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Understanding the different types of Boilers

Category:Boilers Tags : 

This article focuses on the different types of boiler available for your home depending on your specific needs.

Combination Boilers

A combination or 'combi' boiler is both a high efficiency water heater and a central heating boiler in a single compact unit. Combi boilers heat water directly from the mains when you turn on a tap, so you won't need a hot water storage cylinder or a cold water storage tank in the roof space.

They are also very cost-effective and energy-efficient as water is heated instantly rather than being heated and then stored in a cylinder. An added benefit is that hot water is delivered at mains pressure, which means that you could get a powerful shower without the need for a separate pump.

  • Compact sizes make combi boilers perfect for smaller properties
  • Ideal where there is little or no loft space
  • No need for a hot water cylinder allows increased living space
  • No cold water storage tank frees up a loft for conversion
  • No risk of loft pipework freezing
  • Less pipework in the home makes installation typically cheaper
  • Combination Boilers

System Boilers

System boilers require a cylinder for storing hot water, however the major heating and hot water system components are built into the boiler itself, making it quicker and easier to install. In addition, there is no need for a tank in the loft, so it can be an option in a home with little or no loft space or where the space is earmarked for a conversion.

These boilers are also compatible with solar water heating systems, which deliver environmental benefits as well as lower energy bills.

  • Ideal for homes with more than one bathroom
  • Constant supply of hot water to any number of taps at the same time
  • No need for a loft tank, freeing up space and eliminating worries about leaks or frost damage
  • Economical to run
  • Built-in components makes installation quicker and neater

Regular Boilers

Regular boilers (sometimes known as traditional, conventional or heat only boilers) are ideally suited to homes that already have a traditional heating and hot water system which is linked to a separate hot water cylinder. These boilers also need a cold water storage tank in the loft to feed the hot water cylinder as well as a tank that maintains the water level of the central heating system.

A regular boiler may be the best option for replacing an existing boiler if the property has an older radiator system, as it might not be able to cope with the higher water pressure that is delivered by system or combi boilers.

  • Perfect for homes where a lot of hot water is used at the same time
  • Ideal where there are two or more bathrooms
  • A good option in areas where water pressure is low
  • Compatible with solar water heating systems for a lower carbon footprint and lower energy costs

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What Is Central Heating?

Category:Boilers Tags : 

Central heating – this is the most common form of heating in the UK! A boiler heats up water that is pumped through pipes to radiators throughout the house as well as providing hot water to the kitchen and bathroom taps.

Most boilers run on mains gas, but in areas where mains gas is not available, the boiler can run on oil. Mains gas is usually the cheapest, and it has the lowest carbon dioxide emissions. Some boilers also have an electric immersion heater as a back-up.

central heating

If you have a central heating system, you may consider these energy-saving improvements:

  • Let Kensign Engineering Ltd replace your boiler with a newer, more efficient model.
  • Fit better controls and use them to make sure your boiler only provides heat where and when you want it.
  • Switch to a cheaper energy tariff
  • Make any insulation and draught-proofing improvements that you can.
  • Use chemical inhibitors to help maintain central heating system efficiency

For more information on central heating systems please contact us today!


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Choosing the right boiler

What Is A Combi Boiler?

Category:Boilers,Central Heating Tags : 

What is a combi boiler?

A combi boiler combines a highly efficient water heater and a central heating boiler into one compact unit.  As a result, the combi boiler is fast becoming the heating system of choice in new homes across the UK, with over 50% of new installations being this type of boiler.

Combi boilers and storage space

Combi boilers provide central heating and hot water without the need for a hot water cylinder in an airing cupboard or a cold water tank in the loft. The combi boiler is not only an ideal space saving solution (as the combi boiler unit is very compact), but also it limits the heat that escapes as waste compared to traditional models, via things like the hot water tank.

Combi boilers and heating hot water

Combi boilers take water from the mains and then heat it as required, but are on standby when there is no water demand. Therefore hot water is available 24/7 and also just as importantly, the water is delivered at mains pressure, so no pump is required to deliver the ‘power shower’ experience (provided your home has adequate mains water pressure).

To produce the hot water that comes out of the taps, the cold mains water passes over a highly efficient heat exchanger. The heat exchanger transfers the vast majority of the heat from the burnt gas (90% or more) to the cold water, and then delivers it to the taps as required. Since combi boilers do away with the hot water tank, they are much more energy efficient, since there are no heat losses associated with stored hot water, it is simply created as needed.

