New Large Domestic Bolier reqd - help

[Hodgbox]

Hi All

am new to this forum and have a question that hopefully some of the resident experts can help with. I have a 1930's 4 bed detached house with solid brick walls and during the recent cold spell it was very difficult to heat the house to a comfortable temperature. I have used one of the BTu req calculators and this states i need 152k btu, i currently have an old ideal standard mexico (100k btu) supported in tandem by another smaller mexico (40k btu). These are both very old and i have been thinking about changing for some time, also i will need to upgrade some of the radiators based on the results of the calculators. But looking for a suitable boiler is proving to be a bit more difficult. I have been recommended the valliant and worcester bosch but i can only find outputs up to either 37k valiant or 40k WB (wall mounted). i did not really want to install a commercial boiler as i understand that will increase the cost connsiderably, from both a purchase and spares perspective. The system is an open vent system.
Can anyone help with any ideas???
Thanks and regards

 

[WHPES]

Sounds very much on the large side for a 4 bedroom house.

Are there other things you can do to improve your efficiency of your property? Do you have 150mm loft insulation (makes a BIG difference), Double glazing etc.

Have you used Replacement Boiler Size Calculator

 

[doitmyself]

Sounds very much on the large side for a 4 bedroom house.

I'm not so sure about that.

A 6m x 8m two storey detached house with full insulation will need about 6.5kw for heating. The same house with solid walls. single glazed metal windows and no loft insulation will need nearly 16kw for heating.

As you say, the OP needs do make sure he has the maximum loft insulation first. It could save nearly 3kW.

PS

I have an aversion to calculators, and any person, still using British Thermal Units to calculate heat loss or radiator size or boiler sizes. It gives the immediate impression that they are living in the past and haven't realized that this is the 21st Century, not the 19th. Why do they still do it???

PPS

I like the boiler calc - much easier than the Sedbuk or EST versions

 

[oldplumber]

Im living in a 4 bed,3 receptions, sash windowed victorian pile and only need a 30kw combi to provide water and heat and its only 30kw to give decent hw flow. 18kw would easily keep the place warm. you need to get in some one who understands heating calcs as i really think youve got it badly wrong somewhere, cos if you pop in a commercial boiler 70kw plus you will need your own gas rig to supply it!!! more likely your rads are silted up and to small to give out the heat needed to warm the property.

 

[Hodgbox]

Thanks for the replies, the floor area is approx 3700 sq feet and the rooms are 9.5 feet high, i have redone the loft insulation so i know that is sufficient. i was also wondering about internally insulating the exterior facing walls, do you think that will make much of a difference or is it better to sort out the heating first, ie radiators and a powerflush??

Thanks

 

[WHPES]

On a job I was working, the builder clad the inside walls with that kingspan type stuff which has plasterboard on the outside. Reckons it makes a huge difference.

 

[doitmyself]

Thanks for the replies, the floor area is approx 3700 sq feet and the rooms are 9.5 feet high, i have redone the loft insulation so i know that is sufficient. i was also wondering about internally insulating the exterior facing walls, do you think that will make much of a difference or is it better to sort out the heating first, ie radiators and a powerflush??

No, you sort out the insulation first. That is a once-off capital cost which will mean you can install a smaller boiler and radiators so you will save money each year on heating the property. The aesthetics of covering the wall with insulated plasterboard and the problems of moving electric sockets, light switches, skirting boards, picture rails etc is another matter. It all depends on how long you intend to live there.

Use the boiler calculator mentioned above and compare the before and after results.

Do you know if the existing radiators are large enough? Assuming they are typical steel ones, you can use the Stelrad Elite Catalogue to find out the outputs. They should total about 20% more than the boiler size given by the calculator.

If your rads have cold areas at the bottom in the centre, you probably have sludge in them. Whether you need a powerflush (up to £700) depend on how bad it is. It's worth trying a DIY flush first using Sentinel X400 (£15).

 

[oldplumber]

imo £700 for a power flush is ripping off the customer, £300 for 1 days labour, 35-50 Hire charge and £80 for cleanser = £430 or thereabouts, I believe london cowboys would charge a lot more but lets not tar decent independant engineers with the same brush.

