Below is a list of frequently ask questions, just click on a link to see the answer to any of the questions below:
What exactly is a Condensing Boiler?
Condensing boilers are the most energy efficient units on the market today. The combustion process produces gas by-products that include water vapour and carbon dioxide. In a conventional heating system, these by-products are vented out of the house. Condensing systems cool the combustion gases to the point that water condenses and the process releases additional heat that is captured and distributed to the home. Condensing gas boilers are generally 10-15% more efficient than conventional units.
How efficient are Condensing Boilers and what is Sedbuk Rating?
 SEDBUK is an acronym for 'Seasonal Efficiency of a Domestic Boiler in the UK'. The system was developed under the UK Government's energy efficiency best practice programme with the co-operation of boiler manufacturers and provides a basis for fair comparison of different models of boilers.
The table to the left details the different bandings.
William Smith Heating Solutions Ltd normally only install A rated boilers achieving above 90% efficiency.
If I install a new Condensing Boiler how much could I save on my heating bill?
You can save 30 to 40% on your heating bills but this depends on the size of your home, how often you use your heating system what insulation you have in your home and the type of boiler you have fitted.
Why is my radiator hot at the top and cold at the bottom?
This usually means you have a sludge build up in the bottom of the radiator. This can be resolved by chemical cleaning or powerflushing the system. However, before taking any action we recommend that you seek expert advice to identify the cause of the sludge first.
Why is my radiator cold at the top and hot at the bottom?
This usually means that there is air trapped in the top of your radiator. You may want to try to bleed the radiator to release the air. Clicking on our “Basic Instructions” section will give you step by step instructions on how to bleed a radiator.
Why are some of my radiators hotter than others?
This usually means that your central heating system is incorrectly balanced. This results in the hot water not flowing evenly to each radiator. We suggest that you have an expert check your central heating system.
What is a Thermostatic Radiator Valve?
A Thermostatic Radiator Valve allows you to control the temperature in individual rooms around your home. It can also help you reduce your fuel bills by automatically adjusting the radiator temperature once your room has reached its desired level.
Why do I not get enough hot water from my combination boiler?
Older combination boilers often have a lower flow rate than newer models. This can be made worse by a build up of scale in the boiler over time. In this situation we suggest that you have an expert check your boiler and central heating system. William Smith Heating Solutions Ltd will always take your domestic hot water requirements into account when calculating the size of the boiler required to be installed in your home.
Isn't fitting a new central heating system very disruptive and messy?
The installation of a new system does involve new pipe work being fitted and heating controls being installed. We aim to ensure that disruption in your home is kept to a minimum; we will keep you updated on our progress at all times.
What is Benchmark?
Benchmark is an initiative launched to improve quality within the heating industry. All competent heating installers should be aware of benchmark standards. Virtually every boiler sold in the UK comes with its own log book which should be fully completed by the installer and handed to you once your new boiler has been installed and commissioned. This log book becomes your certificate of compliance with all relevant building regulations, details service history and also is your guarantee. Click on the link below for a PDF showing the “Benchmark” commissioning checklist.
Commissioning checklist.pdf
Does my combination boiler need a room thermostat?
Building regulations changed 0n May 1st 2007 and it is now mandatory that a room thermostat to be fitted when a new boiler or central heating system is installed. Reputable companies, like William Smith Heating Solutions Ltd, will always fully comply with statutory requirements. The best control for combination boilers is a programmable room thermostat. This device will fully control your heating system. These units can be easily sited in the optimum position without disruption to interior decoration. This is achieved because the device communicates with the boiler using a radio frequency transmitter and therefore no wires are required.
Why does the pressure drop in my boiler and how do I top it up again?
Checking your pressure gauge once a month should be a part of your household maintenance routine – doing so will ensure that you will catch any problems early which can save you both time and money. Gradual pressure drops over a few months are not unusual and are most often caused by a small leak in the system. These are extremely hard to detect as the water evaporates as it leaks. If the pressure drop requires a boiler pressure to be topped frequently then the leak needs to be detected and repaired.
Clicking on our “Basic Instructions” section will give you step by step instructions on how to top up boiler pressure.
What is pluming?
There are times when a white plume or discharge can be seen coming from the flue terminal on condensing boilers. This is due to the flue gases being cooler than in non-condensing boilers. Where as non-condensing boilers flue gases are hotter they cool down further away from the terminal and dissipate differently.
The flue gases of condensing boilers exhaust at around 55°C and cool quicker in the atmosphere and in certain outside temperatures cause a plume similar in effect to breath on a cold morning.
The hot water produced by my combi boiler is cloudy or chalky. Why is that?
The water from combi boilers is heated directly from the mains - so the only time the water is released to the atmosphere is when it comes out of the tap. This means that during heating the calcium bi-carbonate, present in the water, changes to calcium carbonate. This causes the creation of Carbon Dioxide which close up is seen as millions of bubbles, this is not sediment it's merely cosmetic. If you run some hot water into a glass and let it cool it will slowly clear.
Why are there differences in the prices charged for installing a new boiler?
This is a sore point amongst responsible heating installation companies and the answer is long and involved.
We are often asked why a simple boiler swap is expensive when you can apparently buy a boiler on the internet for a lot less than the prices quoted by reputable heating companies.
Unfortunately, the simple 'boiler swap' no longer exists. Not legally anyway. Fitting a new boiler means complying with an avalanche of restrictive rules, regulations and instructions, and many of these are expensive to observe. The net result is that our quotation for a fully compliant replacement boiler may make us look expensive. The potential new customer remains suspicious particularly when they have another estimate for half the price from someone willing to take all the short cuts.
