What should I do to protect against a heating boiler failure
What should I do to protect against a heating boiler failure
The heating 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. It is only when the central heating system breaks down that you become acutely aware of its importance in your home. Suddenly it becomes a very important and rather expensive piece of essential equipment.
For those of you who are renting, of course you don’t have to worry about repairs and maintenance as the responsibility lies with your landlord and they probably will have landlords gas boiler cover. However, for homeowners it is always a good idea to make sure you have a little money saved to pay for any unforeseen malfunctions.
It is advisable to buy a new model rather than getting your ten year old gas boiler repaired, this will cut down the fuel costs too in future years. The type of central heating boiler that you should buy would depend upon your existing heating boiler type, the size of your family and the amount of space in your home. A small sized home housing a few people who want immediate hot water access at all times will be best served with a combi central heating boiler. In a combi boiler water is drawn through the mains and heated immediately eliminating the need of storage tanks. Hot water is instant and on demand; but if someone runs a hot tap while you’re having a nice hot shower, be prepared to jump out quickly!.
A single storage tank is used in a sealed system gas boiler usually placed in an upstairs airing cupboard enabling a large number of people to have multiple showers and taps on the go at once, without compromising hot water availability or water pressure. It is quite easy to install the system central heating system and it can also easily fit into your home. The main disadvantage, however is that you will have to wait for the water in the tank to heat up.
The most space is taken , two water tanks in the attic and a storage cylinder in the upstairs airing cupboard, by a open vent gas boiler normally found in older houses. This boiler too doesn’t give hot water instantly like the sealed system though once again it allows several taps and shower to work at the same time, water pressure is also not to good here.
A back central heating boiler takes a lot of space but it allows multiple outlets of hot water without loss of water pressure. Traditionally back boilers are stored in a chimney breast, but unless you already have one, it’s probably not worth switching to one. It is great if your new home has a back heating boiler already as this type of gas boiler costs less to install, if you need to replace your back gas boiler it is better to replace the old one with the same type rather than getting a new type of boiler installed.
It is costly to repair a heating boiler which ever type your home has. So it is important to get a central heating insurance so that your costs are covered even if something goes wrong with your system. Buy a good boiler breakdown policy which not only covers the labour, repair costs and also provides annual inspections with no call out charge.