by DONFRAMAC »
Fri Dec 07, 2007 1:04 am
My information is that older boilers are very durable as the main boiler chamber is made from cast-iron, but that thermal efficiency (carbon footprint factor) is poor. Old copper pipes are usually thick-wall, and the price of copper today has gone thro' the roof, and two different thicknesses of pipe wall are in use now. My new system uses wafer-thin copper pipes. Old radiators do suffer pin-hole damage, but are very cheap as a result of this frequent demand for replacement.
A quick check on insurance-based extended warranty cover shows old boiler types being covered up to 15 years, but a new combi is only offered 8 years cover. That reflects the fragility of materials, use of aluminium, and a very competitive market driving down prices and profit margins.
My sister who has a builders merchants business, has a 17 year old oil fired boiler which gives no trouble. An ex-colleague who now owns a heating & plumbing business says I will be lucky to get more than 5 years out of my new condensing combi, then the best thing to do will be to scrap it and fit another. Unfortunately I have lost the stored hot weter, and no option of an immersion element exists,and the bath fills slowly, although the blender shower is good, after fitting a combi-compatible unit.