Central heating system needs replacing with Condenser Boiler

[Bronte]

My central heating system is apparently caput. Tenant said it was eating oil recently, a sign that things were not right. Plumber recommends I replace with a condenser Boiler, this is the new thing apparently. Cost would be about 1400 and in total about 2300 all in. Does this make sense. How long does a central heating boiler last. What exactly is a condenser boiler.

 

[isofrio]

if your tenant is on low income they may be eligable for a heating upgrade through the warm homes scheme! check this out first.

Condensing boilers are much more efficient than non-condensing boilers due to the fact that they 'condense' the vapour or steam that is produced from burning fuel. This vapour contains roughly 8% of the fuels total energy and therefore capturing allows that energy to be channeled into your heating system rather that escaping as a by product.
It has been a requirement in Ireland since March 2008 to install a condensing boiler when replacing an existing gas or oil boiler where possible (there are some instances where a condensing boiler is not appropriate for your home but we can assess this for you.) Details of this requirement can be found at environ website

Under the Home Energy Savings scheme there are grants available to help with the cost of boiler and heating control upgrades. For more information on this grant please look up the seai website.Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) (I am not allowed to post links yet but i hope you can find these sites.)

 

[Bronte]

Thanks for that. My plumber did mention a grant of 800 Euro so I guess that's what you are referring to. But he cannot do it for me in that case as he is not registered to install. He has to dig some kind of new pipe as well. But he has the same system himself and he said his oil bills were halved.

As I'm going to be able to write off the cost against rental income I suppose I don't need the grant. My plumber is great so I'll have to go with him, never realised these things cost so much.

 

[demoivre]

Maybe your plumber knows a registered plumber - in my experience many trades people tend to know each other ! Can a registered plumber sign off the job, having inspected it, in the same way an architect would sign off for a stage payment in a new build, or do they have to physically do the work?

 

[mradaly01]

Go for the replacement.... I upgrade my Oil boiler/burner last year to a larger condensing boiler (reported to be 94%'ish efficiency) & I haven't looked back... did it before getting attics & walls insulated... To be eligible for the grants, you also need to zone the heating & install TRVs.... A quick sum of the costs will tell you if the grant is worth going for... For reference, I have 13 rads (all doubles) - went for a large burner 120BTU - make Firebird... room for further expansion if needed in the future...
Best of luck with it...