Repair or Replace?

The boiler has traditionally been an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ product. As long as it keeps working most homeowners give it little thought.

Only when our boilers stop working do we leap into action and our first instinct is usually to send for a heating engineer to arrange a repair.

However, homeowners with standard-efficiency boilers should pause for a moment before going for the repair option.

Here are five good reason to bite the bullet and go for a new replacement boiler.

1. Money
The modern condensing boiler is significantly more efficient than its standard-efficiency forerunner. Condensing boilers are the most efficient available as they convert more of the fuel used into useful heat, in comparison to old standard efficiency boilers.

Research suggests that high-efficiency boilers are up to 35% more efficient (depending on the age of your boiler), which, with an average fuel bill of £1,200 per year, equates to potential savings of up to £275 per household, per year.

Also, older boilers are likely to have a standing pilot light which could cost in the region of £50-60 per year just to keep going.

2. Peace of Mind
Standard-efficiency boilers are inherently safe, but the fact of the matter is, modern high-efficiency boilers are even safer.

The modern boiler is of the ‘room-sealed’ type with all the equipment enclosed within the boiler cabinet. If anything goes wrong, the problem is enclosed within the cabinet and there is no danger to the rest of the household.

A significant number of standard efficiency boilers were ‘open flue type’ which meant the combustion chamber and flue system were in effect ‘open’ to the room in which they are sited. They rely on a fresh supply of combustion air being available in the room generally provided by purpose made air vents to outside or into another room with air vents to outside.

It is essential for the safe, ongoing operation of these types of appliances that they are serviced annually.

3. Reliability
It is inevitable that over time an ageing boiler will become less reliable.

Emergency calls to heating engineers, who will probably have to re-arrange other appointments, are costly as are spare parts which are becoming scarcer for older boilers as time goes on.

4. Household space and layout
A further motivating factor in replacement rather than repair is household space and layout.

Replacement is an opportunity to get your boiler off the floor and out of the way to free up space for more cupboards or worktops.

What’s more, if you choose a condensing Combi boiler you will have instant hot water, so there is no need for that hot water cylinder or airing cupboard which can be taken out. If they are housed in the bathroom, you will probably free up ample space for a walk-in shower.

5. Energy Performance Certificates
EPCs are now a mandatory part of the Home Information Pack.

If a move is on the horizon, the quickest way to improve the energy rating of your home is to have a new high-efficiency boiler or cavity wall insulation installed.

This is a guaranteed way of jumping one clear band in the energy ratings, say from Band D to Band C, in the process making your home significantly more desirable.

Repair remains an option for a broken boiler, but the potential savings available by replacing with a new high-efficiency boiler are leading many households to ask themselves the simple question: can we afford not to do it?