Which boiler should I choose, Feedback appreciated!

[Roy Tucker]

Hi,
I am new here and this is my first post so thank you in advance for your comments and feedback.

I live in a four bed house which was built in 2001 and included a Potterton Suprima 30 boiler with Boilermate 2000 storage tank, an interesting system and every item in it has been replaced over the years.
I am going to replace the system with a combi but I have read on here many comments about avoiding a combi boiler in 4 bed houses!

I intended to get the Worcester Bosch 42CDI which is going to be relocated into the loft area, this will work really well freeing up two locations and everything is in the perfect position for it.

My question is:-
1: Is Worcester Bosch the right choice, trustpilot reviews definitely put it top of any contenders. The price is far higher than others so I guess you are getting what you pay for.
2: The house comprises of 4 beds, 1 Bathroom, 2 Ensuites, 1 cloakroom, 1 dining room, 1 reception room, 1 office / study and hallway / landing.
Others in my estate of 44 house have all had there boiler replaced and a large amount have had combi boilers with out any issues.
So what is the recommend solution to replacing the ageing troublesome Potterton boiler.
Thank you for reading and your feedback.

 

[townfanjon]

Combi v stored hot water systems is all down to hot water demand, as a large family can live there .
One bathroom is good but if people are needing to use it you are still going to use a lot of HW .
Personally on a house of that size I would definitely go stored HW .
As for Wooooster , I never have anything to do with them , Viessmann wipe the floor with them IMO.

 

[Harvest Fields]

Unvented cylinder and central heating boiler something like a Vaillant 630. I would not fit a combi. But it is your call mate.

 

[Last Plumber]

Vaillant 6 series (correctly sized, get the heat loss requirements calculated by your Heating Engineer) and a Vaillant unvented cylinder (Get the Heating Engineer to look at water pressure and flow).

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Don't go for a combi it will struggle to do two outlets at the same time

Two options If you use more than one outlet at the same time

One heat only boiler and unvented cylinder

Two Viessmann 222 or a storage combi

 

[Harvest Fields]

Don't go for a combi it will struggle to do two outlets at the same time

Two options If you use more than one outlet at the same time

One heat only boiler and unvented cylinder

Two Viessmann 222 or a storage combi

Do you mean like a Potterton he store Shaun?

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Do you mean like a Potterton he store Shaun?

The pro max yea there ok for the price

 

[king of pipes]

As the guys have stated a combi in a 4 bed property is not really suitable , personally i wouldnt put it in a loft either this topic comes up nearly every week stick with Shauns advice you wont go far wrong . Kop

 

[Harvest Fields]

As the guys have stated a combi in a 4 bed property is not really suitable , personally i wouldnt put it in a loft either this topic comes up nearly every week stick with Shauns advice you wont go far wrong . Kop

Not unless you have it boarded and a proper set of loft ladders to access everything. (In my opinion)

 

[Harvest Fields]

The pro max yea there ok for the price

That’s what I have in my new build 4 bed, 1 bathroom, 1 ensuite. It copes perfectly and only had to change a weeping AAV so far.

 

[ShaunCorbs]

That’s what I have in my new build 4 bed, 1 bathroom, 1 ensuite. It copes perfectly and only had to change a weeping AAV so far.

Who services it for you local company

 

[Harvest Fields]

Who services it for you local company

Yes mate he even gets special perks from the women that lives there

 

[Roy Tucker]

Thank you everyone for some very valid points and sensible responses, very much appreciated.
Disappointing for me as I have had this plan for installing the combi for a few years and its perfect for the installation and space, pipe routes and utilising the reclaimed space.
The loft is a third floor Fully carpeted even, full lighting, electrics and roof lights so there would be no issues locating it in the loft, I am going to take all your points and reconsider my options.

 

[Gasmk1]

Either stick with your type of system or go for a viessmann 111

 

[king of pipes]

A loft installation may well have it's plus points but in reality why put a boiler in the coldestest most dusty harshest environment in your home , if you loose the slightest of pressure it will effect the boiler and system because it's the highest point, a engineer will will have to come into your personal space for services and breakdowns risk causing damage gaining access to the boiler at least once a year , any leaks which may occur will do damage to cielings and decorations and possibly you, as you cannot see what the boiler doing how do you turn it up or down on heating and hot water settings ie summer winter think long and hard before committing I speak from experience boilers in lofts care a big no no for me and i will not fit them there 9 times out of 10 there is a alternative . Regards kop

 

[gmartine]

....and the Pro Max store weighs 125kg so plenty of airbags required to pop it through the hatch or half a Shaun. Seriously what's the output l/m of the Pro Max as I can't find it in the regular lit.

To the OP, are the houses on the estate the same size as yours with at least three HW outlets? If you're friendly with an owner of a similar house with a combi conversion see if you can test it as it's rare that anyone ever admits to spending that much money and then being disappointed with their decision. To run a combi of the size you are considering you need the gas feed to be sufficiently large enough with enough pressure to supply it otherwise it's a waste of money. Lastly and repeatedly you have three HW outlets and the combi you're suggesting will be able to provide around 15l/m (not verified) barely enough for 1 1/2 HW outlets run simultaneously. As suggested if you're determined to make the conversion to save space irrespective of it'a ability to supply HW then you should consider a combi with a built in store.

