One boiler and 2 cylinders. Is it practical?

[Clooney]

HI

We're buying a house and planning to put in a 2nd bathroom. The only issue is that the bathrooms will be at opposite ends of the house, with the existing HW cylinder directly above the existing bathroom.

The obvious solution is to simply run pipework from the existing setup to the new bathroom but I wondered whether it would be feasible to put in another cylinder above the new bathroom and connect the 2 cylinders 'in series'. The original cylinder would continue to feed the kitchen and original bathroom and the new one would be purely for the new bathroom.

Any thoughts / suggestions welcome.

Thanks

 

[thomas donovan]

I personally wouldn't bother for a few reasons:
1) there will be another cylinder stat to go wrong, another zone valve to go wrong (potentially)
2) another immersion heater to get an electrical supply to
3) you'd be paying to heat 2 separate cylinders which seems illogical to me
4) another cupboard needed to house the cylinder
I would upgrade the existing cylinder and pipework and split it between both bathrooms, far more cost effective.

 

[Riley]

Hello and welcome to the forum. What you propose is feasible I just wonder what your motives are behind it? Are you concerned that the hot water will run out being used by two bathrooms? Or is it that you're worried about long runs cooling before they reach the tap in the new bathroom? Were it me I would just look at a larger unvented cylinder with greater water capacity and heat recovery and you obviously get the bonus of mains pressure hot water at all outlets

 

[quality]

Agree unvented all the way

 

[townfanjon]

Yes depending on the height available , an unvented cylinder is the way to go , defiantly put in a secondary return on your hot water ( its basically a pumped loop of hot water leaving the cylinder and returning ) open any hot tap and theres no waiting for hot water. If head height is a problem you could look at fitting a horizontal unvented .

 

[Riley]

Should point out, don't know how much of this you are doing yourself but you won't be able to install this cylinder yourself. You will need a G3 registered installer. Maybe get someone out to give you a quote and to check the suitability of your mains flow and pressure

 

[stevetheplumber]

i would only contemplate two cylinders if only one bathroom was used with the second as an occasional use guest room

 

[stevetheplumber]

i would only contemplate two cylinders if only one bathroom was used with the second as an occasional use guest room

 

[quality]

i would only contemplate two cylinders if only one bathroom was used with the second as an occasional use guest room

I agree
But then the guest room ends up being a more permanent fixture then a proper job in the first place would cover all eventualities

 

[Clooney]

Hi All

Many thanks for the replies. How refreshing to find a trade forum where members actually offer serious, helpful advice rather than descending into bitching and abuse.

All points made regarding the unsuitability of a 2 cylinder system are valid and I'm going to dismiss that idea. The unvented cylinder option wasn't something I'd considered but sounds like it will be the best solution and I'll do some more research into that.

Just to put everyone's minds at rest, I have no intentions of doing that side of the job myself. I am more than capable of plumbing in kitchens and bathrooms and adding the odd radiator but I know my limits. Anything more technical, I'll leave to the pros.

Thanks again to everyone for the advice.