The condensing boiler is a high efficiency central heating boiler, it works by extracting more heat from the fuel you use. The old standard boiler wastes about 35% of its fuel through the boiler flue.
Condensing boilers operate with an efficiency of around 90%, which, compared to the previous boiler, is a great saving on fuel bills.
From the first? The April 2005 building regulations state that any boiler that needs to be replaced must be replaced with a condensing boiler. There were some exceptions at the beginning, but now they have been removed.
All boilers produced for the UK market are of the condensing type.
So what is the difference between the old standard boiler and the condensing boiler?
The old floor boiler normally comprised of a heat exchanger that was made of cast iron, a burner, thermal coupling, gas valve and thermostat, and that was the boiler.
When these boilers were in operation, it took a while for the heat exchanger to warm up before the heat reached the radiators and the hot water tank.
However, the condensing boiler works in a completely different way, it’s all about saving on those energy bills.
The heat exchanger has been designed to remove about 90% of the heat from the fuel. When the boiler is running, the heat delivery to the radiators and hot water is much faster than the old standard boiler.
When a condensing boiler is working, it produces a column of steam from the flue, you may have noticed this when you have been away from home. This indicates that the boiler is doing what it was designed to do.
If you’ve never seen this before don’t panic, we once had a client who had just moved into a new property, turned on the heat and then panicked because he thought the boiler was on fire, this is quite normal.
The condensing boiler is controlled by a printed circuit board, which is like an internal computer. There are many different electronic parts and sensors within the boiler, all controlled from the PCB.
These parts sense how the boiler is operating and make adjustments if necessary to provide optimal efficiency.
Annual maintenance
Condensing boiler needs regular maintenance, they are not like old boilers where people never bothered to maintain them until they stopped working.
These boilers need to be checked at least once a year, one of the main reasons is safety.
The condensate they produce is acidic and could leak. If a leak occurs, could carbon monoxide leak into the room? Therefore, an annual check-up is essential for safety.
External controls
The efficiency rating for these boilers is now at an all-time high, but you could improve this rating slightly by installing better external controls.
Smart thermostats when connected to the heating system will help reduce fuel bills. They work across the broadband of your home and determine the outside temperature and adjust the boiler accordingly. They have many built-in functions and when set up correctly they will help the boiler run at its optimum efficiency.
Thermostatic control valves when installed on all radiators will also reduce running costs. They work by censoring the temperature of the room, once the temperature is reached they close the supply to the radiator, as the temperature drops it reopens.
There are many energy saving controls on the market to choose from, all designed to reduce fuel bills and save energy.
If you’re looking to lower those fuel bills, upgrading your home heating with a new high-efficiency condensing boiler could save you around 30% more.
