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Reported in Jan 2010; According to a Which? poll of nearly 3,000 boiler owners, Vaillant and Worcester Bosch are the most dependable brands on the market. Both manufacturers have been popular choices for a number of years, and were backed up by excellent customer satisfaction score of 83%. Crucially, only 29% of Vaillant customers said that they had experienced problems with their boiler – the lowest score of any brand. Worcester scored 32%. A brand to avoid, according to Which?, is Keston. An enormous 79% of the Keston owners said they had experienced problems with their boiler within four years of purchase; while just 47% thought they had made the right choice. Steer clear. Other low scorers were Ideal and Halstead. Just 64% of customers said they were satisfied with their Ideal – the second lowest score in the poll – while 53% of Halstead boiler owners complained of problems during its first four years. Elsewhere, well-known British brand Potterton faired well, scoring 73% for customer satisfaction, with only 38% of customers reporting teething problems. The absolute minimum gaurentee you should expect on any new boiler is 2 years. Worcester are currently offering 7 years (up to the end of December) as opposed to 5 years normally on their "Greenstar" range. Well worth considering and discussing with Shaun. As with any "white goods", to some degree you do get what you pay for and spending a little more on up front cost can have significant long term benefits.

Roland Gilmore ● 5291d

Victoria,You can add Worcester Bosch to the list. They with Vaillant were always the benchmark brands, though I have heard talk of another highly rated brand coming to the UK market (might begin with a 'K'?), with very good feedback.It is worth taking the time to consider how effective your current boiler has been. Have you been happy with the way it heats the house, or the speed at filling a bath?  That might lead you to the same, or a higher power rating.With that in mind, check the paperwork or stickers/markings on the old boiler. There is likely to be a rating for hot water (HW) in kilowatts - 15-30kW is typical.If you then want to gen up on models, the websites for both manufacturers have quite a lot of info if you take your time. There are other factors in selecting a model, but at least you're working from a position of knowledge and you can guide the plumber towards your wishes (some less scrupulous will propose models with the best margin rather than best suitability). Also, if you google model names, you can truffle out trade prices - useful for assessing how reasonable a margin your plumber is making.I would ensure your chosen model has a visible water pressure gauge - pressure loss is a common cause/symptom of problems and a gauge gives you notice. It may even help you get her fired back up rather than sitting in the cold waiting for an emergency plumber.Final point is to consider timer and thermostat. There are some serious systems now, going as far as week-long programmers for both times and temperatures for every separate radiator. You may not want/need that, but something that allows different times for each day, and placed better for viewing is not a bad idea. It can be integrated onto the boiler facia or screwed on the wall (or even wireless). Whatever you choose, there's no better time to sort it.

Richard Hodges ● 5301d

The main thing to consider is whether you actually want a combi or not. Combis are influenced by water mains pressure rather than atmospheric pressure/gravity in traditional systems. The main pros and cons of combis are:-You will no longer have an airing cupboard heated by the hot water cylinder that becomes redundant with a combi installation as does the expansion tank, if you have one (usually in the loft). Some see this as a plus because it releases space for storage, others as a disadvantage because you may need another heating source if you want an airing cupboard. If you like baths, the bath tends to fill more slowly with combis and if other hot water demand is concurrent (such as running a washing machine at the same time), watching water cooling in a half filled bath can be frustrating. Sizing a replacement boiler correctly is crucial.If you have an independent electric shower, there’s no difference but if your shower is fed from the hot water cylinder currently, it is possible (dependant on boiler specification) that you may experience a drop in pressure since with a combi system you are dependent on mains pressure as opposed to atmospheric pressure/gravity. If there is disruption to the water mains, you would lose hot water too.Because the savings from combi systems lay entirely with hot water costs (central heating remains the same), efficiency savings depend on how much hot water you use currently.All new domestic boilers are the condensing type and much more efficient than your old Potterton (at least 30% better). Combis tend be cheaper to buy than traditional gravity system boiler replacements but usually require more plumbing work in removing the hot water cylinder and adapting hot water pipework etc. as opposed to making a straight swap.As far as particular manufacture of boilers compare, each plumber usually has his favourite based on his trade discount. Technical comparison is beyond most of us and data bases of in-service cost comparisons and reliability, very hard to come by. The only note of caution I would make is that many boiler manufacturers try to sell you insurance against break down when the boiler is registered with them once installed and you should expect a warranty from the installer anyway. Under consumer protection law, insurance should not be necessary in the early years, provided you have a normal annual service. I hope that helps Victoria.

Roland Gilmore ● 5302d