The UK green energy podcast covering everything from solar panels to sustainability, and doing it all with a cup of tea.
Episodes
Wednesday Oct 02, 2019
Wednesday Oct 02, 2019
What happens when you put two energy experts in a room and ask them all about boilers and home heating? We’re looking forward to winter this week, and that means we’re talking all things central heating. In this episode we demystify boilers, taking you through each different type of boiler, along with their pros and cons. Scroll down for a simple summary of boilers and hot water systems.
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COMBI BOILER
Usually the boiler of choice for flats or small houses with only one bathroom, since it doesn't require a hot water tank. If you have a small property, it's an incredibly convenient boiler system, but won't work for larger families.
SYSTEM BOILER
System boilers use a hot water tank in an airing cupboard to store hot water. As a sealed, pressurised system, these boilers can provide hot water to several outlets at the same time, operating at the same water pressure as your mains flow..
CONVENTIONAL BOILER
Also known as regular boilers, traditional boilers, or open vent boilers. These use a dual tank gravity system to create the water pressure. You can use multiple outlets at once, but they take up a lot of space and are limited by the positioning of the tanks.
OTHER HOT WATER SYSTEMS
Back Boiler: A type of conventional boiler but with a gas space heater fire at the back. They're no longer available in the UK due to inefficiency.
Biomass Boiler: Instead of using gas to produce the heat, biomass boilers combust sustainable wood pellets. They also qualify for the RHI government funding scheme.
Oil/LPG Boiler: Work the same as normal boilers, but fuel used is stored on site rather than coming off ‘the grid’. Fairly reliable, but relatively expensive and very bad for the environment.
Electric Boiler: An electric boiler can be used in off-grid areas, or where a gas supply is either not wanted or not possible. However, they are very expensive to run.
Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Boiler: Acts as micro power plants by providing your hot water, but also using the wasted energy to generate electricity to use around the home.
Instantaneous Hot Water Points: They work the same way as electric showers, heating the water at the point of use. Only really used in outhouses or garden sheds, etc.
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Read more:
An Introduction to Gas Boilers
What Kind of Boiler Do I Have?