Combi boilers and your central heating system

On the central heating side, combi boilers pump the water round the heating system in a completely sealed system. The boiler incorporates an expansion tank internally, so there is no need for an external feed and expansion tank in the loft, which obviously saves a great deal of space.

One of the issues with a combi boiler is that they struggle to produce both hot water and central heating at the same time, so priority is given to your domestic hot water whenever a hot water tap is opened in the home. For example, if you are running a bath, during this time no hot water will be circulated through your heating system, but as soon as the bath is full, the central heating circulation will resume.

Combi boiler efficiency

Since combi boilers don’t have to store any hot water, the heat losses via the hot water tank are zero, helping save you money on your gas bills.

Most boilers installed today are condensing boilers, so if you choose a combi boiler you would actually get a condensing combi boiler installed. These types of boilers use the heat contained within exhaust gases that would normally be released in to the atmosphere via the flue. They take advantage of heat exchangers to make the most of this latent heat, so less fuel is needed each time to heat the water, thereby further reducing your fuel costs.

The main 2 issues with combi boilers

The first issue is that since the hot water is produced at mains pressure, if the hot water is required in multiple outlets at the same time (e.g. a shower and the washing machine are running at the same time), there will be pressure drops at the different outlets. There are two solutions for this, firstly you can install a mains booster which recognises when pressure and flow are low and automatically boosts the performance of the incoming mains water. The second solution is to install an accumulator tank, which is a steel vessel that stores mains water at the pressure it is supplied into the home. Air within the steel vessel (trapped in a rubber diaphragm) is compressed by the mains water.  When a tap is opened the water can rush out of the vessel to the tap – faster than the mains

The downside of the accumulator tank is that once all the water in the tank is gone, you have the same pressure issues that you would experience if this wasn’t present.

The other issue is that if your combi boiler breaks, quite simply you will have no hot water generating facility other than the kettle. Most hot water tanks (within the system or regular boiler systems) come equipped with a electric immersion heater, so even if the boiler breaks you can still produce hot water for showers and baths (albeit in a rather expensive way).

Kensigns thoughts on combi boilers

In new homes where hot water demand is not extravagant, then a combi boiler is the most effective central heating / hot water system. They are very reliable and simple to install, save space (since they do away with cold and hot water tanks) and produce the hot water on demand as it is required in the home. As a result, in most situations we would recommend installing this type of boiler when you current boiler reaches the end of its useful life.

Benefits

  • The hot water is available 24/7 on demand at mains pressure, giving that ‘power shower’ effect.
  • Combi boilers are very compact and can sit fairly innocuously in your kitchen, or take up a small amount of space in your airing cupboard.
  • Combi boilers only produce hot water when it is needed, so no hot water is produced unnecessarily, which can help lower your bills.
  • There is no need for a hot water tank in an airing cupboard or a cold water storage tank in the loft.

Limitations

  • The main issue with a combi boiler is that it will struggle to cope with high demand for hot water from
  • multiple sources at the same time, because the hot water flow rate is divided by each of the water sources.
  • If the combi boiler does break down for some reason, then you have no capacity to produce hot water other than the kettle.
  • Combi boilers are currently not compatible with solar thermal technology.

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Worcester Boiler Warranty

Worcester Boiler Warranty

Category:Boilers,Central Heating Tags : 

Worcester Boiler Warranty

To benefit from your free Worcester boiler warranty, all you need to do is buy an eligible Worcester Greenstar boiler and arrange for it to be installed within your property by Kensign Engineering Ltd

Kensign Engineering Ltd will register your warranty via the Worcester Bosch website.

In order to retain the extended warranty period you must ensure that your boiler is serviced annually over the 5 year period as per Worcester’s terms and conditions.


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new boilers

Worcester Boilers Achieve Top Awards For New Boilers

Category:Boilers,Central Heating Tags : 

New Boilers – Kensign Engineering Ltd can fit the entire range of Worcester Greenstar gas boilers which have come out on top in the Which? boiler report, having been awarded Which? Best Buy for the 6th year running.

With the peak heating season now with us, Kensigns gas boilers continue to be among the best in the market, earning an overall score of 79 percent, based on customers scores and engineers views. The Greenstar range scored 5 stars for reliability, customer satisfaction and build quality as well as achieving the maximum star rating in 5 of the 6 categories.

Kensign Engineering fits new boilers

The annual survey compared 11 brands in total, revealing us to be the most reliable, with our boilers remaining fault free longer than all other manufacturers. The results were calculated from the views of 10,779 owners and for the first time a 110 Which?  Kensign Engineering Ltd can fit one of these award winning boilers in your home.


