As most homeowners will no doubt agree, the boiler always seems to be one of the biggest sources of consternation. Whether it’s fears over a mid-winter breakdown or unhappiness with how often the hot water runs ice cold (especially when it’s you in the shower, and not anyone else), boilers are the very necessary but very unsatisfactory employee we’d all love to fire.
Here’s how it can cost you more money than heating your home and hot water should.
A Major Breakdown Could be Lurking Around the Corner
It’s not just the cost of operating your boiler and having routine maintenance that you need to consider. Even with regular checks, old boilers are at risk of running into problems, because they’re under a lot of mechanical stress – particularly during the winter months.
If your boiler breaks down at this time of year, then you have very few options available to you beyond emergency repairs, since your home and hot water still need to be heated.
As is often the case, preventative measures, such as switching to a modern alternative, are far better than reactive ones.
Fossil Fuels are Only Getting More Expensive
Gas boilers are reliant on a source of energy that is at the very heart of the energy price wars, and directly impacted by shortages due to global conflicts and extreme weather disrupting supply routes.
It’s been impossible not to notice the rising energy costs, and the fact that, despite positive improvements in terms of supply and demand, energy companies maintain that the cost to the consumer needs to remain inflated for the foreseeable future.
Heat pumps, as an alternative, rely on electricity. This means they can be used seamlessly alongside other renewable energy solutions such as solar panels – something experienced companies like gsmlimited.com specialise in. In other words, you can heat your home without feeling guilty about the end of month bill.
Gas Boilers Need Far More Maintenance than Heat Pumps
Gas boilers work via combustion, which places a huge demand on the internal mechanics of the boiler – which is why they require such regular maintenance. A heat pump is simpler, with fewer moving parts that have to carry a high mechanical load, which means they’re a lot easier to take care of.
They’re Inefficient at What They Do
Very few boilers are working as well as they should be – and, even then, they fall short of what we actually need them to do.
This is largely because gas boilers work in short bursts of extreme energy. You turn the hot tap on, you hear them kicking into action. You put on the heating, and they’ll go full speed until the living room is suddenly so hot you have to open the window in the depths of winter.
Heat pumps are different, working constantly at a lower energy demand to keep rooms and water at the right temperature, rather than requiring sudden injections of high heat.