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New Combi Boiler
John P - 9/12/19 at 03:36 PM

Hi,

We’re probably going to replace our Baxi 105e Combi Boiler in the new year and have been getting a few quotes.

Two companies have both quoted for a Worcester Bosch 30i one being for £2814 inc VAT, the other £2646 inc VAT although this second company have been servicing our existing boiler and I’ve not been too impressed with them. That being said both are approved Worcester Bosch Installers.

We also had a quote from the guy who services our neighbours boiler and he quoted for an IDEAL LOGIC+ MAX COMBI C35 which has greater output than the Worcester Bosch and is also a cheaper boiler to buy.

His quite was £2194 and doesn’t charge VAT as he’s currently under the threshold. He is Gas Safe registered (I checked) but not an Ideal Standard approved installer.

I did consider getting a final quote from an Ideal Standard approved installer but haven’t done so yet.

What do you think? Is the Worcester Bosch worth the extra money?

John.

nick205 - 9/12/19 at 03:55 PM

Had a Worcester Bosch combi fitted close to 15 years ago and it's still running great. With a family of 5 it get's quite some use and hasn't complained. As and when it needs replacing we'll go with Wocester Bosch again.

Jordan - 9/12/19 at 04:38 PM

Worcesters are great but expensive boilers,

There's so many boilers on the market that offers extended warrenty etc..

Baxi, ideal, Worcester or even vaillant.. Intergas (not really firmiliar but heard good feedback)

Personally ideal or baxi myself.. I've fitted loads of baxi duotecs, 600's, and platinums they're awesome.

Ideals- I've fitted the ideal logics for the bg nest contract, there are loads of different models ideal exclusive etc.

All down to how much or how little you want to pay but most boilers are just as good as Worcesters.

Slater - 9/12/19 at 05:13 PM

John
Whatever you decide, ensure you get the installation certificate from the installer. If you ever sell or rent the house you will need the cert.

adam1985 - 9/12/19 at 05:41 PM

for a easy job i would replace it with a baxi. I am pretty sure the new boilers use the same jig (you would have to check as haven’t fitted a baxi for a long time) so would be a nice simple job.

If it was my choice i would fit a Vaillant, these have been my boiler of choice for a long time and you can get up to 10 year warranty too.

Which ever manufacturer you choose I would try to get a installer that is approved to fit them as they will get you a longer warranty, but try to get a recommendation too.

Which ever boiler you choose make sure its fitted to a clean system, as this will have a big impact on the longevity of the boiler

Jordan - 9/12/19 at 05:48 PM

Any tidy Installer would replace the jig it takes 2mins, just make sure who ever does it gives you a cp12 and fills the boiler benchmark in and registers it. Then make sure you have it serviced every year make sure the service book is filled in. You won't be having any warranty if it isn't. I'd definitely be fitting a magna clean filter aswell it catches any sludge before it goes back to the boiler. All down to the cost of the boiler, ive down many breakdowns on Worcesters for social housing and private customers.

BenB - 9/12/19 at 06:21 PM

How many weeks are they planning on taking installing it? For goodness sake! That boiler is £1400 from Screwfix and trade price can be down to £1100. I'd ask them to quote a day rate. They're taking the mickey if they're swapping out an old combi for a new one IMHO. That's not a massive amount of work.

I installed my own one in two days (including the entire gas pipe run) and just paid a gas safe man £200 to solder the gas pipes and do the final install and cert it.

The existing manifold will be wrong so it'll take a bit of soldering etc but I still fail to understand how they're qualifying £1200-1400 installation costs. I know people have buisness to run etc etc but standard day rates still account for that....

adam1985 - 9/12/19 at 06:46 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Jordan
Any tidy Installer would replace the jig it takes 2mins, just make sure who ever does it gives you a cp12 and fills the boiler benchmark in and registers it. Then make sure you have it serviced every year make sure the service book is filled in. You won't be having any warranty if it isn't. I'd definitely be fitting a magna clean filter aswell it catches any sludge before it goes back to the boiler. All down to the cost of the boiler, ive down many breakdowns on Worcesters for social housing and private customers.


Yeah definitely replace the jig but it would mean all the pipes are there, lined up, right order etc.... could probably replace the boiler and commission in a few hours if everything that is there is to spec.



Don't forget boiler plus will require controls update too.

