Archive for the ‘Combi Boilers’ Category
Which Gas Boiler do I need?
Tuesday, June 15th, 2010
Is often the question many people ask when looking for a new Gas Boiler
Our handy guide below, outlines the types of gas boilers available, and the one most suited to your needs. The guide below which help you choose the right boiler for your install.
Combi Boiler
A combi boiler provides heating and hot water directly from the boiler.
Here’s an example of a central heating and hot water system layout using a combi boiler:
A combi (or combination) boiler is an ingenious space-saving idea, and an increasingly popular choice in UK homes. In fact, combis now account for well over half of all the new domestic boilers installed in Britain every year.
A combi boiler is both a high-efficiency water heater and a central heating boiler, combined (hence the name) within one compact unit. Therefore, no separate hot water cylinder is required, offering space saving within the property.
Further benefits of a combi boiler are significant savings on hot water costs and the fact that hot water is delivered through your taps or shower at mains pressure. So you can enjoy powerful showering* without the need for a pump.
Another combi boiler benefit is that it can generally save you money on installation time and costs, since no tank in the roof space means less pipe work and a shorter installation time.
Click here to see a range of Gas Combi boilers
Regular Boiler
Regular boilers heat your central heating system directly and produce hot water for your cylinder.
Here’s an example of a central heating and hot water system layout using a regular boiler:
If you are replacing an older model of boiler, the chances are that you will have a regular (also known as ‘conventional’) boiler.
A typical regular boiler system incorporates a boiler, extended controls, a hot water cylinder which is often fed by a cold water storage cistern located in the loft and a feed and expansion cistern – also located in the
loft.
Click here to see a range of Regular Gas Boilers
System Boiler
A system boiler heats your central heating system directly and produces hot water for your cylinder.
An example of a central heating and hot water system layout using a system boiler with an open-vented hot water cylinder:
An example of a central heating and hot water system layout using a system boiler with a pressurised unvented hot water cylinder:
A system boiler, just like a regular (conventional) boiler works on the principle of stored hot water. However, a system boiler differs from a regular boiler in some important respects.
Firstly, many of the major individual components of the heating and hot water system are built into a system boiler, which means that installation is quicker, neater, easier and more efficient.
Secondly, the hot water is pumped from the system boiler through the heating system to the radiators and hot water cylinder, resulting in a fast response and more economical running costs. The system boiler removes the need for a feed and expansion cistern.
Click here to see a range of Gas System Boilers
Tags: Boilers, Combi Boilers, Condensing Boilers, condensing combi boilers, Gas Boilers
Posted in Boilers, Combi Boilers, Condensing Boilers, Gas Boilers | 1 Comment »
Vaillant ecoTEC Combi Boilers
Saturday, June 12th, 2010
Vaillant ecoTEC Plus 831 Combi Boiler and the ecoTEC Range
ecoTEC plus combination boilers have the following central heating heat output ranges:
- ecoTEC plus 824 – 6.7 – 19.0kW
- ecoTEC plus 831 – 8.7 – 24.0kW
- ecoTEC plus 837 – 12.0 – 28.0kW
Features and benefits |
|
| High condensing efficiency | SEDBUK Band ‘A’ |
| Compact dimensions | Offers excellent siting versatility and easy installation |
| Stainless steel heat exchanger | Allows more heat to be extracted by recapturing otherwise lost heat |
| ‘AquaComfort’ system | Providing instantaneous hot water at a constant temperature |
| Built-in status / diagnostic display | Comprehensive status and diagnostic information and push button programming |
| Single electronic circuit board | Simplifies commissioning and servicing |
Tags: Boilers, Combi Boilers, Condensing Boilers, Direct Heating Supplies, Gas Boilers
Posted in Boilers, Combi Boilers, Condensing Boilers | No Comments »
Combination and Condensing Boilers – What is the REAL difference?
Tuesday, June 8th, 2010
One of the most confusing topics when it comes to finding out whether you have or need a combination, condensing or condensing combination boiler is determining which is which. Combi and condensing boilers are both uniquely different, but so often misconstrued to be very much alike!
