Choosing, installing and maintaining your boiler

Keep your home warm and energy efficient by choosing the right type of boiler for your property and servicing it regularly – find out more about boiler types and maintenance here.

Choose the right boiler
for your home

You may need to install a new boiler if your old one has broken down; you’re moving house or are building a new property. However, if you also have a boiler that’s over 15 years old, it’s likely to be very inefficient, costing you extra on your fuel bills and harming the environment. According to the Energy Saving Trust (EST) installing a new boiler to replace your old, G rated one, could save you around £225 a year off of your fuel bills. So which boiler is best for your home? Find out here.

What type of fuel do you use to heat your home?

One of the first things to consider when selecting a new boiler is the type of fuel that will be used to fire it. This will often be determined by what type of heating system you already have and the area in which you live. Here are the main options:

•  Gas boilers – “The most economical way to heat your home is with a natural gas condensing boiler,” says Tim Bartlett, from Eco Hometec Ltd in Doncaster. Gas is also the most common heating fuel in the UK.
• Oil and coal boilers – are not often used nowadays because they are fairly expensive to run and are bad for the environment. Nevertheless if you live in a rural area off of the gas and electric mains then this might be a viable idea.
• Electric boilers – Tim says: “Because of the way we produce electricity in this country it isn’t as good for the environment or as cheap as gas.” However, depending on your property and hot water needs, electric boilers can be a good option, especially if you aren’t connected to the gas mains.
• Wood boilers – wood boilers or stoves can be an entirely carbon neutral heating solution if you replant the trees you burn and source wood locally. The EST say that installing a wood boiler could save you up to £390 per year, depending on what type of heating system you replace it with, and can reduce your carbon emissions by as much as 9.5 tonnes per year. Architectural designer Charlie Luxton says: “I’ve installed a pellet wood burner in my conversion and it turns itself on and off and burns everything you put in there – it’s very efficient.”

Types of boiler

A wood boiler can be an
eco-friendly option

If you’re installing a new boiler, by law it must be a condensing model. Condensing models recover waste heat, converting 86% more fuel into heat compared with only 65% in old, G rated boilers, says the EST. This means that condensing boilers are better for the environment and will cost you less to run. There are two types of condensing boiler:

Condensing combination boiler

Combination (combi) boilers are good for smaller properties or households with more modest hot water needs as they can struggle to provide hot water to more than one outlet at once. This is because the combi boiler combines everything in one neat unit which heats hot water on demand rather than storing it in a cylinder.

Regular condensing boiler

This is the traditional boiler model which stores heated water in a tank, normally located in the loft. This is a fairly efficient process, especially suitable for properties with extensive hot water needs, however, these systems can be more expensive to install.

Boiler repairs and maintenance

A broken boiler is inconvenient and can be dangerous, so if there’s a problem get a certified boiler engineer out to fix the problem as soon as possible. Hire the right kind of engineer to install, repair or service your boiler:

• Gas boiler – by law anyone dealing with gas appliance repair, installation or maintenance has to be registered with Gas Safe.
• Electric boiler – always hire a qualified, experienced electrician to deal with electric boilers. Uncertified electrical work is dangerous may be against building regulations.
• Wood or coal boilers – hire a HETAS registered engineer to safely install and repair solid fuel burning boilers and make sure that you also get your chimney regularly swept (this needs to be done at least once a year).
• Oil boilers – an Oftec registered engineer can safely and efficiently deal with oil boiler installation, servicing and repairs.

Renewable heating alternatives

“Solar thermal heating is the most popular option out of all the renewable heat solutions,” says Jonathan Mione, from Intelligent Energy Solutions in Leicestershire. Solar thermal panels use clean energy from the sun’s rays to produce hot water to heat your home, the solar system will be connected to your current boiler, which must have a hot water cylinder attached. Depending on the type of fuel you are replacing, heating your home with solar panels can save you up to £80 per year and cut your carbon emissions by as much as 570kg a year, says the EST.

Renewable heating alternatives like
heat pumps are available

Installing either a ground, water or air source heat pump to heat your home is another renewable alternative, which is growing in popularity. Heat pumps work well with underfloor heating but ground and water pumps take some installation work – air source heat pumps are the most popular kind in the UK and fit easily onto the outside of your home. According to the EST, a ground source heat pump could save you up to £370 per year and as much as 5,330kg of CO2, depending on the type of fuel you are replacing.

Cost of installing a boiler

Prices for boilers will vary depending on the fuel type, size, system type and installation fee. Installing a system with a tank will probably cost more than installing a combi boiler. If you are replacing a boiler the costs of removing your old boiler must be considered, for example: “Replacing a system boiler with a combi boiler could cost around £3, 000,” says Harvey Morgan, from HSM Plumbing in Surrey.

According to the EST, average costs for a wood stove come in at £5,800 and an automatic feed wood boiler around £11,500. These prices include installation costs and the price of installing a flue for a wood boiler. Installing a heat pump can cost anything from £9,000 - £17,000 and solar thermal panels around £4,800, reports the EST.

Always get at least three quotes from certified engineers when installing, repairing or servicing a boiler or heating system. Check the contractor’s qualifications, references and insurance credentials before hiring.