Need advice on oil central heating system

D

Dr.Debt

Registered User
Messages
428
Any and all help appreciated here. I have very little knowledge of central heating systems and I need to learn fast

I live in a large detached house built in c.1960, about 3200 sq ft.

We have an oil central heating system with a large conventional potterton boiler. Apparently the boiler is much larger than average and I'm told it has capacity to heat way and beyond our needs. The problem is that I'm not happy with the heat levels in the house in the middle of winter. I'm struggling to maintain heat at 20 / 21 degrees. I have looked at all the usual things, upgraded the insulation in the attic and have double glazed windows (in timber frames) throughout. It seems that the boiler is working hard all the time in the cold weather and I'm not sure why this is the case. I'm told that it is big and should have plenty of capacity.

Ive had various and different boiler technicians come and go over the past few years, all saying something different about the system so Its very difficult to know exactly who to believe. Some are saying I need to change the boiler.
Some are saying I need to change the whole system. Some are saying that the boiler is in good condition and worth keeping for the time being. Anyhow the last guy in told me that the boiler is oldish but the burner is quite new (which confirms what the previous owner told me) however he said that the new burner which was put in is too small for the boiler and that is the reason that I'm struggling to maintain the heat in cold weather. He goes on to say that the reason that the system takes so long to get up and running in the morning is that the smaller burner has to work so hard to get the water up to the required temperature and then has to work hard thereafter to keep the water at the required temperature.

I would appreciate comments from any central heating experts on here. Is the small burner likely to be the problem ? Is there any way I can prove that this is indeed the problem. How can I check it ? Is it just a matter of getting a bigger burner installed to match the boiler ? Does any of this make sense ?

I know that the ultimate answer is to replace the whole lot with a newer efficient system but Im not ready to do that yet. I want to improve what Ive got to last for a further 3 - 5 years and I want to do the best possible fix in that time frame.
I do believe that the boiler is solid and will last a number of years yet.

Whats the best thing to do ?
 
Well if you tell us which part of the country the property is, you may get an opinion from somebody who knows heating systems.

There has been massive improvements in boiler systems in the past 5 years. You might have to change your boiler to what is called an efficient boiler system. Have you considered an LPG system ??

We live in a large house and in the past 10 years have cut our heating bills in half. There are many things that can be done to reduce costs. Instead of having a heap of experts looking at your system, a good plumber is often better than qualified experts.
 
Hi,
It would be really hard to tell without seeing the boiler & the installation parameters.
Potterton's are not a very common oil boiler in Ireland but they are a very good & efficient boiler as far as standard efficiency boilers go. They are usually in the mid to high 80's% for combustion efficiency. The baffles in them are unusual but effective & I would ensure that these are correct & in good condition. If replaced in the past with "something else", this could be an issue.
The boiler should be sized for the installation. A proper heat loss calculation can easily be carried out for each room & the boiler output can therefore be matched. This must be done accurately.
The system pump should be sized accordingly. Often under-sized.
The radiators should be checked for circulation issues, such as balancing & sludge content. I use a thermal image camera for this.
Are all the radiators heating up correctly & do not just feel them at the top? Check the temps at the top & the bottom of the rads. Check the flow & return temps on each rad pipework. Check the output of each rad in relation to the calculated heat loss of the each room.

Once you have all this information, the answer you are looking for will surface.
 
I had similar issues and went with zoning first, because my boiler seemed to be spending more time heating the water than the radiators.

I now have 2 heating zones and a water zone, and can heat them all independently....the radiators now heat almost immediately i turn on the heating.

I have a 3 zone digital clock installed, works a treat......
 
Yes zoning will help however the system should be designed to heat all zones at the same time. If it cannot, then there is something wrong.
A balancing valve on the cylinder would have sorted a cylinder taking the heat from the radiator circuits, or a correctly set balancing valve if already one in situ.

Either way, you are correct in saying zoning is always of benefit for fuel consumption.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top