The luxury line of boilers: Making an educated investment
Ettan Bazil, founder and CEO of Help Me Fix, explains more about what to look for when investing in a new boiler.
For landlords, selecting the right boiler for your property is a strategic decision, much like picking out a luxury car for a long-term investment.
It’s not simply a matter of hardware but the warranty and service it comes with. This guide explores how investing in top-tier boilers is parallel to choosing a luxury vehicle and why opting for a premium model with an extended warranty can be a wise decision for the longevity of your property’s heating solution.
Top-Tier Boilers: The Extended Warranty Advantage
When landlords are faced with the decision of installing a new boiler, the choices can be as varied and complex as picking out a luxury vehicle. The top-tier boilers on the market—names like Worcester Bosch, Viessmann, and Vaillant, offer the equivalent of the BMW, Aston Martin, and Mercedes experience in heating. They boast not only sophisticated technology and peak performance but also come with the assurance of a 10-year extended warranty. This warranty is the landlord’s equivalent of an automotive service package, ensuring that the heating ‘engine’ of your property is covered well into its later life.
The Economy Range: A Short-Term Fix?
Brands like Main, Glow Worm, and Ideal, on the other hand, are the economy cars of the boiler world. They come with shorter warranty periods, typically 5-7 years, and represent a smaller upfront investment. They can be tempting for the budget-conscious but may not stand the test of time as their more robust counterparts do.
The Maintenance Parallel: Ensuring Peak Performance
The analogy extends beyond purchase. Just as a new car requires regular servicing to maintain its condition, a new boiler benefits from essential maintenance. Power flushing the heating system when installing a new boiler is akin to changing a car’s oil during an engine change—it clears out debris and ensures that the new boiler operates at its best from day one.
Protecting the System: Filters and Arrestors
Further paralleling car maintenance, it’s critical to install a central heating filter to catch any corrosion debris, just as you would protect a car’s engine with high-quality oil and filters. If a boiler is close to the water meter, fitting a shock arrestor is essential to safeguard against hydraulic surges, similar to how shock absorbers protect a vehicle’s integrity.
Combating Scale: The Heating System’s ‘Coolant’
For combination boilers, particularly in hard water areas, a scale reducer is indispensable. It acts like the coolant in a car, preventing the secondary heat exchanger from scaling up and ensuring efficient operation.
The message for landlords is clear: when you choose a boiler, you are investing in a warranty as much as the equipment itself. While economy models may offer short-term savings, premium boilers with extended warranties provide long-term security and performance.
This ensures that if issues arise in the later years, the warranty, like a luxury car’s service agreement, will keep your ‘vehicle’ on the road with minimal disruption to your tenants and your finances.
Just as luxury cars come with a service pledge, a top-range boiler comes with a commitment to warmth and comfort that stands the test of time.
