you could see your bills go down and save you up to £225 a year! Plus with a new boiler, it’ll be low in emissions, so you’ll be helping the environment as well.