Have you put your heating on yet?

[Wolfox]

36 minutes ago, Spudulike said:

We've just gone from a very inefficient old hot water cylinder type system (25 years old!) to a new combi boiler (Ideal Atlantic). Don't know if that's a decent boiler or not (reviews are OK) but comes with a 10 year guarantee. Previously we were advised to leave the bathroom radiators on full permanently (non thermostats although all others in the house have them). Seems such a waste and not sure if they need to be full on now that we have a new combi boiler. What d'ya reckon? 

It’s good if heats your rads and hot water!  Ideal is fine…. It’s a relatively well known brand…. Make sure you adhere to the terms of your guarantee by getting it serviced etc.

 

You’ll have a general programme for your heating coming on and off?

You can’t put thermostatic valves on bathroom rads, so keep it open…. Your system always needs to have part of it open as an overrun….   You can do it through seperate pipe work, but most do it through the bathroom rad

 

Just for absolutely clarity, I’m not a plumber!

 

Edited 22 November 2022 by Wolfox

[Spudulike]

5 minutes ago, Wolfox said:

It’s good if heats your rads and hot water!  Ideal is fine…. It’s a relatively well known brand…. Make sure you adhere to the terms of your guarantee by getting it serviced etc.

 

You’ll have a general programme for your heating coming on and off?

You can’t put thermostatic valves on bathroom rads, so keep it open…. Your system always needs to have part of it open as an overrun….   You can do it through seperate pipe work, but most do it through the bathroom rad

 

We have two bathroom towel rail radiators so will leave them full on. I'll sit next to them when it gets really cold! 

 

I've bought a Nest to control the heating but not quite worked out how best to use it so far. 

 

Cheers. 

[Daggers]

9 minutes ago, Wolfox said:

 

Just for absolutely clarity, I’m not a plumber!

 

Hmm… 🤔

 

 

[Wolfox]

1 minute ago, Spudulike said:

We have two bathroom towel rail radiators so will leave them full on. I'll sit next to them when it gets really cold! 

 

I've bought a Nest to control the heating but not quite worked out how best to use it so far. 

 

Cheers. 

Shrewd move!!!

 

There’ll be a ton of YouTube tutorials on how to get the best out of Nest…. 

[StanSP]

Update!

 

Engineer came out - sump needs replacing. We watched a video on YouTube about leaking Ideal Logic boilers, which showed some of the casing of the sump having a hairline crack in it, and the leak actually happens over a very long time.

 

Weirdly, as I watched the engineer take the front case off the boiler and investigate it, the sump casing had a crack in the exact same place as it did on the boiler in the YT video. 

 

A very common problem on Ideal Logic boilers and not one that we could have done anything about. But it is going to cost us approx £300 to have it fixed! About the cost we expected, really. In a way I'm glad it's a common problem as frustrating as the financial outlay is at this time of year - at least it's something that is fixable and not something more major.

 

Engineer also explained a bit more about the thermostat issues and confusion - apparently all looks to be in working order and the temperatures we set as part of the preset timer is actually a 'target' temperature for the time we set as opposed to the temperature that the radiators will get to from the time we set. 

And we just have to pay more attention to what the room temperature is based on the sensor in the house, as this will explain why the heating will come on or not. So if sensor detects room temp at being 21c, our heating won't come on even at the preset time unless the room temp drops below that.

 

Our tank in the airing cupboard also has a 'diverter valve' and engineer said this is what is probably causing some of the radiators near the tank to become hot, as when the hot water is on, the valve is diverting some of that water into those radiators, which lines up with what @Wolfox was saying.

 

So, all in all, a resolvable issue at some cost, but nowhere near the worst case scenario.

[Wolfox]

16 minutes ago, StanSP said:

Update!

 

Engineer came out - sump needs replacing. We watched a video on YouTube about leaking Ideal Logic boilers, which showed some of the casing of the sump having a hairline crack in it, and the leak actually happens over a very long time.

 

Weirdly, as I watched the engineer take the front case off the boiler and investigate it, the sump casing had a crack in the exact same place as it did on the boiler in the YT video. 

 

A very common problem on Ideal Logic boilers and not one that we could have done anything about. But it is going to cost us approx £300 to have it fixed! About the cost we expected, really. In a way I'm glad it's a common problem as frustrating as the financial outlay is at this time of year - at least it's something that is fixable and not something more major.

 

Engineer also explained a bit more about the thermostat issues and confusion - apparently all looks to be in working order and the temperatures we set as part of the preset timer is actually a 'target' temperature for the time we set as opposed to the temperature that the radiators will get to from the time we set. 

And we just have to pay more attention to what the room temperature is based on the sensor in the house, as this will explain why the heating will come on or not. So if sensor detects room temp at being 21c, our heating won't come on even at the preset time unless the room temp drops below that.

