The 'Today's Job' thread

[pettsy]

Interesting. doing away with a rad is big bonus in itself if space is tight. So assumedly if you have the rad in the room you just run the UFH off the same pipework that would have supplied the rad?

I try not to get involved with single room kits connected onto existing radiator pipework. I always split the ufh onto its own feed so that it can run independent of the radiators. Ufh takes longer to get up to temperature, so this allows it to do so while the radiators upstairs for example may be up to temp. It’s not a cheap option compared to radiators, but something i wanted to do while we’re doing work on the house.

 

[DaveDCB]

Thread hijack - speccing heating system for latest build, not sure what to go for tbh, oil is fine but prefer external to save superheating the room it’s in(got minstrel at my house and it’s been a pain if I’m honest, sometimes it superheats the water up and burns if your not careful, then locks out, also it’s a pig when temps change, have to recalibrate twice a year)..tank is always a issue as they take up so much room and look a pigs ear.

LPG gets bad EPC but underground tank and nice wall hung tidy boiler.. cost abit more in juice?

Heat pump.. never been there but again big unit outside and tank space inside?
Decisions!!

 

[DaveDCB]

I try not to get involved with single room kits connected onto existing radiator pipework. I always split the ufh onto its own feed so that it can run independent of the radiators. Ufh takes longer to get up to temperature, so this allows it to do so while the radiators upstairs for example may be up to temp. It’s not a cheap option compared to radiators, but something i wanted to do while we’re doing work on the house.

Big fan of wet ufh downstairs and rads up, works really well, done it afew times now.

 

[pettsy]

I guess a bit depends how far you’re going with spec? Unvented cylinder allows you to have a secondary solar coil. If it’s a big place with multiple bathrooms/en-suites you’ll be doing that anyway. ASHP, can’t see how the costs is justified even with the grants vs a gas/oil boiler. Don’t know the cost of LPG vs Oil, but I would say the LPG boiler will be much cheaper to buy initially.

Last barn conversion I worked on had an external oil combi, ufh and rads.

 

[V8Druid]

I guess a bit depends how far you’re going with spec? Unvented cylinder allows you to have a secondary solar coil. If it’s a big place with multiple bathrooms/en-suites you’ll be doing that anyway. ASHP, can’t see how the costs is justified even with the grants vs a gas/oil boiler. Don’t know the cost of LPG vs Oil, but I would say the LPG boiler will be much cheaper to buy initially.

Last barn conversion I worked on had an external oil combi, ufh and rads.

would be my choice

 

[Stroppymonkey]

Thread hijack - speccing heating system for latest build, not sure what to go for tbh, oil is fine but prefer external to save superheating the room it’s in(got minstrel at my house and it’s been a pain if I’m honest, sometimes it superheats the water up and burns if your not careful, then locks out, also it’s a pig when temps change, have to recalibrate twice a year)..tank is always a issue as they take up so much room and look a pigs ear.

LPG gets bad EPC but underground tank and nice wall hung tidy boiler.. cost abit more in juice?

Heat pump.. never been there but again big unit outside and tank space inside?
Decisions!!

LPG (bulk) not dissimilar running costs to oil these days and cheaper to install and maintain.
If you are doing a full rebuild and adding good insulation and UFH on ground floor then probably best going for ASHP but ONLY if you have someone that really knows what they are doing. Any muppet can fit a oil or gas boiler and make it work (although whoever fitted your Mistral seemed to struggle to get it right?)
I am a big fan of oil, but again, get it done right. Nice little EOGB Sapphire boiler on a low temp UFH set up will just sip fuel. Dearer to install though.

If you are building to sell then focus on EPC. Lenders are starting to favour properties with better EPC. We got a better deal on our new mortgage recently as we are Band C.

 

[Stroppymonkey]

would be my choice

in my opinion and experience.. an Indirect cylinder always superior than a combination boiler, Combi is just for space saving. Cylinder provides back up hot water and allows for solar PV input.

I guess a bit depends how far you’re going with spec? Unvented cylinder allows you to have a secondary solar coil. If it’s a big place with multiple bathrooms/en-suites you’ll be doing that anyway. ASHP, can’t see how the costs is justified even with the grants vs a gas/oil boiler. Don’t know the cost of LPG vs Oil, but I would say the LPG boiler will be much cheaper to buy initially.

Last barn conversion I worked on had an external oil combi, ufh and rads.

We used to (in the 00s) spec all our cylinder installs with Solar coils, but over the last 15-20 years we have seen solar PV pretty much make solar Thermal obsolete.
Much better to use a Immersion Relay on your solar PV (like a Eddi unit for example) to heat your water. Simpler and cheaper to maintain with increased flexibility.
We offer high recovery coil cylinders on Fossil fuel boiler installs, and mandatory on ASHP.

A correctly designed / installed / commissioned R290 ASHP on the correct tariff will be cheaper to run than any oil or gas boiler ...IN THE RIGHT PROPERTY.
A badly designed/installed ASHP will always cost more to run than a badly designed installed oil / LPG boiler system.

Install costs on ASHP can be comparable to oil by the time you factor in oil storage and there is 0% Vat on ASHP installs, which can also stretch to include the whole heating system. On a barn conversion which may be 5% or 20% vat the difference in Vat can influence decisions. (Even without the BUS Grant)

I feel that I have a fairly balanced view on all this, as we install Oil / LPG / Gas and ASHP and GSHP systems and favour none. All it depends on the property and the customer as to which is suitable.
Most dedicated ASHP installers are blinkered, up their own asses and holier than thou hypocrites. Many oil technicians who only work on oil are often Luddites and refuse to acknowledge superior technologies


.....I shall get off my high horse and get back to work..............

