Choosing a combi boiler - customer service & boiler quality

[bewildered]

We have recently bought a 3 bed terrace which currently has a 9yr old Vaillant ecotec plus 415 which heats the radiators and water storage tank in the bathroom. We are wanting to change this for a combi, change out the 7 old single panel radiators for double convector units and install a shower over bath. Currently running 14lt/min mains water, 2 of us and no kids.

We are getting different opinions from every plumber who has quoted as to the best boiler. 1 said he wont install Vaillant as their customer service is rubbish, another said he likes Ideal (which by all forum/feedback appears the brand to steer clear of), another immediately said Baxi, all agree Worcester are overpriced for what they are (but all seemed to list this as the only option in their quotes) and a couple said Vaillant are in the same overpriced bracket as well but are better than Baxi which is mid range.
4 plumbers & 1 british gas tech who checked over our existing boiler when we moved in, gave their opinions as above.

I know the Worcester 10yr guarantee (I am looking at 30i greenstar ErP or 32cdi greenstar compact), I know the Vaillant 5yr + 5yr advance guarantee (Ecotec pro 30 or Ecotec Plus 831) or Baxi (Platimum 33) but what is the reality of the back up support when problems arise for these 3 and what is the quality of the parts used inside the boiler brands?
Any advice is appreciated.
Rob

 

[Last Plumber]

You will get a million and one opinions on here too. Every Engineer/installer will have differing experiences and preferences.

I tend to install Vailllant, I like the quality, I haven't had any issues to speak of with customer Service, in fact I would say they have been one of the better ones.

My advice is to pick a recommended Heating Engineer, ask what happens during the warranty period should something go wrong. Will they be coming out to see to everything and deal with the manufacturers for you or will they tell you to deal with it yourself. Ask if they're interested in servicing the Boiler during its life time. Ask what they fitted in their own home.

Engineers who care will tend to chose a product they can rely on and manufacturers they are confident in.

 

[Jay Jay]

As last post go with an engineer that you trust, you could always go with British gas they fit all the above brands and will not be able to shy away with any future issues, but they charge stupid prices and can be quite arrogant. Stick with a local engineer if you can but as I say bg can be a last resort
Good luck

 

[king of pipes]

Worcester top end or baxi mid range stick with the worcester greenstar classic combi 34cdi great boilers, or Baxi duo tec or platium 33kw for reliability and a good long warranty , look on our site for a installer near you regards kop

 

[moonlight]

I personally prefer Vaillant and the eco tec plus 832. I have never had a problem with the Vaillant service team. I do offer to come out if there is a problem and speak to the service team. The components are more accessible if there is need to repair outside warranty so cuts down labour charges. I haven't had good service from the Worcester team, but that could have been the individual on the day.
Hope you find a boiler suitable for yourself.
Warranty, price and service all count

 

[king of pipes]

You will find each installer has his own choice fitted plenty of valliants good reliable boilers to worth considering always always fit a magnetic filter the Adey products are the ones i favour regards kop

 

[moonlight]

I use the adey magna clean professional 2 and inline scale reducer. Definitely not one that needs chemicals adding every year.

 

[Dilalio]

Intergas Eco RF
Fernox TF1 Omega mag filter
Inlet water conditioner/scale reducer.

Platinum 5 installer will get you a 10 year warranty. Only 4 moving parts - no diverter valve or plate heat exchanger. Pump not required to run for hot water. HE has never failed in these.

 

[moonlight]

That's quite a good boiler 22mm copper pipe heat exchanger, easy to service and maintain. The Omega filter is quite new to me, have only installed one as a trial, the jury is out.

 

[Dilalio]

I like the Omega - nice engineered piece of kit and it looks the part too. No plastic with labels that peel off, no special key to have to find a place to hang and it swivels on mount to aid cleaning which can be done without having to remove unit and risk spillages.

Intergas boilers are the mutt's proverbials

 

[muggles]

Yep, Intergas ECO RF all day long, great boilers

 

[Dilalio]

Yep, Intergas ECO RF all day long, great boilers

Hi Muggles

How do you deal with the condense hose to condense pipe on them? They need a rubber coupling on the end really - bit of an oversight and should be addressed by Gash

 

[Jay Jay]

Intergas great product, excellent design but customer service support is very poor,and quite awkward to deal with if a problem arises, had 4 call outs over a period of time and it was a making constant calls and chasing up appointments that made me second think in the future,where others may have mid performance product but Back up 2nd to none.glad I don't have to worry about all that now
Good luck

 

[Dilalio]

Better product = less demand for aftercare, perhaps?

 

[bewildered]

Thanks for all of the above. So is it a fair assumption that all of the combi boilers have much the much same components and therefore quality of components?

 

[Chuck]

Thanks for all of the above. So is it a fair assumption that all of the combi boilers have much the much same components and therefore quality of components?

I wouldn't go much further than assuming that they will be of satisfactory quality and fit for their intended purpose. As a consumer, your best guide is probably the warranty.

If you want a figure of merit to inform your the decision, use the annual cost of ownership. Take the total cost (boiler+installation cost for boiler+extended warranty) add the servicing costs for the warranty period then divide by the number of years of warranty cover.

I think it's a good idea to have the same boiler that the installer (who I also use to service it) recommends and has in their own home. This means that they will be intimately familiar with its quirks.

 

[king of pipes]

You must remember combis which ever brand are mechanical and electrical devices sometime in its life it will fail , just make sure the warranty and after care is in place get it serviced each year hopefully by your installer and you will have piece of mind best of luck with your choice .

 

[Stanios]

All brands mentioned here make great boilers you can't go wrong with any of them.

What matters most by far is installation. I've seen many £1200 + boilers installed with no central heating filters the secondary heat exchanger then packs up after few years. Your first guy to come out might say you need a new boiler and many people do just that, replace their boiler because it was installed on a dirty system.

I've serviced over 100 boilers last year and only a few had completed benchmark certificate which is a sure sign that it was not flushed and just thrown right on the old system. So the question then is would you rather put in a £1200 boiler that lasts 5 years or a £500 one that will last the same under those conditions?

"What is the best boiler brand?" is the wrong question, the right question is "will you spend more than 5 hours installing my boiler?"

 

[muggles]

Hi Muggles

How do you deal with the condense hose to condense pipe on them? They need a rubber coupling on the end really - bit of an oversight and should be addressed by Gash

It just pushes onto the end of an overflow pipe. Bit of silicone to lubricate and seal it and you're away

 

[muggles]

Intergas great product, excellent design but customer service support is very poor,and quite awkward to deal with if a problem arises, had 4 call outs over a period of time and it was a making constant calls and chasing up appointments that made me second think in the future,where others may have mid performance product but Back up 2nd to none.glad I don't have to worry about all that now
Good luck

I called them out a couple of weeks ago and they turned up the same day - sent a chap all the way from Wales to Oxford for me

 

[Jay Jay]

Brilliant

 

[Dilalio]

It just pushes onto the end of an overflow pipe. Bit of silicone to lubricate and seal it and you're away

Yep, that's what I did... just think it could do with a better ready-made socket on the end - like the one that came off the betacom that I took out

 

[king of pipes]

You fit a compression couplin change the black rubber cone for a white one mc alpine sell them then connect to 19mm overflow

 

[Harvest Fields]

I'm a Vaillant man all day long. Never had an issue with them and I do not know anyone that has ever had an issue with customer service either. However I'm sure someone will shoot me down now.

 

[Dilalio]

You should always have more than 1 string to your bow