Are you eligible? Again, you’ll need to be receiving certain grants to qualify and either be renting privately or own your own home. If you’re in social housing you might still be able to get help but, usually, only if heating is being installed for the first time. You can easily test whether your central heating system has any corrosion inhibitor added to it. Either buy this kit online and follow the instructions in this video or do it yourself at home. Collect a small amount of water from the bleed valve from your radiator. Add a steel nail and a copper coin to the water and leave it for a week. If the nail starts to corrode, the same corrosion will be taking place on the inside of your central heating system. It’s probably why your water isn’t as hot as it should be or why your radiators have cold spots. Which magnetic filter is best? We’ve been to properties in the past where, for example, other installers have quoted the customer for the installation of a Worcester 42CDi which gives 17.4 litres of hot water per minute. We measured the customers flow rate at only 13 litres per minute. This boiler would have been overkill for this property and a waste of the customer’s money.

YouTube sets this cookie to measure bandwidth, determining whether the user gets the new or old player interface. Gas pipe sizing is a must for all new combi boiler installations and will ensure you are paying for and installing the correct sized gas pipework for your current setup and your future needs. The calculations and formulas used, however, are sometimes complicated and some installers, unfortunately, take a ‘guess’ that 22mm pipework will be OK. A system to combi upgrade Rerouting new pipework can add considerable expense as well. Beware of companies taking shortcuts, or indeed, charging more for lifting carpets and floorboards. Also note, there are strict rules regarding how pipework is laid in joists and how far you can cut into them. There is a maximum size the ‘notch’ can be cut in a joist and care should be taken. All pipework should be laid or clipped properly and to current standards, not left hanging loose. Resiting a boiler It’s worth noting that some manufacturers will only start a warranty as long as the boiler is installed within 6 months of leaving their factory. 15. Notifying building controlBoiler manufacturers who offer long parts and labour guarantees will attend your boiler breakdown and if they suspect your system has not been chemically cleansed, they can refuse to honour the guarantee in accordance with their terms and conditions. As mentioned above, it’s a simple test to prove or disprove the presence of inhibitor. The installer will recommend his own choice of magnetic filter. 9. Adding thermostatic radiator valves Any respectable company will not ask for money upfront for work they haven’t yet done. 3. The current mains water pressure of your system If you live on top of a hill or far away from a reservoir or supply then you’re more likely to have issues with you’re pressure. The average house will have a static pressure of 3 bar or so. Some domestic homes can have as high as 5 or 6 bars of pressure. Flow rate from your tap When selling a property, a solicitor will sometimes want to know whether the boiler was installed legally – this is proof that it was. A similar thing exists with the electrical installation. 16. Advising the customer on how to get the best efficiency from their boiler

Our advice is to flush the system of all the nasty stuff. Then add corrosion inhibitor and a magnetic filter. Testing whether your system has corrosion inhibitor All boiler manufacturers state in their installation manuals that a central heating system should be fully cleaned and flushed out before installing a new boiler. None of them, to my knowledge, ask for a power flush as a mandatory requirement. The heat exchanger, one of the main components of the boiler, can become clogged and restricted which could mean poor circulation, poor heat transference, a noisy boiler and a higher risk of a boiler breakdown. The pump can also get filled with debris affecting its performance.NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Ulster Bank, which are all part of the NatWest Group, will now shut at least 172 of their bank branches in 2023 and 2024.

Feeding new pipework to the new boiler can also take time. It is preferable, but not always possible or cost effective, to hide pipework away under floorboards.Service contract or insurance policy? Households warned over dud heating cover that can leave you in the cold

Whichever installation you require, always ensure you are happy with the route the pipework will take and how it will look aesthetically. Running gas pipework on the outside of a house doesn’t look good and we don’t advocate the practice – it is lazy and it just doesn’t look good. Gas pipework passing through a wall If a system is pre-treated with chemicals to soften the sludge and dissolve any limescale build up, then simply draining the system down and flushing through with water at normal pressure is all that is needed. Building Regulations also state that a system should be thoroughly cleaned and flushed out before a new boiler is installed. Why a system cleanse is vital There’s something called the Energy Companies Obligation (ECO) scheme which is run by the government. Under this scheme, some homeowners and private tenants are eligible to have their inefficient boilers replaced either completely free or have the cost heavily subsidised.If your boiler flue will exit near to a neighbouring properties window or door or access way and you think that pluming will be an issue then make allowances for this. Moving furniture There are some exceptions where a condensing boiler will work perfectly fine with a 15mm copper gas supply pipe. However, they are few and far between. If your boiler is very close to the gas meter and you don’t have other gas appliances in the property then it could be possible to have a working, safe boiler running on 15mm copper gas supply pipe. Isolation valve/pump head tool: Bleed pumps or turn off slot heat valves with ease using this tool, saving time and hassle.