The Pros And Cons Of Different Boilers

By Author: Carolyn Clayton
Total Articles: 496
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Combi boilers
Combi boilers which are also known as combination boilers are a very popular choice for homes in the UK. In fact nearly half of all domestic boilers which are installed in the UK are combination boilers. Even the government have jumped on board offering £400 off more energy efficient 'A' rated boilers to all those that have older inefficient boilers. The reason they are called combi boilers is because they combine two functions. They heat your home as well as heat your hot water.

So what's all the fuss about? Why are people turning to these types of boilers to heat our homes? Well there are many reasons, first and foremost they are a lot kinder to our environment because they are much more energy efficient. They save you money by only heating the water once a hot water tap is turned on, once the tap is turned off the systems turns itself off - so the boiler just fires up and heats the water when you need it which makes perfect sense really.

Another great bonus for having these types of boilers is that they save space because there is no need for a hot water tank, which makes installing ...
... them much cheaper and simpler because there is no need for pipes up to the attic.
Now there are some small disadvantages to having combination boilers and they are the fact that you can run more than one shower or bath at the same time which shouldn't cause any problems for the average domestic house that just has one bathroom. Also there is a lower rate for hot water compared to an open vent or system boiler.

System Boilers
If you have a larger home with more than one bathroom and ensuites you would be more suited to a system boiler which is also called a 'sealed system'. But the trouble with these boilers is that ones the water take runs out you have to wait for it to refill and reheat before you can use hot water again. You will need space for the water cylinder normally these go in an airing cupboard.
The benefits of a system boiler are a high flow rate for domestic water, no tanks in your loft and more than one shower or bath can be operated at the same time. The disadvantages are that your hot water is not instant, you have to wait while the tank to reheat and you will need space for the cylinder.

Open Vent Boilers
Open vent boilers are other type of boiler system. They require a storage cylinder which should be housed in an airing cupboard and also a water tank in your loft. These are more suited to larger homes which already have an existing open vent boiler. The advatnatges are the same as system boilers that you can use many showers and baths at the same time and the water flow rate is high. The disadvantages are also similar to system boilers in the fact that you have to wait for the cylinder to heat and the expansion tanks are norally situated in the loft which isn't any good if your thinking of converting your loft.
Northern Gas Heating - the UK's local supplier of new Central Heating Systems offer New Boilers and Boiler Installation.