Installer recommends 18kw instead of 15kw?

[tibi08]

Got a quote recently for a new Worcester boiler to replace a 10 year old Potterton boiler which is 15kw. Never had any problems with the 15kw Potterton in terms of power. The installer says it's worth paying a little extra for the 18kw because it will be more efficient - something about the fact that it will run more smoothly when it steps down to a lower output than the 15kw which will switch on and off.

This is the opposite of my understanding, that the 15kw boiler is more efficient than 18kw since it burns less fuel. The minimum outputs are 5kw and 6kw respectively - I can't see that there is a lot of difference in terms of when the respective boilers will switch on and off.

Is the installer just trying to up-sell me something I don't need?

 

[Steelmasons]

Why would the installer "up-sell" you something you don't "need"...if you don't trust him then go elsewhere.
If you are adamant the 15kW is what you need then ask him to fit it FFS.....3kw?????..jeez..

 

[D_Hailsham]

Yes.

 

[Steelmasons]

Yes.

On what basis?

 

[Cgas]

On what basis?

He used his crystal ball.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Same fecking piece of schit boiler anyway with a different coding chip.

Don't blame the installer, blame worcester for the con.

 

[picasso]

Wow 15kw ri @ £810 and the 18 ri @£870 a whole £60 difference, you must feel really pressured.

 

[Steelmasons]

This is what we have to deal with day in and day out (potential customers)...glad I'm out of it...

 

[picasso]

Got asked to quote for a boiler service for the first time this week, apparently I have to go round and see whats involved and then give a written quote, might give that one a miss.

 

[Agile]

I don't make free visits to quote. Just give a budgetary quote by phone based on customer's description of what is wrong.

No point in fitting a more powerful boiler than you need.

Tell prospective installers that you want a quote for a 15 kW boiler.

If its a heat only boiler then the Worcester 15 Ri is a very quiet and small boiler.

I mostly do repairs but have fitted about eight of the Ri series and only one has had a fault within the warranty period and that was the fan.

Tony

 

[FiremanT]

The trouble with YOU specifying exactly what model, rather than your required result is that if iy goes wrong, YOU are likely to get the blame.
Ge another quote.
Your RGHI will be tryongto avoi issues (rightly or wrongly),. There is normally no mileage profitwise in upscaling a boiler size (unless he has an 18 kicking around)

 

[tibi08]

Why would the installer "up-sell" you something you don't "need"...if you don't trust him then go elsewhere.
If you are adamant the 15kW is what you need then ask him to fit it FFS.....3kw?????..jeez..

This is what we have to deal with day in and day out (potential customers)...glad I'm out of it...

Wow. Just wow. I have always thought that one of the main differences between good tradesmen and bad tradesmen is whether they can see things from the customer's perspective. You really ought to put yourself in their shoes occasionally and things would be better for you.

Why would I *trust* a tradesman who I have never seen before? Trust is something that is earned. I might trust him in the future, but I'm not going to trust him the first time we meet. As for "this is what we have to deal with"... it seems you have difficulty explaining yourself coherently to customers... or maybe you think they are too insignificant to have to justify yourself to. You must have offered a really friendly, helpful service in your day...

Wow 15kw ri @ £810 and the 18 ri @£870 a whole £60 difference, you must feel really pressured.

What an ignorant comment. I want the right boiler for my circumstances... which therefore has the lowest running cost. And anyway, why would I waste £60 unless there is a benefit? There is presumably a reason why Worcester offer a 15kw AND a 18kw boiler.... the point seems lost on you.

No point in fitting a more powerful boiler than you need.

Tell prospective installers that you want a quote for a 15 kW boiler.

If its a heat only boiler then the Worcester 15 Ri is a very quiet and small boiler.

Thanks for this, very helpful.

The trouble with YOU specifying exactly what model, rather than your required result is that if iy goes wrong, YOU are likely to get the blame.
Ge another quote.
Your RGHI will be tryongto avoi issues (rightly or wrongly),. There is normally no mileage profitwise in upscaling a boiler size (unless he has an 18 kicking around)

Thanks, you have a good point there.

 

[muggles]

I'd be more worried about why you're looking at an overpriced plastic-filled boiler that's really quite difficult to work on, than I would about a difference of 3kW at the top and 1kW at the bottom.

As for trust, you can trust people who have a good reputation and recommendations from others (generally).

 

[tibi08]

I'd be more worried about why you're looking at an overpriced plastic-filled boiler that's really quite difficult to work on, than I would about a difference of 3kW at the top and 1kW at the bottom.

As for trust, you can trust people who have a good reputation and recommendations from others (generally).

This is actually a really interesting topic. It's true that Worcester is plasticy and not very serviceable, but they are rated highly by all their users and the Which? consumer guide. In fact whenever I mention Worcester to people, they acknowledge that they are good and mention that they or their friend has one which he/she is very happy with (including positive experiences in this thread). Perhaps the thing is, this is just what a modern day boiler is built like.

 

[muggles]

This is actually a really interesting topic. It's true that Worcester is plasticy and not very serviceable, but they are rated highly by all their users and the Which? consumer guide. In fact whenever I mention Worcester to people, they acknowledge that they are good and mention that they or their friend has one which he/she is very happy with (including positive experiences in this thread). Perhaps the thing is, this is just what a modern day boiler is built like.

They are indeed highly rated by Which? They also may or may not be one of the largest financial contributors to Which?'s research fund....you work it out People think they're good because Worcester spend millions of pounds every year telling them they're good, and when they go wrong they have 350 engineers charging around the country putting them right again (you do the maths...350 engineers doing 4-5 jobs a day each, working 364 days per year. That's a lot of repairing going on). Their marketing and backup is very good, the build quality less so. Not all boilers are made of plastic. Have a look at Intergas - H&V Product Of The Year 2016, never had a heat exchanger failure in 15 years of using the same design, much simpler boilers which can use OpenTherm high-efficiency heating controls, no plastic waterways nor a rubber gas pipe, probably the easiest boiler out there to service....generally better