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Kensign Engineering Offer. Boiler Grant. £300

Category:Boilers,Central Heating,Energy Saving,Offers Tags : 

Kensign Engineering Offer.  Boiler Grant. £300 off

If your current boiler’s seen better days then why not invest in a brand new one. We’ve teamed up with HPS Boiler supplies to bring you this Boiler Grant great offer of £300 off a new boiler for a limited time only.

Don’t miss out – offer ends 30 March 2017.

The cost of installing a new or replacement boiler is often more expensive than the boiler itself, so you need to know what to expect before you contact a Kensign Engineering. This isn’t a job you can do yourself to cut costs, unless you’re a Gas Safe registered installer.

Boiler installation costs vary enormously, depending on how much work is required, the parts needed and their availability, where you live and who you employ for the job. Following the boiler scrappage scheme in 2010, which allowed those with an inefficient boilers to claim back cash to help them pay for a new boiler, a freedom of information request revealed energy companies were charging, on average, around a third more than independent traders.
Independent installers come out on top when it comes to value for money, quality of workmanship and after sales service. Ask about the Boiler Grant

Boiler replacement. With A Boiler Grant

If your boiler is beginning to break down, and is more than 10 years old, it might be more cost effective to replace your old boiler with a new one. Spare parts are harder to come by as your boiler gets older.

please contact us for further information


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Winter Boiler tips

Category:Boilers Tags : 

5 Winter boiler tips.

1 keep an eye on the pressure gauge if you have a combination boiler.

If the gauge or digital display on your boiler is below the green level, or reading less than 1.0 bar, you will need to top up the pressure in your system via the filling loop or filling tap on the boiler.

Turn the tap slowly to regain correct pressure, then turn tap off fully.

 

2 Pressure gauge or readout is showing too much pressure.

If you find that you are constantly topping up the boiler to maintain pressure, this normally means there is a fault inside the boiler. Call for more advise on winter boiler tips.

 

3 boiler stops working in very cold weather.

The condensation pipe might be frozen.

Pour hot water over the plastic condensation pipe, a white plastic pipe sited outside and going to a drain. Alternative methods of de-icing are use a hair dryer or hot towels.

 

4 Get your boiler serviced.

One of the best winter boiler tips is always a good idea to get your boiler serviced. Boiler manufacturers  recommend getting your boiler serviced once every year to make sure everything is in good condition and safe working order. can service your boiler at short notice. Don’t wait until your boiler breaks down before having it done, or it could end up costing you more in the long run.

 

5 Bleed the radiators

If you can feel cold patches on your radiators its because there’s air trapped inside  It’s easy to bleed a radiator – use a radiator key to turn the small valve on the side of the radiator. If you bleed your radiators and still have a problem with cold patches, your system might be blocked with sludge and might need a flush

if you are interested in further information regarding your boiler please contact us at your earliest convenience


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Choosing the right boiler

Choosing the right boiler for your needs

Category:Boilers Tags : 

When choosing the right boiler there are several things to consider. The size of your boiler, the type, construction and energy efficiency will all have an impact on your home and your energy bills. Take some time to consider your options and think carefully about which boiler to choose. 

Conventional boilers

Conventional boilers use a storage tank to supply hot water. The water is heated via cast iron heat exchangers and combination boilers can supply gallons of hot water at one time. Once the stored hot water runs out, there may be a delay in supply as the tank refills.

Conventional boilers tend to require more space than combination boilers as the hot water cylinder requires connection with a cold water storage tank that will typically be placed in the loft. This also means that installation is often more complicated than with a combination boiler.

Older models of conventional boilers tended to be less energy efficient, but advances have been made and newer models can be adjusted to match the specific heating requirements of your home.

British Gas offer a range of conventional boilers including compact systems that can easily be fitted into most modern kitchens.

Combination boilers

Combination boilers, or  combi boilers, supply water directly from the mains without the need for a storage tank. As a result, combination boilers supply hot water on demand in unlimited supply.

Combination boilers are ideal for smaller properties where space is at a premium.

Combi boilers also provide water at mains pressure, meaning you can enjoy a strong, hot shower without the need for an additional shower pump.

Combination boilers from British Gas include condensing technology and an ECO mode, both of which improve your control over water heating by maintaining boiler temperature whilst in standby mode.

If you would like further advice on choosing the right boiler please contact us for further information