[Edited on 9/12/19 by adam1985]

John P - 9/12/19 at 06:54 PM

Actually the guy with the lowest overall cost did break it down as shown:

1 EA IDEAL LOGIC+ MAX COMBI C35 BOILER & FILTER 10YR WARRANTY
1 EA HORIZONTAL FLUE KIT
1 EA IDEAL TOUCH ELECTRONIC PROGRAMMABLE THERMOSTAT
1 EA MINI EXPANSION VESSEL SHOCK ARRESTOR (CHROME)
1 EA FLUE TERMINAL GUARD
Total Materials £1,694.00*


Labour
Drain down C/H Remove existing boiler Install Ideal logic Max Combi boiler with a 10-year manufacturers warranty
Install horizontal flue
Install magnetic filter
Install condensate pipe to outside drain
Install Ideal Itouch wireless programmable thermostat
Fill test and commission

Total Labour £500.00*

Grand Total £2,194.00 (No VAT).

He was talking about it taking one day for him and, I think, some help from a guy with bathroom fitting experience but who isn't Gas Safe so effectively a skilled labourer.

Jordan - 9/12/19 at 07:17 PM

That's the going rate, cant fault the price especially if he's happy to give you a breakdown on it aswell.

v8kid - 9/12/19 at 09:06 PM

Our Wooster/Bosch boiler failed in year 4 due to improper servicing by the Bosch approved service fitter who left out the gas sampling plug which corroded all the wiring. Fortunately it was in a boiler house so we were not poisoned. Fitter flatly denied it.

Bosch sent an inspector and immediately replaced the boiler with a newer, more efficient and powerful model at no cost to us and reset the warranty to year zero.

Great customer service by Bosch themselves once they became aware of the problem but shitty agents to cock up in the first place.

Oh yes and it failed mid Jan and here we had the customary snow and ice :0

Cheers

coyoteboy - 9/12/19 at 10:10 PM

I have a 30i that has been in the house for 10+years with no servicing. I had to replace the water restrictor adapter recently for £20.

So definitely a good choice.

Price wise I can't comment.

russbost - 10/12/19 at 01:37 PM

I've always advocated Worcester Bosch, however, my in laws had a new one just 5 years ago which has just failed just outside the 5 year warranty. It needed a new heat exchanger & a new pressure vessel as both were leaking - the boiler guy also pointed out that WB are a PITA in respect of where the pressure vessel (quite a common failure) is located as it is behind the boiler & requires the whole unit to be stripped off the wall to get access.

Repairs were going to cost over £850, but he fitted a brand new Vokera Excel 29 with a 5 year warranty for just £1440 inc vat (£1200 + Vat), same guys quote for a lower wattage WB was over £2k

He really rated the Vokera, tho' they seem to have some mixed reviews, but a 5 year warranty makes a big difference

Jordan - 10/12/19 at 01:45 PM

Yes, I've done service and repair job on Worcester boilers for quite a while they suffer from expansion vessels, heat exchangers, plate heat exchangers, hot water sensors, flow sensor and turbines, hydroblocks etc.

All down to personal preference and how much the customer wants to pay for a boiler.

SJ - 11/12/19 at 07:48 AM

quote:

Our Wooster/Bosch boiler failed in year 4 due to improper servicing by the Bosch approved service fitter who left out the gas sampling plug which corroded all the wiring. Fortunately it was in a boiler house so we were not poisoned. Fitter flatly denied it.

Bosch sent an inspector and immediately replaced the boiler with a newer, more efficient and powerful model at no cost to us and reset the warranty to year zero.

Great customer service by Bosch themselves once they became aware of the problem but shitty agents to cock up in the first place.

Oh yes and it failed mid Jan and here we had the customary snow and ice :0



Our Worcester Bosch also failed - dodgy seal on the exhaust which let water in resulting in the boiler doing a good impression of a '70's Alfa on the inside.

This was after it was serviced, so may not have been the fault of the boiler and was not not covered by warranty. The company servicing it said it wasn't what they had done and it was hard to prove.

It still works, but seems they need someone who knows what they are doing to service.

Wish I'd left it well alone!

ttalps2000 - 11/12/19 at 08:03 AM

i had a Vaillant boiler fitted just over a year ago and got a 10 year warranty too as it was fitted by an approved installer. Paid a bit more for it, but i have 10 years peace of mind. Installer wont touch Woscester Bosch for new installs. As per previous comments, you basically have to take the boiler off the wall to replace certain parts, whereas the Vaillant is all accessible from the front. Superb bit of kit though and chucks the heat out!

David Jenkins - 11/12/19 at 08:39 AM

We have a Vaillant and we're generally very happy with it. However, they are very sensitive to dirt in the water so a good filter is a necessity, together with a good flush-out at installation.