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How Long Does A Boiler Last?
What is the average life of a boiler?How much does it cost to replace a boiler?How often should you replace your boiler?How much should a boiler service cost?Ask The Experts TodayCall 0151 924 9141
How Long Does A Boiler Last?
Maybe your boiler has had a good innings, but many people wait for a boiler to actually break down before they change it. You probably think we’re going to be biased when we say it’s not always worth holding out for that moment, but the truth is that if your boiler isn’t efficient - you are burning your hard earned cash.
Waiting For Your Boiler To Snuff It Could Cost You
One of our customers was paying over £300 per month to heat a two bedroomed house she had moved into because her landlord had refused to condemn the older boiler in the house using their own heating engineer.
They called us out to take a look and after his inspections, our heating engineer recommended a new boiler straight away. Luckily this was acted upon and her new gas bills were slashed to less than £50 per month.
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What is the average life of a boiler
Imagine if she’d held out for a few months. That was in the summer too so we dread to think what it would be like in the winter!
Admittedly this is quite a clear cut case because as a new tenant she could see that her bills were very wrong and that the boiler needed replacing. In most cases though, your bills slowly creep up as the efficiency of your boiler creeps down. It’s sometimes so subtle as we’re all so busy with our day to day lives that one day we suddenly realise we’re paying WAY over the odds for our heating
As your boiler ages, it has to work so much harder just to do what it used to do with ease but it doesn’t just do that overnight does it?
Not only does this deterioration slowly push your bills up while it heats your home but it only increases the risk of it malfunctioning on you.
Your Boiler Really Is The Heart Of Your Home
Many of us are guilty of taking things for granted - don’t worry we all do it. It’s a kind of ‘out of sight, out of mind’ scenario as something that isn’t causing us problems is almost unseen.
Our heating and hot water are prime examples of this. Nobody likes being cold inside their home. Or having a cold shower. Okay so maybe a few of you ‘tougher types’ do, but we’re definitely not with you on that one!
Most people like to come home on a cool day to a warm home. They like to turn on their taps and receive hot water as expected.
It feels almost like a ‘God-Given Right’ when we’ve paid for it.
And unless you’re savvy with your energy saving - we certainly do pay for it!
But at the core of all of this is your boiler. You can probably conjure up fairly easily an example of how people will rally round for each other, or at the very least, sympathise when a friend shares that their boiler has gone kaput on them.
We All Expect To Be Warm And Have Hot Water At Our Beck And Call
When you consider that, according to Energy UK, your gas or oil fuelled boilers are responsible for around 60% of your energy bills, you can see that not staying on top of it’s efficiency when you want to be all toasty, really can start to make a substantial difference.
But that doesn’t occur to most people. Let’s think about how this looks ‘in real life’...
For instance, you may have a boiler only 12 years old which still ‘looks’ as good as new. It’s not going to occur to you to change something which still looks in great condition is it?
You may also have just one thermostat in the house responsible for gauging the temperature of the house as a whole.
More modern boilers are far more efficient than those being made only 8- 12 years ago.
Devices to manage your temperature have advanced significantly too, allowing you to be far more specific on how you heat the zones within your home.
If we refer back to that 60% statistic of your boiler doing most of the work, the combination of a new boiler and being able to precisely manage how you heat the areas of your home could very quickly make a significant difference to your bills.
It wouldn’t be long before the combined energy efficiency starts to earn it’s keep - besides the fact that you no longer have the worry of an expensive malfunction and callout hanging over you.
We mentioned on our Liverpool boiler repair page how just turning your heating up by 1 degree, increases your bill by around 3%. That’s when your boiler is pretty efficient. It’s a double whammy with an inefficient boiler as it has to work far harder to get your heat up to the required temperature which impacts your bills more, plus the heightened wear and tear increases the malfunction risk.