William Smith Heating Solutions Ltd will always fully comply with all the regulations. These regulations are there mainly for safety reasons and often for reasons of increasing efficiency and reducing carbon emissions. It is also a criminal offence to ignore these regulations.
Here are the main requirements which can be expensive to meet and are often ignored:
1) Condensing boilers are compulsory under the Building Regulations in most situations. They cost significantly more to buy than their non-condensing equivalent, and they also need a drain connection to carry away the condensate they produce. This can be trivial to install or a major task adding a day or more to the work. Sometimes moving the boiler to a different location in the house is the only way to achieve the drain connection. All this is avoided by ignoring the Building Regulations and fitting a non-condensing boiler instead.
Potential cost saving from not fitting a condensing boiler: Anything from £100 to £1,000.
2) 'Energy-efficient' controls are now compulsory under the Building Regulations. Most existing boilers are half way there with thermostatic control of both heating and hot water, however, further control of the temperature in domestic premises is required. This can be achieved by fitting thermostatic radiator valves and a programmable room thermostat.
Potential cost saving from not fitting energy-efficient controls: Anything from £0 to £600.
3) A new gas supply pipe may be necessary to comply with the latest HSE and C.O.R.G.I. guidelines on permissible pressure drops between the gas meter and the appliance. We are now allowed only 1mbar pressure drop, and this means many existing gas supply pipes are too small. A new boiler will usually work perfectly well connected to the existing pipe with a pressure drop of 3 or 4 mbar, but to comply with this new guidance a new, larger gas supply pipe, normally 22mm, may have to be installed all the way from the meter to the new boiler. When boiler and meter are on opposite sides of the house this can add significant work, without even taking into account re-instatement of disrupted decorations etc.
Potential cost saving by re-using existing gas supply pipe: £0 to £500
4) Power flushing. Virtually all boiler manufacturers demand their boilers are connected to clean heating systems, and decline to accept warranty claims for failures caused by sludge or corrosion deposits in the circulating water. This means cleansing the existing radiator system before connecting the new boiler. Powerflushing is the usual way to do this and it adds about a half a day's work to power flush the average heating system.
Please note that power flushing is not always required and this requirement will be discussed with the customer. This service will involve an additional cost
5) Electrical wiring in kitchen. The Building Regulations effectively require all wiring of domestic boiler to be carried out by qualified electricians. Very few C.O.R.G.I. heating engineers are formally qualified to carry out electrical work so compliance means employing a separate electrician to connect up the boiler. The problem with employing an electrician is that he will insist the installation is brought up to current safe electrical standards, while the heating engineer would have just put the same wire that fed the old boiler back into the new one.
Probable cost saving for NOT employing electrician, £100 to £300.
6) Pump over-run wiring. Condensing boilers have a device built into them to control the pump, keeping it running for a few minutes after the burners have shut down (to distribute the residual heat and protect the high-performance heat exchanger, in case you were interested). This means running an extra cable from the boiler location to the pump location (usually next to the hot water cylinder upstairs in the airing cupboard). Installing this extra cable can be time consuming and disruptive to carpets and decorations. Fitting certain non-condensing boilers instead sidesteps this requirement, or the customer probably wouldn't notice if the installer didn't bother to connect up the pump over-run (until the heat exchanger fails a year later, that is).
Possible cost saving for not installing pump over-run wiring: £100 to £300.
7) Post-installation cleansing and corrosion inhibiting. Central heating systems slowly corrode on the inside unless corrosion inhibitor is added to the circulating water, creating a black sludge that blocks heat exchangers, radiators, pipes, and generally causes a variety of problems. Neglecting to add inhibitor in a heating system may not show up for many years, by which time the name of the offending installer will have been long forgotten. The corrosion effect is accelerated if the 'post installation cleanse' is missed out. This is a quick cleanse to remove the flux residues left by the soldering process used in the installation of the new boiler pipe connections. Again, no-one will know if it is skipped, until a few years later when the corrosion problems begin early.
Possible cost saving for leaving out the post installation cleanse and corrosion inhibitor: around £100.
8) Gas Work Notifications: We at William Smith Heating register all gas work with the appropriate body, formerly CORGI and now (Since April 1st 2009) the Gas Safe Register shortly after we register the job you the customer will receive a certificate of compliance on Safety and Building Regulations. You should retain the certification for use as part of any Home Report which became legislation 1st December 2008.
The Home Report has three parts:
1. Single survey and valuation of the property which must, by law, be carried out by a chartered surveyor who is a member of RICS. The single survey will give information about any problems the property has and how urgently it needs to be repaired. It will also state its current value and how accessible it is for disabled people.
2. Energy report with an Energy Performance Certificate which can also be carried out by a chartered surveyor who is a member of RICS. The report will show how ‘green’ the property is and will rate the home A-G (SEDBUK) for energy efficiency (similar to how fridges and freezers are rated). The report will recommend how to improve the property’s energy efficiency.
3. Property questionnaire which will be filled out by the home owner showing who the electricity supplier is; whether the home has satellite TV; what the parking arrangements are and the council tax band as well as other general information. Additionally, on request of the home owner, the chartered surveyor can provide a generic Mortgage Valuation Report for inclusion in the Home Report. This is a document for a person who wants to buy your home, to take to a lender to discuss a
mortgage. It is not a legal requirement of the Home Report but has been included to assist potential buyers.
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