This blog post will drill in to the nitty gritty of each of these types of boiler and offer a full explanation on why they are so different.
Let’s start things off with combination boilers. The main characteristics of combi boilers are:
- They do not include a hot water tank to provide heat, saving storage space.
- Most combi boilers are wall mountable, saving further space in the property.
- Provides hot water instantly (as required) rather than having to wait for the boiler to heat up, saving energy and more importantly money on excess hot water.
- Almost all of the modern combi boilers on the market utilize 90% efficiency.
- Extremely easy to install
Despite their near impeccable characteristics, it still has its flaws. And the main problem with combi boilers is that if you operate two or more hot water taps in different locations of the property the hot water flow will drop, making them more suitable for small properties.
Now let’s take a look at the ‘not so similar’ condensing boiler characteristics:
- The newest boiler type on the market, which provides higher operating efficiency levels of 93%.
- Very similar to the conventional boiler set up
- They reduce the amount of heat given off from the gases in the flue, reducing temperatures from an estimated 300 degrees to 50 degrees.
- Consists of a larger heat exchanger than conventional boilers and sometimes even two.
Now put them all together and what do you get….a condensing combination boiler!
Let’s take a look at its characteristics:
- Does not require a hot water tank like regular condensing boilers do
- Incorporates both combi and condensing technology making this type of boiler one of the more efficient boilers out
- As a result of their higher efficiency however they tend to be the most pricey types of boiler available.
Some of the most popular brands of condensing combi boilers include:
Tags: Boilers, carbon, co2, Combi Boilers, Condensing Boilers, condensing combi boilers, energy saving, heating
Posted in Combi Boilers, Condensing Boilers | 1 Comment »
5 Things to Know About Combi Boilers
Monday, June 7th, 2010
As you may have read in one of the previous posts, combi (or combination) boilers possess a lot of benefits over the more conventional, every day boilers. Despite their many advantages they still have their own drawbacks (although few), and these will vary depending of the quality/price. In most stores you get what you pay for, the higher the value the greater the quality, just remember to compare the market before purchasing.
1. Potential heat exchanger scaling
Over time if you are supplied with hard water from your water company it is highly likely that the DHW (domestic hot water) heat exchanger will scale. This is the same however for all boilers, but you will find the newer models of combi boiler will have been designed to further reduce the risk of scaling.
This presents you with two options in the future, one to replace the equipment which can work out quite expensive, or two to replace the boiler completely.
If you look to replace the necessary parts, just bear in mind that this will reoccur in the future and may be worth upgrading the boiler to reduce the risk of scaling further. The other natural solution would be to change to a soft water supplier to again reduce the potential.
2. Electric immersion heaters are a no go
If a boiler were to some point fail with a regular water tank installed you have the opportunity to purchase an electric immersion heater just for emergency purposes. This can save you money for example if it occurs over the weekend or bank holiday when most plumbers would be charging more.
If a combi boiler were to go wrong for some reason, as there is no tank with this type of central heating system it is not possible to use an immersion heater and a plumber call out could well be required.
3. Gas pipe incompatibility
Due to regulations when installing combi boilers, some incompatibilities with the diameter of the gas pipe could occur and this may need to be upgraded as a result.
4. Shower or a bath person?
Combi boilers provide highly pressurized water to both hot and cold taps, but older models tend to have a slower rate of hot water than more modern boilers. As a result there will be plenty of water for a shower but a bath will take a lot longer to fill up.
5. No instant hot water
Combi boilers still suffer from the same problems as other boilers, although they are a lot better at producing near ‘instant hot water’ than most. If the boiler is positioned quite a way from the tap being used, it can take a good few minutes before the hot water will come through. This isn’t so much a problem for showers or baths, but if you are only using it to quickly wash your hands or face it can become a hindrance.
Overall however Combi boilers have a fairly limited number of disadvantages which are going to impact performance when compared to other types of boilers.
Tags: Combi Boilers
Posted in Combi Boilers | No Comments »
