TEMPERATURES have dropped recently and I’m so glad I have a brand new boiler with smart heating.
Boiler replacements can be a daunting task if (like me) you don’t really know what you’re doing.
So it was a surprise to see just how easy it can be all ordered online with BOXT.
The company takes you through several very simple steps to work out the exact boiler right for your home.
New boiler: Booking
It’ll ask things like how many radiators you have, whether your current boiler is wall mounted, the type of home you live in and where the flue comes out.
Having bought a new house with a very old boiler in last year, working out which boiler is right for my needs was my biggest fear.
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All these questions and answers narrow down your options so you get a boiler suitable for my needs.
It determined that the best option for my three bed semi detached home is the Worcester Bosch Greenstar 4000 30kW, so I go for it.
Now, it’s onto the booking – again, very simple with all the available days laid out.
You can pay a little more to have it installed on a peak day or very soon, and you can save money by opting for a quieter period too.
What’s ideal is you can get smart tech extras added on as well, which is a big draw for me.
In this day and age they are essential for managing your heating needs – and it’s been a lifesaver on many occasions, such as warming things up after a week away.
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You can buy a Hive smart thermostat in your BOXT package or if you already own a smart heating system you can pay a fiver extra to have it all installed.
Having tried and failed to self-install my existing Nest thermostat I decided to get the engineer to do it when putting in the new boiler.
Now that’s all booked in, you need to send in photos of your existing boiler and surrounding areas.
This allows the engineer to figure out what they’re dealing with before coming to your home, thereby saving time.
New boiler: Offers
Be sure to look out for any special offers before proceeding with your order.
These are usually displayed quite prominently on the BOXT homepage.
When I was sorting mine last year they were giving away free Hive smart thermostat systems.
At the time of writing, BOXT are offering £125 off the total with discount code BOILERS125.
New boiler: Installation
The engineers arrived bright and early to install the boiler.
And better still, they took the old combi away.
They checked with me about any changes they might need to make to the kitchen such as potentially needing to remove the current cupboard – fortunately, it did not come to that.
And they also went around to all my radiators to carry out a power flush using a radiator agitator which loosens stubborn sludge inside the radiators and helps them perform better – this cost an extra £199 but is well worth it.
They then added the Nest system so I can finally control my heating from anywhere at any time.
All in all, the engineers were gone by lunch time and the heating was ready to go.
New boiler: Results
Since getting the boiler installed in November I’ve noticed that the heating is a lot faster and more powerful than before.
The new boiler also takes up considerably less space – and is less noisy.
And of course, I’m loving the ability to control the heating with my Nest system added on.
All in all, the quote was for £2,864.
Here’s a breakdown of the costs: £2,545 for the boiler itself, £5 for Nest to be installed, £50 for a Shock Arrestor Boiler Protection Pack, £199 for the MagnaCleanse Flush with Power Cleaner and £65 for the In-line Scale Reducer.
All prices in this article were correct at the time of writing, but may have since changed.
Always do your own research before making any purchase.
