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Domestic Gas Boiler Improvements Advice

Improve home energy consumption & save money

Gas Boiler Installation
An EPC report may recommend that you upgrade your UK home gas appliance, particularly if it is a gas fired boiler over 20 years old. These types of boiler are deemed to be inefficient according to the SEDBUK database. They are also more environmentally harmful due to their poor efficiency as some of the fuel remains unburned, also the thermal properties of the heat exchange process is less efficient.

A modern condensing Gas or LPG Combi or regular boiler is far more fuel efficient and offer real improvement in performance over non-condensing type boilers.

Switch to an energy saving gas appliance similar to those described below, improve home energy performance, and save money. If your gas boiler is 10-15 years old, consider upgrading.

In addition, If you are a domestic energy user and looking to save and compare energy rates find out more about Switching Energy Supplier for a cheaper rate at : Switch Energy Suppliers for Gas and Electricity. Also find out ways to reduce your energy costs for home energy users at Energy Saving

Conventional Boilers

Many installations in the home comprise of a conventional wall mounted boiler, these typically achieve an efficiency rating of around 70%. However, there is still room for improvement here as we will see later a condensing type boiler can add around 15 SAP points to your home's efficiency rating, which could well mean that just this one change in your home's heating system could place your property in a higher band for energy efficiency.

Understanding Gas Boilers for the Home

You don't need to be a plumber, heating engineer or Corgi Registered boiler installer to understand what central heating boiler you have at home. Here is some advice about the most common types of installation of Gas Boilers that may be fitted in your home.

Old Vs New Boiler - Gas Boilers using Natural Gas or LPG

As described above a back boiler is not very energy efficient, indeed a conventional regular wall mounted boiler that supplies hot water to a hot water cylinder achieves an average energy efficiency. Why? A boiler serving a hot water cylinder has to heat a large volume of water in the cylinder which, on some days may not be used. New Condensing Combi Boilers are highly energy efficient. This is because they only heat the amount of water you require "on demand" - thus there is less use of energy and less waste. In addition, condensing boilers are very efficient and burn fuel more efficiently, so your home can be heated for less money.

 

Gas Fire with Back BoilerThis Gas Fire is fitted with a back boiler at the back of the fire. By removing the flap at the base the controls are accessible underneath, the boiler is situated behind the wall under the gas fire. This type of central heating system is less efficient than a conventional wall mounted gas boiler installation.

 

Back Boiler ControlsThe controls for the back boiler are usually below the conventional gas fire. Quite often this type of boiler has a permanent pilot light, for ignition purposes to fire the boiler. The pilot light is on day and night, burning fuel and adding to your gas bill.

Conventional Boilers

These are usually more efficient than a back boiler, but some may have a permanent pilot light visible even when the boiler is off, thus using gas when not in use. Like Back Boilers they provide hot water to a cylinder.

 

Conventional Gas BoilerThis is a conventional boiler. The appearance is quite similar to a Combi Gas Boiler except Combination Boilers do not have a separate Hot Water Cylinder - see below. This type of boiler is generally more energy efficient than a back boiler, but not as efficient as a Condensing Boiler - most boilers of this type achieve around a 90% thermal efficiency rating when compared to say a typical back boiler rating of 65% for thermal efficiency.

Condensing Type Combi Gas Boilers

These are the most efficient types of gas boiler available today. Typically a wall mounted appliance of this type will have an energy efficiency of around 95%. This is a significant improvement over conventional gas appliances. Typical Domestic Mains Gas Boilers manufacturers to look for are, Malvern Boilers, Baxi, Buderus, Remeha Avanta Range, Atmos Heating Systems, & Worcester Bosch to name but a few. Look for an 'A' Rated Condensing Gas Boiler. If you decide to update your gas boiler always use an approved CORGI registered installer for your boiler.

You can save up to a third on your home heating bill by installing a boiler of this type.

Incidentally, by law new gas boilers fitted in England and Wales must now be high efficiency condensing boilers, and TRV's (Thermostatic Radiator Valves) fitted to radiators where required.

Hot Water Cylinders - Basically these are a copper cylinder which is usually encapsulated in a Hot Water Cylinder Jacket or Spray Foam Insulation. The more cylinder insulation you have the more energy efficient your hot water system will be.

Some examples are shown below of typical installations of both types of hot water cylinder jacket types. If you have a jacket type insulation around the cylinder consider adding another jacket around the cylinder insulation if it is 25mm or less. If you do not have a cylinder thermostat consider having one fitted. It will save you money on your energy bills and pay you back in a short time.

Cylinder Jacket InsulationThis is a typical jacket type cylinder insulation for your Hot Water Cylinder. See the Hot Water Cylinder page for information on improvements to your Hot Water System.

Further improvements and energy savings can be made with these low cost recommendations. See also Energy Saving measures.

These include:

Finally, if you are a Commercial Energy or business energy user find out more about switching your energy supplier for a cheaper rate at : Switch Energy Suppliers for Gas and Electricity. Also find out ways to reduce your energy costs for commercial energy users at Business Energy Saving

Looking for Energy Advice for your Home? A Domestic Energy Assessor can provide free advice about heating your home, including gas boiler installations, as well as providing an energy certificate. Find  an assessor in your local area:

What is a SAP Rating?
Find out more about the ratings system applied to residential property

How can I improve my rating?
Consider improvements to your property - Find out more

Carbon Footprint
Facts about your home's environmental impact

Snagging
New build property inspections checklist

HCR
Home Condition Report - Property Sellers Information

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