Protecting against boiler failure
Protecting against boiler failure
The gas boiler in your home is generally ignored in the summertime when warmth is plentiful, but if it does suddenly stop working, you may be stuck with measly kettle fulls of hot water and chilly cold showers everyday. No one remembers about the gas boiler in their house until that day when it breaks down. And as soon as it stops working, everyone realises how essential it is and how expensive repairs can be.
If you live in a rented house, your landlord will take care of all the finances related to central heating boiler servicing. But if you live in your own house, it will be wise to have a special savings pot or central heating insurance in case something goes wrong with your heating boiler.
New high-efficiency boilers can reduce your fuel bills dramatically so if your heating boiler is over ten years old it may be time to think about investing in a newer model. The type of gas boiler that you should buy would depend upon your existing central heating system type, the size of your family and the amount of space in your home. The most common type is the combi boiler, it is perfect for small homes and for people who want hot water quickly. A combi heating boiler warms up the water as it flows through, removing the need to store the water in a hot water tank. Hot water will be available instantaneously on demand, but if a hot tap is opened by someone else while you are enjoying your shower, you better jump out fast unless you like cold showers!.
A sealed heating boiler system can cater to several family members having a hot wash or bath at the same time since it utilises a storage tank housed in a cupboard or loft, thus ensuring a steady supply of pressured hot water. The system boiler is quick and easy to install, and doesn’t take up too much space. The drawback with this heating boiler is that you cannot get hot water instantly as there is a storage tank which gets empty from time to time if a lot of hot water is used quickly.
However the central heating system which is most commonly used in older homes is the open vent gas boiler, it occupies huge space and consists of a storage cylinder and two water tanks. An open vent central heating boiler provides plenty of hot water that can be used simultaneously, just like a sealed central heating system, but again here too heating takes time and the pressure is not as good as with a combi central heating system.
A back central heating boiler takes a lot of space but it allows multiple outlets of hot water without loss of water pressure. Back boilers are usually stored in the chimney breast but if you do not have this type of heating boiler installed you will find that it is not worth shifting over to this form of heating. It would save you a lot of money on installation of a new heating boiler if a back heating boiler is already installed in your house when you moved in, as it is cheaper to replace an old back boiler rather than install a completely new heating system.
It is costly to get the any of these types of gas boiler repaired. A central heating system insurance policy can help a great deal by easing your repair costs in case your heating system fails at some point. Buy a good boiler maintenance policy which not only covers the labour, repair costs and also provides annual inspections with no call out charge.