 

[Harvest Fields]

Think it is about 18 litres a minute will check my instructions later

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Yea it's around 18-20 lpm

 

[Rob Foster]

The European boiler market is changing I was in a sales strategy meeting yesterday. No longer the customer contacts plumber and plumber specs boiler and fits it. The new model is different . Customer is driven by media chooses boiler tells fitter what they want and off you go. Worcester do this on tv AND many boiler manufacturers will only sell direct to approved fitter outfits no merchant cause they don’t make much and hold expensive inventory ....like a newsagent selling cigs. That’s the present and future ...so best boiler comes down to 4 in my opinion
not Worcester ..I will get the names and models correct and add a post later this is not driven by my profit etc but by big boy feedback ie call centre fail rate and hard intervention rates ....watch this space

 

[gmartine]

...so you have to run off and check the specs and model numbers for the boilers you're going to recommend but Joe Public will know exactly what to tell his or her installer from a thirty second ad?

Got it, it's the way of the future...

 

[townfanjon]

The European boiler market is changing I was in a sales strategy meeting yesterday. No longer the customer contacts plumber and plumber specs boiler and fits it. The new model is different . Customer is driven by media chooses boiler tells fitter what they want and off you go. Worcester do this on tv AND many boiler manufacturers will only sell direct to approved fitter outfits no merchant cause they don’t make much and hold expensive inventory ..like a newsagent selling cigs. That’s the present and future ...so best boiler comes down to 4 in my opinion
not Worcester ..I will get the names and models correct and add a post later this is not driven by my profit etc but by big boy feedback ie call centre fail rate and hard intervention rates ..watch this space

What a load of bollox
My merchant sells hundereds of boilers from every manufacturer you can think of , he makes shed loads of money.
My customers ring me and pick/use my brains to pick the best boiler for them .
NONE of them would go by what some WB advert on the Tv says .

 

[Rob Foster]

What a load of bollox
My merchant sells hundereds of boilers from every manufacturer you can think of , he makes shed loads of money.
My customers ring me and pick/use my brains to pick the best boiler for them .
NONE of them would go by what some WB advert on the Tv says .

I know and understand but that really will be the future. I dont like it but thats the modern way --- your new customers will see it on tv/media like it buy it. look at car ads they say zero about whats in them just the BRAND - I like apple/honda/aldi and UKPF

 

[Rob Foster]

What a load of bollox
My merchant sells hundereds of boilers from every manufacturer you can think of , he makes shed loads of money.
My customers ring me and pick/use my brains to pick the best boiler for them .
NONE of them would go by what some WB advert on the Tv says .

If your merchant carrys on in this way then they will have a problem
w/b etc are cutting out the merchants and going direct. There will NEVER be any substitute for advice over the counter. but B&Q are stuffed screwfix tool station with a number based buy it approach are creaming it - and then local small plumb merchants will also win with the hard advice ...............I dont want to argue but just tell it how it has been told to me ...........and now me on to you end of

 

[townfanjon]

If your merchant carrys on in this way then they will have a problem
w/b etc are cutting out the merchants and going direct. There will NEVER be any substitute for advice over the counter. but B&Q are stuffed screwfix tool station with a number based buy it approach are creaming it - and then local small plumb merchants will also win with the hard advice ....I dont want to argue but just tell it how it has been told to me ..and now me on to you end of

I think you are blinkered by WB , I honestly cant see the other manufacturer's going that way , although I admit they will be watching it .
The boxt system may work for a customer that has recently moved into a house in a new area and doesn’t know a heating engineer. However most houseowners have or know a plumber/heating engineer and will always go straight to them for advice . Never in a million years will I walk into one of my customers homes and see a Wooooster stuck on a wall fitted by Boxt . Huddersfield Town will win the european cup first .

 

[Roy Tucker]

..and the Pro Max store weighs 125kg so plenty of airbags required to pop it through the hatch or half a Shaun. Seriously what's the output l/m of the Pro Max as I can't find it in the regular lit.

To the OP, are the houses on the estate the same size as yours with at least three HW outlets? If you're friendly with an owner of a similar house with a combi conversion see if you can test it as it's rare that anyone ever admits to spending that much money and then being disappointed with their decision. To run a combi of the size you are considering you need the gas feed to be sufficiently large enough with enough pressure to supply it otherwise it's a waste of money. Lastly and repeatedly you have three HW outlets and the combi you're suggesting will be able to provide around 15l/m (not verified) barely enough for 1 1/2 HW outlets run simultaneously. As suggested if you're determined to make the conversion to save space irrespective of it'a ability to supply HW then you should consider a combi with a built in store.

I have lived on the estate since 2001 and have fitted many of the kitchens, on-suites, wetrooms and bathrooms here so I know them well, the ones who have had the combi boilers fitted are over the moon and say it has saved them loads of money and has never caused them any issues, my next door neighbour had a Valiant and has had the most issues out of all of them, it appears has though most of the estate is now rid of the old Potterton system and looking at the 28mm pipes going to loft spaces they all seem to be relocating to roof space.
My loft isnt your average loft as I use it for many things daily.
Looking at the other comments and recommendations towards Vissemann I have checked out the various models and Vitodens 111-W sounds like a suitable model but I am concerned at the reviews and feedback left on trustpiot and reviews.com and the fact we are not in the city access to suitable authorised engineers could cause concern.
I feel like I have opened up a big can of worms and my OCD is gone into over drive :-(