 

[William127]

Days topping and striming around the outside of the football pitch
Robot mower keeps everything in really good order, apart from the long stuff, which had gone wild.
Customer said 'can you do me a favour and take this old ride on mower away please? There's something wrong with it.'
Er yes, I think I can do that even has the rough cut/mulching deck, and a second normal deck!
Looking forward to seeing what it needs to get it going (apart from a track rod, which we managed to snap pulling it up the ramp by hand!)

 

[V8Druid]

Days topping and striming around the outside of the football pitch
Robot mower keeps everything in really good order, apart from the long stuff, which had gone wild.
Customer said 'can you do me a favour and take this old ride on mower away please? There's something wrong with it.'
Er yes, I think I can do that even has the rough cut/mulching deck, and a second normal deck!
Looking forward to seeing what it needs to get it going (apart from a track rod, which we managed to snap pulling it up the ramp by hand!)

to quote Vinny " you lucky bast**d !! " ..... 's a grandsworth of Countax an' another 300 quidsworth of deck
Honda or Briggs/Vanguard?

 

[Powerfab]

to quote Vinny " you lucky bast**d !! " ..... 's a grandsworth of Countax an' another 300 quidsworth of deck
Honda or Briggs/Vanguard?

I'll second that, looks like a reasonably newish model too.
Why do I never get so lucky?

 

[William127]

to quote Vinny " you lucky bast**d !! " ..... 's a grandsworth of Countax an' another 300 quidsworth of deck
Honda or Briggs/Vanguard?

I know, I'm well pleased
Honda according to the stickers, haven't opened the bonnet yet

 

[William127]

I'll second that, looks like a reasonably newish model too.
Why do I never get so lucky?

I've a mate who always seems to have things like this happen to him- my Dad say if this guy fell in a pond he'd come out with a fish in every pocket
Doesn't happen to me very often either, need to enjoy it when it does

 

[TiltyShaun]

in my opinion and experience.. an Indirect cylinder always superior than a combination boiler, Combi is just for space saving. Cylinder provides back up hot water and allows for solar PV input.

We used to (in the 00s) spec all our cylinder installs with Solar coils, but over the last 15-20 years we have seen solar PV pretty much make solar Thermal obsolete.
Much better to use a Immersion Relay on your solar PV (like a Eddi unit for example) to heat your water. Simpler and cheaper to maintain with increased flexibility.
We offer high recovery coil cylinders on Fossil fuel boiler installs, and mandatory on ASHP.

A correctly designed / installed / commissioned R290 ASHP on the correct tariff will be cheaper to run than any oil or gas boiler ...IN THE RIGHT PROPERTY.
A badly designed/installed ASHP will always cost more to run than a badly designed installed oil / LPG boiler system.

Install costs on ASHP can be comparable to oil by the time you factor in oil storage and there is 0% Vat on ASHP installs, which can also stretch to include the whole heating system. On a barn conversion which may be 5% or 20% vat the difference in Vat can influence decisions. (Even without the BUS Grant)

I feel that I have a fairly balanced view on all this, as we install Oil / LPG / Gas and ASHP and GSHP systems and favour none. All it depends on the property and the customer as to which is suitable.
Most dedicated ASHP installers are blinkered, up their own asses and holier than thou hypocrites. Many oil technicians who only work on oil are often Luddites and refuse to acknowledge superior technologies


.....I shall get off my high horse and get back to work..............

I think you have hit the nail on the head……IN THE RIGHT PROPERTY.
The new builds I have been involved with have been a mixed bunch as some are self builders are overs are developers. All have gone with underfloor heating downstairs and rads upstairs.
My favourite is a self builder that used a ground source heat pump. If I was building a plot for myself that would be my ideal with solar thermal for hot water.
The developers I have worked for tend to go with gas if possible, then ASHP if not. Oil seems to have gone out of favour.
At home I am having a great time with the battery that was installed. Charge up overnight on 6p. We are getting through most days on the overnight charge. The battery also means that we are able to use the excess from the solar panels to top the battery up rather than export for which we don’t receive any additional money.

 

[Stroppymonkey]

I think you have hit the nail on the head……IN THE RIGHT PROPERTY.
The new builds I have been involved with have been a mixed bunch as some are self builders are overs are developers. All have gone with underfloor heating downstairs and rads upstairs.
My favourite is a self builder that used a ground source heat pump. If I was building a plot for myself that would be my ideal with solar thermal for hot water.
The developers I have worked for tend to go with gas if possible, then ASHP if not. Oil seems to have gone out of favour.
At home I am having a great time with the battery that was installed. Charge up overnight on 6p. We are getting through most days on the overnight charge. The battery also means that we are able to use the excess from the solar panels to top the battery up rather than export for which we don’t receive any additional money.

Yes batteries are a game changer .
I need to sit down and do the sums for my house again.

 

[V8Druid]

Yes batteries are a game changer .
I need to sit down and do the sums for my house again.

think the biggest issue with batteries is cost V lifespan - very often an unknown quantity - and factoring lifespan into the calc.s is a hard one

 

[Furniss]

Little bit of demo today - its a luxury to have the tilty gripper combo to dismantle and sort as you go

 

[Stroppymonkey]

Little bit of demo today - its a luxury to have the tilty gripper combo to dismantle and sort as you go
View attachment 77220View attachment 77221
View attachment 77222View attachment 77223

That right there is my dream job.

 

[Furniss]

That right there is my dream job.

They are not all that good trust me

 

[doobin]

It’s been so long I kind of forgot I had it!

A mate borrowed it for a job and it’s been in his farm the last few months.

 

[Lancs Lad]

It’s been so long I kind of forgot I had it!

A mate borrowed it for a job and it’s been in his farm the last few months. View attachment 77235

Snickers