Consider Types Of Boiler BEFORE You Jump In And Replace Your Existing One
If you do decide to invest in a new boiler, it’s well worth seeking professional advice first. There is far more to your decision than the initial cost, especially if you intend on staying in your home for many years.
There are various types of boilers - combination or ‘combi’ boilers as they’re more commonly known are a hugely popular choice in the UK. They account for more than half of all new domestic boilers fitted in the country each year. But they’re not always the best choice for some homes.
Larger homes for instance will use water differently to smaller ones so being well informed before simply requesting a like for like replacement is always advisable.
The manufacturer of the boiler you have can make quite a difference too. It may feel tempting to go with a cheaper unknown option if you’re trying to save money in the short term.
But when you stick with well recognised brands such as Worcester or Bosch, not only is it peace of mind that they are long-standing brands worthy of your trust, they are also far easier to maintain.
Opting for newer less recognised brands can cause problems with replacing parts for instance so you may save money on the initial installation, but you may pay for this if you have to source non-standard parts if the boiler malfunctions. Worst case scenario is that a smaller, lesser known company is more of a risk too so there’s a heightened chance of you not being able to source parts at all because of a poorly funded business closing its doors.
We always recommend sticking with the big names. Combining their reputation with a local and reputable business like Merseyside Central Heating is the best way to ensure your home is energy efficient as well as warm!
Get in touch if you’d like us to service your existing boiler, provide a free quote for a new boiler or need any advice or help on your central heating or water. It’s what we do!
We’re always asked “how long does a boiler last?” Boilers usually last around 15 years so if your boiler is nearing this age, we’d suggest starting to save for a new one. The best way to keep your boiler in fine form for longer is through annual boiler services too.
As with anything in life though, this will very much depend on various factors such as the boiler manufacturer, the quality of the initial boiler installation as well as how well your boiler has been maintained. Obviously a poorly maintained boiler isn’t going to last anywhere near as long as a well serviced one.
The life expectancy of a boiler is very much dependent upon which boiler type you have. The average life expectancy of most traditional gas boilers or condensing boilers is around 10 to 15 years if you have kept it well maintained and serviced it annually. Other types of boilers such as electrical ones can last around 8 to 12 years.
If you have invested in a top end boiler, it’s not unreasonable to expect a well serviced model to last 20 years or more but you’re usually looking at a lifespan of around 12 to 15 years on a mid range model.
To replace a boiler in exactly the same spot as the current boiler can cost from as little as £600, but this can obviously vary greatly especially if the new boiler needs to be located in a different area. The installation costs are what make up the bulk of your new boilers installation though.
A new boiler installation may have other additional costs such as fitting new radiators or a thermostat, or having a power flush of your existing heating system which we’d always recommend to ensure optimum synergy of the entire system. There’s no point having a new boiler of half your radiators are clogged up!
If you’re wondering how often you should replace your boiler, it’s pretty safe to assume around 12 years to 15 years is a good run depending on which type of boiler it is. If your boiler is around this age, it would be sensible to start putting some funds aside for a new one. Annual services are a crucial way of keeping your boiler in optimum condition for much longer too.
Annual services are like an MOT on your car because it’s a regular inspection by an expert who knows how to spot any potential issues before they happen - they know what they are looking for and can alert you to any potential malfunctions which may have gone unnoticed if you’re not in the know. Well that’s assuming that you’re not a Corgi-registered engineer yourself of course!
Annual servicing for your gas boiler is usually arranged via annual servicing contracts - these also include break down cover too. Annual boiler servicing contracts are usually priced between £150 and £250 but an ad-hoc boiler service normally costs around £75.00 to £120 with Merseyside Central Heating.
This may seem like an unnecessary expense but you can understand why they are promoted as peace of mind when you think that during a boiler service, a gas safe registered engineer will carry out important checks on everything within your boiler and system from the heat exchanger through to all of the electrical connections and seals. They will also make sure the correct pressure is in place on your gas boiler, clean any components which need it and replace all damaged or worn parts.