New Recommended Gas System

Edward33

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We are upgrading a heating system from a very old oil I'm efficient heating system to a new gas system. We are changing all gun barrell pipes to new modern pipes.

I have a plumber coming to the house at the end of the week. Is there a recommended gas system I should request or type of pipes or are they all the same?
 
High efficiency condensing gas boiler with an outdoor weather compensation stat. I would also suggest that your hot water cylinder and pipework is well insulated, that you zone the house for sleeping and living, and fit thermostatic valves to the radiators. All in good time and subject to budget but putting in new pipe work and a new boiler gives you the chance to plan an efficient system.

And hopefully the house is well insulated.
 
It is a detached 4 bedroom house at 132 Square metres. There are two showers upstairs at present.
 
I’d highly recommend planning for one of the smart heating control systems, like Nest or Hive. Being able to tweak the temperature from your phone, or while you drive home to a cold house, have it automatically turn off the heating/hot-water when you’re away, have the house at a nice temperature without having to constantly be turning the heating on/off is worth every penny.

I found some plumbers not keen to do it because they’re not comfortable with them yet, but push hard. And think carefully about the positioning of the thermostats, you’ll likely want one for upstairs and one for down, and they should be in locations where they’re not getting false readings(direct sunlight, near a radiator, near an oven etc). Master bedroom upstairs and living room downstairs works well for us.

You may also want towel rads on a separate zone, so you can dry towels in the summer without upstairs rads coming on for example.

As others said, make sure the pipes are properly insulated. One area for insulation that is often overlooked and easily fixed is radiator pipes near cold water tap supplies, leading to you getting hot water when trying to brush your teeth!
 
Alkers86 is absolutely right, a combi boiler will do a great job.
Have you used a combo boiler in a 4 bed house that has two showers and is likely to have 2 adults and who knows maybe 2 to 3 kids in the future?

Meaning, the only negative I can possibly see on the combo boiler is half the family showering before work at the same time. I read that combo boilers are not good if you want to have two sources of hot water at the same time. Any insight into these views?
 
If you have a higher demand for hot water and need the flexibility, then get the condensing boiler and a cylinder. That will cover all options
 
Meaning, the only negative I can possibly see on the combo boiler is half the family showering before work at the same time. I read that combo boilers are not good if you want to have two sources of hot water at the same time. Any insight into these views?

Review the water volume requirements of the showers, a combi boiler would need to be speced to meet the peak demands of those and heating. Sizing a boiler to meet that demand may result in a large boiler that is less efficient when only running the heating load.

Combi boilers were never as popular here as elsewhere due to lower or inconsistent water supply pressure. Less of an issue these days, but ensure your supply is up to the requirements.
 
Have you used a combo boiler in a 4 bed house that has two showers and is likely to have 2 adults and who knows maybe 2 to 3 kids in the future?

Meaning, the only negative I can possibly see on the combo boiler is half the family showering before work at the same time. I read that combo boilers are not good if you want to have two sources of hot water at the same time. Any insight into these views?
No is the direct answer, we only have one shower - that's why I asked about how big your house is and how many showers you have.

Depending on the flow rate of the two showers, the combi boiler may not be able to keep up with the demand of the two of them running at once but this will depend on the size of boiler you're looking at and the specifics of the showers you have. You could look at having one of the showers a non-power shower (to reduce flow rate and thus demand on the boiler) or changing the lesser used shower to an electric shower (but this will cost 10 times as much per shower than those from the mains). The above only applies to people showering at the same time.

Re: the above, I don't think mains pressure is a big issue for combi boilers, ours is terrible. We got around this by greatly increasing the cold water storage in the attic, which feeds the combi boiler via a pump. Once you size this storage to exceed your morning shower requirement, you shouldn't have any issues. This wasn't expensive by any means, I think 100l tanks can be had for less than 50e
 
Re: the above, I don't think mains pressure is a big issue for combi boilers, ours is terrible. We got around this by greatly increasing the cold water storage in the attic, which feeds the combi boiler via a pump.
Most new installations choosing combi boilers would skip the cold storage tank.
 
I have been quoted for the below list from the plumber. He recommended the System Boiler and not the combi boiler for a 4 bedroom house that will have a large number living in it. He said the combi boiler will not be recommended for same time multiple source use. The quote for all works was €8,500 including VAT.
  1. Bosch Condesing gas system boiler
  2. Hot water insulated cylinder with immersion
  3. Gun Barrell pipes replaced with new insulated pipes
  4. New radiators with thermostatic valves
  5. Hive thermostat system two zonal
  6. Plumbing for new bathrooms and power showers.
Has anyone got any comments on whether the price seems reasonable and whether I am missing anything obvious on the list?
 
comments on whether the price seems reasonable
Really difficult to offer an opinion without knowing details of the radiators (number, size, and quality - a 'cheap' radiator is about half the price of a good one), and where all the pipes are running. Do you have concrete floors downstairs that he has to jackhammer tracks to run pipes? Is he making good the floors / walls after putting in new pipes?
Overall, it doesn't seem unreasonable.

You don't mention a grant? I'm assuming it's eligible, but check. Not all plumbers are registered to apply for grants. Also double check if the quote is before or after the grant. Some people get a shock when they realise the supplier quote was for them to get the grant money.

For your overall budget, add in the costs of first time gas connection, but I don't think they're much in the context of what you're doing.

Hive thermostat system two zonal
Is it 2 zones plus hot water separate?
 
Most modern boilers will have a hot water only function so you’re not heating radiators unnecessarily. With a hot water cylinder, you can set the desired temperature for the water on the boiler.
 
OP get at least three quotes. It was recommended to me a few years ago to get quotes from established plumbing companies in my area. They would have built up a reputation and are there for you should any issues arise afterwards.
 
You will most likely use the boiler to deliver your hot water but if you need to use the immersion, you might consider night rate electricity and a timer.




Is the quote including a pump to power the showers? Perhaps I misunderstood.
Yes it includes pump to power showers.
 
Really difficult to offer an opinion without knowing details of the radiators (number, size, and quality - a 'cheap' radiator is about half the price of a good one), and where all the pipes are running. Do you have concrete floors downstairs that he has to jackhammer tracks to run pipes? Is he making good the floors / walls after putting in new pipes?
Overall, it doesn't seem unreasonable.

You don't mention a grant? I'm assuming it's eligible, but check. Not all plumbers are registered to apply for grants. Also double check if the quote is before or after the grant. Some people get a shock when they realise the supplier quote was for them to get the grant money.

For your overall budget, add in the costs of first time gas connection, but I don't think they're much in the context of what you're doing.


Is it 2 zones plus hot water separate?
Yes two zones heating plus hot water
 
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