K
krispy
I have to have a serious money talk with some local heating engineers, but need to know something of which I speak.
Your comments would be most welcome; I'm not sure whether I'm asking a question or thinking aloud.
My neat diagram PDF was too big to upload, so I'll try to describe the situation.
3 bed house, 8 rads, boiler on outside wall of basement.
The CH and HW system is currently semi gravity. The boiler is an Ideal Classic RS 260, installed in 1997. It works fine but is due for another service. Its efficiency rating is F.
The HW cylinder is a strange self priming "Primatic", meaning, just to be clear, that the CH is feed and expansion via the cylinder, and doesn't have its own feed and expansion tank.
All the rads except the one in the hallway have TRVs. There is a mechanical timer providing "OFF", "WATER ONLY","WATER AND HEATING". There are no further controls, or thermostats on the HW cylinder, check valves etc.
Hot water in summer is provided by the immersion heater, because gas "WATER ONLY" nevertheless heats up the system and the open rad in the hall by gravity, of course. The immersion heater just failed, prompting a wake-up call to high cost of electricity as opposed to gas, and hence my question. I seem to have five choices.
1. Only replace the immersion heater and resign myself to high electricity bills.
2. Do that as a back-up, but go for gas HW in summer by adding an assortment of cylinder stats, room stats, new digital programmer, motorised valves etc.
3. Do all that, but go fully pumped (is that wise, or even allowed, with a primatic cylinder?) (I don't think I need this)
4. Do all that, plus upgrade to a more efficient system boiler.
5. Do none of that, instead get a Combi installed.
Having tapped into your collective wisdom, when I ask an engineer to come round for a closer look, would I expect to have to pay for a quote, and if so about how much?
Your comments would be most welcome; I'm not sure whether I'm asking a question or thinking aloud.
My neat diagram PDF was too big to upload, so I'll try to describe the situation.
3 bed house, 8 rads, boiler on outside wall of basement.
The CH and HW system is currently semi gravity. The boiler is an Ideal Classic RS 260, installed in 1997. It works fine but is due for another service. Its efficiency rating is F.
The HW cylinder is a strange self priming "Primatic", meaning, just to be clear, that the CH is feed and expansion via the cylinder, and doesn't have its own feed and expansion tank.
All the rads except the one in the hallway have TRVs. There is a mechanical timer providing "OFF", "WATER ONLY","WATER AND HEATING". There are no further controls, or thermostats on the HW cylinder, check valves etc.
Hot water in summer is provided by the immersion heater, because gas "WATER ONLY" nevertheless heats up the system and the open rad in the hall by gravity, of course. The immersion heater just failed, prompting a wake-up call to high cost of electricity as opposed to gas, and hence my question. I seem to have five choices.
1. Only replace the immersion heater and resign myself to high electricity bills.
2. Do that as a back-up, but go for gas HW in summer by adding an assortment of cylinder stats, room stats, new digital programmer, motorised valves etc.
3. Do all that, but go fully pumped (is that wise, or even allowed, with a primatic cylinder?) (I don't think I need this)
4. Do all that, plus upgrade to a more efficient system boiler.
5. Do none of that, instead get a Combi installed.
Having tapped into your collective wisdom, when I ask an engineer to come round for a closer look, would I expect to have to pay for a quote, and if so about how much?
