Heating setup query...help !!

[Dan Robinson]

A wall. (Breeze block)

 

[Norcon]

Though it was a cold room. lol
Anyway that pipe work looks real purdy.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Cheers the other side was a cupboard leading onto the basement annex flat's laundry room.

 

[JonasX]

A good solution if your hot water demands can be satisfied with a Multipoint (with no backup); and you are on UFH only (unless it's a totally modern building that can work off 50 rad flows).

I suspect the OP's system will be too disparate to work on such a set up though.

He said a multi-point "or" a separate boiler/cylinder setup. He also said a combi used only as a water heater and connect the flow and return of the CH together. He said some combis are cheap for the water flow rates they offer. Instant water heating does appeal to me.

His point was that by using the low kilowatt burning Geminox boiler UFH can be installed very cheaply and quickly without any degradation in performance or compromises. The simple ubiquitous parts of the UFH would make it cheap to maintain with no special knowledge needed.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Yes I am aware of his point and the thinking behind it.

 

[JonasX]

Yes I am aware of his point and the thinking behind it.

I was confused when he said buy a good flow combi and do not use the CH side AND a separate Geminox boiler for the UFH. I naturally said why not use the CH side of the combi as this is a waste and extra money for the Geminox. It took a while for the penny to drop for me. He said, seldom does UFH in well insulated houses need more that around 10 to 12 kW of heating. Once the house is up to temperature and UFH only runs at 40 to 50 degrees C, the Geminox will sit there all day constantly running pouring only 1 kilowatt of heat into the house just about matching input to output. He said a combi, or other type of boiler, would cycle as it cannot get anywhere near as low as 1 kilowatt and it would need complex and expensive blending valves, extra pumps and the rest to operate UFH. The sophistication of the Geminox eliminates the need for all the UFH controls.

The one Geminox boiler would be more reliable as it is simple and does not need excessive controls. He said using the Geminox would still make it cheaper to install as it simplifies the lot.

He alerted me to the Intergas combi as when using it for hot water only the pump does not come in as the pump is for CH only, and the CH side is ignored. He said the pump can be removed for other purposes as long as it is bridged out, saving money and using a redundant pump. I am not sure about that, maybe the Intergas experts here can confirm. There is also the problem of guarantees. Getting a multi-point to give 13 litres a minute costs far more money than an Intergas. So there again method to his madness.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Jonas, it might be wise to start your own thread as your needs are totally different to the OP's.

I can help you further then with your Intergas query.

 

[JonasX]

Dan, I am trying to nail things down before making the big decision and have done some research. My needs are not exactly the same as the OP. I am alerting him to having his UFH on one Geminox boiler heating only the UFH and another boiler doing the hot water and radiator zones. The radiator boiler can be a combi if it meets his DHW needs. I saw the solutions offered and thought they were over engineered, complex, expensive, bulky and rather commercial looking when this need not be the case. Many heating men here I assume are not familiar with eliminating all the UFH temperature controls and installing all on one low kilowatt boiler.

Another point I was made aware of in the Geminox heating only the UFH is that there would be no sludge in the UFH loops as ferrous is removed from the system, apart from the pump.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Many heating men here I assume are not familiar with eliminating all the UFH temperature controls and installing all on one low kilowatt boiler.

Oh I wouldn't say that .