Boiler Replacement and Plumbing in Warlingham (CR6)
Warlingham is a village of two halves and a boiler replacement asks a different question in each. Near the centre, on the period cottages, the question is where a flue can honestly come out. On the larger family homes further out it is whether the boiler has to stay where it is at all.
The flue decides where the boiler goes
People tend to choose a boiler and then wonder where it can sit.
It works the other way round: the flue terminal has to come out somewhere it clears windows, doors, boundaries and anything that opens, and that is what limits the positions available to you. On a period cottage in a conservation-minded street, a terminal appearing on the front elevation is not a decision to be taken on the morning of the fit. There are usually alternatives — a route through to a rear or side elevation, a longer horizontal run, or a vertical flue taken up and out through the roof — but they cost different amounts and they need settling at the survey while the price is still being written. The same goes for the condensate, because a modern boiler makes water and it has to reach a drain.
Moving a boiler is four jobs, not one
On the 1960s and later family houses, a boiler in the middle of the kitchen is holding a cupboard that could be doing something else, and moving it is a real option. That means a new gas run, sized for the appliance rather than assumed from what is already there; a flue in a workable position; a condensate route to a drain; and the heating and hot water pipework taken across to the new spot. Then there is the building work behind all of it. Gas and heating engineers are brought in and managed by us; the chasing, the joinery for a new cupboard, the plastering and the making good is done by our own trades, and one firm prices and runs both halves. It is one job to you, and one number to ring afterwards if anything wants looking at.
While the system is drained
If the water is coming out of the system anyway, it is the sensible moment to deal with anything else that has been irritating you.
Radiators that have been in the wrong place since a room was reconfigured, a towel rail in the bathroom, thermostatic valves fitted to the rooms that do not have them, and a proper set of controls so the whole house is not heated on one timer for the sake of one room. A magnetic filter on the return catches the debris an older system carries and is a small cost at this stage. None of it is worth a separate visit and a second drain-down later, and all of it is cheaper while the floor is already up and the system is already empty.
More in Warlingham
Everything we do in Warlingham is on the Warlingham area sheet, and the full detail of how we approach this trade is on the heating & plumbing page.
Common questions
Q.01Can the boiler move into the garage or utility?
Often yes, and it frees up kitchen space. What it needs is a flue position that works, a condensate route to a drain and a gas supply sized for the appliance, and in an unheated space the pipework and condensate need protecting from the cold.
Q.02Will a new boiler need a new gas supply pipe?
Sometimes. The existing pipe was sized for whatever was there before, and a different appliance in a different position may need a larger run. It gets checked at the survey, not discovered on the day.
Q.03Where will the flue come out on a period cottage?
That is worked out before anything is ordered. The terminal has to clear openings and boundaries, and on a street where the frontage matters we look at rear, side and vertical routes first.
Q.04Do you cover the whole of CR6?
Yes, the village and the outlying roads. We are based at 27 High Street, Godstone, which is a short drive from Warlingham.
Thinking about heating & plumbing in Warlingham?
Tell us what you are planning. We come out, look at the job properly and give you a price for it.