With the extreme weather conditions of winter 2010, household boilers will have been in near constant use but too many of them are old and inefficient – converting as little as 60% of the fuel they burn into useful heat compared to around 90% for a modern condensing boiler. Timely, money saving advice on upgrading comes from the Heating Helpline. 20 January 2010 – With the UK experiencing one of the most severe winters of the last 50 years many household boilers have been in constant use for extended periods of time – yet, even in a mild winter, heating our homes and hot water is the biggest monthly energy cost for homeowners. But the majority of homes in the UK still have ‘F-rated’ boilers – on average these convert around 72% of the fuel they use into useful heat. Older ‘G-rated’ boilers – those that now qualify under the Government’s scrappage scheme – are worse performers, with typically 60% efficiency. By contrast a modern ‘A-rated’ condensing boiler converts around 90% of fuel into useful heat.
With average household energy bills now well over £1,000 a year, most homeowners will save at least one-fifth on their gas or oil bills simply by upgrading to a new condensing boiler.
It’s not just money in your pocket at stake – old gas boilers are one of the biggest causes of carbon monoxide poisoning in homes and around 50 people in the UK still needlessly die every year from preventable carbon monoxide poisoning caused by defective fuel burning appliances.
Another benefit of ditching your old boiler and replacing it with a new one is that you will be playing your part in helping the environment by keeping your home’s carbon footprint down as modern boilers produce far less carbon dioxide.
If you do have a ‘G-rated’ boiler now is the time to take advantage of the government’s recently launched boiler scrappage scheme, which means you can apply for a voucher that will entitle you to £400 off the price of a new, modern ‘A-rated’ boiler or a renewable heating system like a biomass boiler or a heat pump.
If you do want to get your boiler replaced, it’s not difficult to find a reputable, reliable engineer. A good place to start is the Heating Helpline (www.heatinghelpline.org.uk), backed by the trade association for heating engineers, the Heating and Ventilating Contractors’ Association (HVCA).
The Heating Helpline provides essential information on where homeowners can find local, reputable installers, how to employ them, how to get the best from them and what to do in the unlikely event that things do go wrong. On the website homeowners can put in their postcode and it will produce a list of reputable, Gas Safe Registered installers in their chosen area.
Further information on how to reduce energy bills and save energy is also available via the free Heating Helpline on 0800 840 4069 or at the website www.heatinghelpline.org.uk.
<>