What is the considered opinion on hot air central heating.

We have just bought a house with this installed. The boiler however is very old and in need of replacement. In addition to this their is little air flow to some rooms upstairs, and some downstairs areas get too hot... Just to add insult to injury, one downstairs room that we need heat in does not have a vent in at all.

Should we stick with the hot air system and try and balance it out, add ducting and replace the boiler, or junk it and do a gas to water with rads and a megaflow hot water system?

Gas, water and rads are more conventional and probably easiest to maintain and service.

I put a Vailant boiler in last year, replacing a 15 year old one, our bills since have been down 30% on the previou years.

[Edited on 12/11/10 by r1_pete]

I have had vailants in the last two houses so really rate them too!

Just not sure about trying to save the hot air system...

Ditch it!!!

We moved into our current home 2yrs ago with a hot / cold air system and it was very poor and like you we had rooms with no vents ie bathroom and small room.

Quite expensive to keep a steady heat in the home and the worst part was getting someone out to service it or even have knowledge of it!?!

We lasted 6 weeks before replacing with a completely new combi boiler and radiator set up and it felt like a new home again. Our next door neighbors popped around to introduce themselves after it was fitted and could not believe the difference.

Kev

ditch it asap

I had some seriously nasty problems with it, both health and financial

try leaving bowls of water around the house when its on, see how fast they dissapear,

our heating bills in my old house went down to about 30% of the bills for same period with warm air

in my opinion its dangerous and to be avoided

Replace it

a mate had it and it cost him an arm and a leg to run it

Word of warning.

If you're taking it out, the area the boiler is sited in is very likely to contain asbestos.

If it does you need it taken out and disposed of in accordance with the regulations.
Asbestos

Don't even be tempted to take it out yourself and try and tip it.
If you get caught, it's a fairly hefty fine.

Just a word of caution, that's all.

Thanks zil, I wouldn't dare touch it!

We had a friend in the trade come round last week and he said the same thing about the under stairs lining being asbestos

Have you looked into the possibility with replacing it with an exhaust air source heat pump?

Draws air out of the top of the house, captures the heat from the air and pumps it back into the bottom of the house.... Can also be reversed to cool the house using the same method...

Worth looking into, they are suposed to be exceedingly efficient and very good for air quality etc

Just scrap it, no question. Fit a new condenser boiler/rads/thermostic valves, depending on your property for £2.5 - £3K. The efficiency of the new system will save you money on fuel costs and you will have full control over the heat. Barry

I'm in the industrial heating and aircon game, I'm asked to look at these a few times a year. I turn down every one!

Most industrial companies do not hold the ACS qualification to come into your house, but look after these on industrial / commercial premises every day. Domestic guys are rarely qualified to work on 'warm air'.

These had a run of popularity in the late 70's and 80's and if it's just warm air it's probably a Johnson and Starley, without doubt there's asbestos.

As mentioned the two options are boilers and air source air conditioning. If you want any info on the air conditioning give me a pm on Monday and I'll put you in touch with your local Mitsubishi or Daikin rep who could advise.

Why are you looking at a megaflow for hot water? You must have a big house or high hot water demand if you need to go away from a combi. Have you calc'd the house yet?

If it were me I would go with a boiler and rads.

Couple of things;

Warm air systems are very dry, and not very pleasant if left on overnight in my experience. They can also transmit air from one room to another, or CO from one room to another as well as germs etc. If one person gets a cold, expect the others to as well.

With regards to Asbestos, you cna leave it in as long as its painted and remains undisturbed. Not so easy when throwing things under the stairs, or with animals. The ideal scenario would be to have it removed professionally, but be prepared for the house to look like a forensics scene for the weekend.

If you have a lack of air flow in some rooms and not others, the dampers may need adjusting, or the heating coil cleaning out.

Hope this helps, and good luck. Personally, i think i would look at pulling it all out.

Thanks guys, it is a four bed place with two baths at the moment, but we are putting in a granny friendly space which will add another bathroom.

Having had a combi, I am not a great fan (sic) which is why I'm looking at the megaflow. We have a noisy pump for the showers at the moment which I would cheerfully burn

How do I go about the calcs?