Where a boiler is still the right answer, it should at least be the right boiler.
The specification on the box only becomes a lower bill if the system design is right.
Not every home is ready for a heat pump, and not every homeowner wants to make that jump right now. Where a gas boiler is the sensible option — because the house isn’t yet upgraded, because a failed boiler needs replacing this week, or because the numbers simply work better — it’s worth doing well.
Older boilers send a significant portion of their heat straight up the flue. A condensing boiler recovers much of that by extracting heat from the flue gases before they leave — but only when it’s running in condensing mode, which depends on a low return temperature.
That’s the part that gets missed. A condensing boiler plumbed into an old system running at high temperature spends most of its time not condensing, and delivers a fraction of the improvement it’s capable of. Getting the system design and controls right is what turns the specification on the box into a lower bill.
The cheapest efficiency upgrade in any heated building.
Controls are the cheapest efficiency upgrade in any heated building, and the most commonly neglected. A properly controlled system includes:
Upgrading controls on an otherwise adequate boiler is frequently better value than replacing the boiler itself. We’ll tell you when that’s the case.
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If a heat pump is the long-term plan but the house isn’t ready, sequence the boiler replacement with that in mind. Pipework, cylinder and emitter decisions made now either help or hinder that transition, and the difference in cost today is usually small. We plan boiler installations with the eventual upgrade path in view, so you’re not paying twice.
Replacement is the right call when the boiler is beyond economic repair, when parts are no longer available, when it’s an old non-condensing unit, or when you’re already opening up the system for other works. Repair is often the better call on a relatively young boiler with a single failed component. We’re not in the business of selling boilers to people who don’t need them.
All gas work is carried out by Registered Gas Installers. Every installation is commissioned, tested and certified, and we’ll flag any existing safety issues we find on site whether or not they’re part of the job.
A straight swap is usually a day. A system upgrade with new controls, cylinder or pipework takes longer.
Not always. It depends on the cylinder’s age, insulation standard and whether the new system changes how hot water is produced. We’ll assess it.
Fossil fuel boiler replacement is not supported under the main SEAI grant schemes, which are aimed at insulation, renewables and heat pumps. Heating controls upgrades have historically been supported alongside insulation measures — we’ll confirm what currently applies.
If your boiler is working and your house isn’t upgraded yet, spending on insulation first and heating later is usually the better sequence. If your boiler has failed, you need heat now — so replace it, and plan the fabric work behind it.
Call 051 850722. Registered Gas Installers, every job commissioned, tested and certified.