 

[stevetheplumber]

QUOTE=oldplumber;54441]imo £700 for a power flush is ripping off the customer, £300 for 1 days labour, 35-50 Hire charge and £80 for cleanser = £430 or thereabouts, I believe london cowboys would charge a lot more but lets not tar decent independant engineers with the same brush.[/QUOTE]UK's number one property website for properties for sale and to rent[
[DLMURL="http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-28950218.html"]3 bedroom terraced house for sale in Cobble Mews, Highbury, Highbury, N5, N5[/DLMURL]
UK's number one property website for properties for sale and to rent

maybe this will help explain why us london cowboys charge more than you yokels when did it last cost you 48 pounds a day to park ? not to mention 8 pounds congestion charge when did you last get 3 parking tickets( £240)in a week as i did recently
a pint in a pub round here will cost anywhere from £4 i was in stafford shire last week and it was 170 a piny

for some reason only one link appeared heres the otherhttp://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-23766337.htm

 

[Blackcatgas]

QUOTE=oldplumber;54441]imo £700 for a power flush is ripping off the customer, £300 for 1 days labour, 35-50 Hire charge and £80 for cleanser = £430 or thereabouts, I believe london cowboys would charge a lot more but lets not tar decent independant engineers with the same brush.

UK's number one property website for properties for sale and to rent[
[DLMURL="http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-28950218.html"]3 bedroom terraced house for sale in Cobble Mews, Highbury, Highbury, N5, N5[/DLMURL]
UK's number one property website for properties for sale and to rent

maybe this will help explain why us london cowboys charge more than you yokels when did it last cost you 48 pounds a day to park ? not to mention 8 pounds congestion charge when did you last get 3 parking tickets( £240)in a week as i did recently
a pint in a pub round here will cost anywhere from £4 i was in stafford shire last week and it was 170 a piny

for some reason only one link appeared heres the otherhttp://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-23766337.htm[/QUOTE]
I did a refit on the Zaphora perfume shop in Islington London a few years ago, You couldnt just nip to the merchants for somthing in central london, it took 2hrs for me to do 5 miles. in the end I brought down a old shopper pushbike I had with a basket on the front, I found a merchants about 2 miles away and it was so much quicker to cycle there. I dont know how anyone working in central lLondon can make any money.

 

[oldplumber]

QUOTE=oldplumber;54441]imo £700 for a power flush is ripping off the customer, £300 for 1 days labour, 35-50 Hire charge and £80 for cleanser = £430 or thereabouts, I believe london cowboys would charge a lot more but lets not tar decent independant engineers with the same brush.

UK's number one property website for properties for sale and to rent[
[DLMURL="http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-28950218.html"]3 bedroom terraced house for sale in Cobble Mews, Highbury, Highbury, N5, N5[/DLMURL]
UK's number one property website for properties for sale and to rent

maybe this will help explain why us london cowboys charge more than you yokels when did it last cost you 48 pounds a day to park ? not to mention 8 pounds congestion charge when did you last get 3 parking tickets( £240)in a week as i did recently
a pint in a pub round here will cost anywhere from £4 i was in stafford shire last week and it was 170 a piny

for some reason only one link appeared heres the otherhttp://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-23766337.htm[/QUOTE]

Bit derogatory calling people yokels, we have to put up with most of london moving down my way for the summer and i know whos got more brains and common sense, it aint the ones from London. I tend not to park on double yellows cos like you we have little hitlers who keep sticking tickets on windscreens, we complained when our local put a pint upto £1.70, wots congestion charge? I reckon its the sheep in London who are daft for living there, cos its lovely in devon, loads of room, big house to keep the dogs and plenty of open country to ride me horses over, whos the dopey yokel in the real sense of the word you in London or me living the good life?

 

[stevetheplumber]

UK's number one property website for properties for sale and to rent[
[DLMURL="http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-28950218.html"]3 bedroom terraced house for sale in Cobble Mews, Highbury, Highbury, N5, N5[/DLMURL]
UK's number one property website for properties for sale and to rent

maybe this will help explain why us london cowboys charge more than you yokels when did it last cost you 48 pounds a day to park ? not to mention 8 pounds congestion charge when did you last get 3 parking tickets( £240)in a week as i did recently
a pint in a pub round here will cost anywhere from £4 i was in stafford shire last week and it was 170 a piny

for some reason only one link appeared heres the otherhttp://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-23766337.htm

Bit derogatory calling people yokels, we have to put up with most of london moving down my way for the summer and i know whos got more brains and common sense, it aint the ones from London. I tend not to park on double yellows cos like you we have little hitlers who keep sticking tickets on windscreens, we complained when our local put a pint upto £1.70, wots congestion charge? I reckon its the sheep in London who are daft for living there, cos its lovely in devon, loads of room, big house to keep the dogs and plenty of open country to ride me horses over, whos the dopey yokel in the real sense of the word you in London or me living the good life?[/QUOTE]
your horse? and you called me a cowboy lol

 

[oldplumber]

some people dont get sarcasm, lol, however wherever you live its only my opinion but £700 for a days work still seems very excessive even with the cost of cleansers/hire charges dropped off. You must have a big chuck wagon to carry all your tools around.