 

Our tank in the airing cupboard also has a 'diverter valve' and engineer said this is what is probably causing some of the radiators near the tank to become hot, as when the hot water is on, the valve is diverting some of that water into those radiators, which lines up with what @Wolfox was saying.

 

So, all in all, a resolvable issue at some cost, but nowhere near the worst case scenario.

Ah… good stuff, at least you’re not looking a lot a new boiler…!

 

So the controls are smart?  It works out when you have to turn your heating on in order to hit x temperature at y time…. That’s quite sophisticated! 

[StanSP]

43 minutes ago, Wolfox said:

Ah… good stuff, at least you’re not looking a lot a new boiler…!

 

So the controls are smart?  It works out when you have to turn your heating on in order to hit x temperature at y time…. That’s quite sophisticated! 

Yeah that's a positive. 

 

I'm not sure about 'smart' but it works differently to any other thermostat I've known!

 

The manual/user guide doesn't even mention 'target' temperatures. Even when we rang Danfoss the other day he found it difficult to explain and didn't really clarify anything.

[Raj]

1 hour ago, StanSP said:

Update!

 

Engineer came out - sump needs replacing. We watched a video on YouTube about leaking Ideal Logic boilers, which showed some of the casing of the sump having a hairline crack in it, and the leak actually happens over a very long time.

 

Weirdly, as I watched the engineer take the front case off the boiler and investigate it, the sump casing had a crack in the exact same place as it did on the boiler in the YT video. 

 

A very common problem on Ideal Logic boilers and not one that we could have done anything about. But it is going to cost us approx £300 to have it fixed! About the cost we expected, really. In a way I'm glad it's a common problem as frustrating as the financial outlay is at this time of year - at least it's something that is fixable and not something more major.

 

Engineer also explained a bit more about the thermostat issues and confusion - apparently all looks to be in working order and the temperatures we set as part of the preset timer is actually a 'target' temperature for the time we set as opposed to the temperature that the radiators will get to from the time we set. 

And we just have to pay more attention to what the room temperature is based on the sensor in the house, as this will explain why the heating will come on or not. So if sensor detects room temp at being 21c, our heating won't come on even at the preset time unless the room temp drops below that.

 

Our tank in the airing cupboard also has a 'diverter valve' and engineer said this is what is probably causing some of the radiators near the tank to become hot, as when the hot water is on, the valve is diverting some of that water into those radiators, which lines up with what @Wolfox was saying.

 

So, all in all, a resolvable issue at some cost, but nowhere near the worst case scenario.

I'd hold onto this engineer if I was you...sounds like a keeper and a good un.

Worth their weight in gold.

[SpacedX]

1 hour ago, StanSP said:

Update!

 

Engineer came out - sump needs replacing. We watched a video on YouTube about leaking Ideal Logic boilers, which showed some of the casing of the sump having a hairline crack in it, and the leak actually happens over a very long time.

 

Weirdly, as I watched the engineer take the front case off the boiler and investigate it, the sump casing had a crack in the exact same place as it did on the boiler in the YT video. 

 

A very common problem on Ideal Logic boilers and not one that we could have done anything about. But it is going to cost us approx £300 to have it fixed! About the cost we expected, really. In a way I'm glad it's a common problem as frustrating as the financial outlay is at this time of year - at least it's something that is fixable and not something more major.

 

Engineer also explained a bit more about the thermostat issues and confusion - apparently all looks to be in working order and the temperatures we set as part of the preset timer is actually a 'target' temperature for the time we set as opposed to the temperature that the radiators will get to from the time we set. 

And we just have to pay more attention to what the room temperature is based on the sensor in the house, as this will explain why the heating will come on or not. So if sensor detects room temp at being 21c, our heating won't come on even at the preset time unless the room temp drops below that.

 

Our tank in the airing cupboard also has a 'diverter valve' and engineer said this is what is probably causing some of the radiators near the tank to become hot, as when the hot water is on, the valve is diverting some of that water into those radiators, which lines up with what @Wolfox was saying.

 

So, all in all, a resolvable issue at some cost, but nowhere near the worst case scenario.

I had an Ideal condenser boiler fitted recently. After installation, I contacted the plumber because the pump turns off immediately with the boiler and questioned whether this had been wired incorrectly. He told me that there isn't an overrun requirement with these heat only boilers which is why no terminal wiring option is provided since the heat exchangers are able to dissipate heat more efficiently - I'm assuming it's aluminium and that an internal fan is activated during shut down. 

[Arkie Bennett]

We were in credit when the gas and electric bills came last month. Today we've been told our monthly payment has tripled to £400 a month. We simply can't afford to put the heating on. Looks like some savings will have to be made, my City season ticket looks unsustainable.

[FoyleFox]

3 hours ago, Arkie Bennett said:

We were in credit when the gas and electric bills came last month. Today we've been told our monthly payment has tripled to £400 a month. We simply can't afford to put the heating on. Looks like some savings will have to be made, my City season ticket looks unsustainable.

Have you been in the house a while and know your average usual consumption? Martin Lewis the Money Saving Expert has a calculator on the website to check the correct direct debit costs you should be paying. 

A lot of providers have just been increasing people's DD with random projection costs. 

I've seen a projection for ours on our suppliers site which said our payment should be double but we're on a fix for another 12 months! 

[SpacedX]

12 hours ago, Arkie Bennett said:

 Looks like some savings will have to be made, my City season ticket looks unsustainable.

Well as the saying goes - "every cloud..." and all that. 

[Lcfc82]

Does anyone know if you can have your gas supply to your property disconnected and what cost is involved in doing it ? 
Thinking of switching to an electric boiler as our current gas one is the only gas appliance we have.

[Lako42]

9 hours ago, Lcfc82 said:

Does anyone know if you can have your gas supply to your property disconnected and what cost is involved in doing it ? 
Thinking of switching to an electric boiler as our current gas one is the only gas appliance we have.

Electricity is a lot more expensive 

 

Seems a strange level of effort as I would imagine loads of houses only use gas for heating. 

[yorkie1999]

23 hours ago, FoyleFox said:

Have you been in the house a while and know your average usual consumption? Martin Lewis the Money Saving Expert has a calculator on the website to check the correct direct debit costs you should be paying. 

A lot of providers have just been increasing people's DD with random projection costs. 

I've seen a projection for ours on our suppliers site which said our payment should be double but we're on a fix for another 12 months! 

Get onto variable rate direct debit, you pay for what you use the previous month and not a projection but still get dd savings. Mine went from 250 a month to 120. Obviously you don’t accrue any credit but I’m still 700 in credit from before I changed it,  thing is you can budget properly if you’ve got a smart meter instead of it being a big guessing game that, imo, the energy companies just make up how much you’re going to pay.

[Eurofox]

Realised it was cheaper to move to Portugal & just open the windows,😇

[The Blur]

The moisture in my house has shot up since I started to turn the heating on.  Do anyone have recommendations for dehumidifiers?  I was wondering whether to get one and rotate between rooms or to get multiple small ones and put on the windowsills.  

[StanSP]

2 minutes ago, The Blur said:

The moisture in my house has shot up since I started to turn the heating on.  Do anyone have recommendations for dehumidifiers?  I was wondering whether to get one and rotate between rooms or to get multiple small ones and put on the windowsills.  

We've got a small one for our lounge. 

 

Only costs 4p/day. Its a small 1L Black & Decker one from Curry's. 

 

Probably some good deals given its Black Friday but worth doing the research. 

 

We noticed straight away the condensation has reduced on our patio hugely since having it on. 

[The Blur]

On 25/11/2022 at 11:24, StanSP said:

We've got a small one for our lounge. 

 

Only costs 4p/day. Its a small 1L Black & Decker one from Curry's. 

 

Probably some good deals given its Black Friday but worth doing the research. 

 

We noticed straight away the condensation has reduced on our patio hugely since having it on. 

 

Nice one.    How come you only bought one- is it for economic reasons or that the issue was just restricted to your living room?

[StanSP]

30 minutes ago, The Blur said:

 

Nice one.    How come you only bought one- is it for economic reasons or that the issue was just restricted to your living room?

Issue mainly in the living room. Haven't really noticed the issue being bad enough in other rooms to warrant it. 

[FoyleFox]

Second Octopus saving session saved £0.85p

[Bellend Sebastian]

Just been emailed to be told that my gas smart meter is no longer communicating with the provider, so now I haven't got a clue what's going on and will have to submit my own meter readings going forward, like a peasant.

 

It's probably gone on strike like everyone else, and after all I've done for it - clearing out its cupboard, putting down some carpet tiles in there and so on

[Tommy G]

On 23/11/2022 at 20:05, Arkie Bennett said:

We were in credit when the gas and electric bills came last month. Today we've been told our monthly payment has tripled to £400 a month. We simply can't afford to put the heating on. Looks like some savings will have to be made, my City season ticket looks unsustainable.

Are you living in a large 5 bed detached with poor insulation? That's £4,800 a year! Surely something a miss?

[rachhere]

2 hours ago, Tommy G said:

Are you living in a large 5 bed detached with poor insulation? That's £4,800 a year! Surely something a miss?

Some of the amounts people are being charged I can’t get my head around. We have a large 3 bedroom house, older property as well so insulation wise it could be better, but our last few months charges have worked out at around £140 a month, and we are currently paying out £190 direct debit. 
 

Arkie B - I hope you have got to the bottom of it - those are crazy figures 

[fox_up_north]

I got told by chaps at gas board (when Eon decided my gas meter wasn't safe - which it is) to not get a smart meter for gas, as it can cut out and cut supply to the home.