How much does a new boiler cost? What changes the quote

Ask three people what they paid for a new boiler and you will hear three very different answers. That is not because installers pick a number out of the air. A boiler quote is built from the house itself: what is there now, what needs to change and how much work sits around the appliance. Once you know which parts of the job move the price, comparing quotes becomes far easier.

The boiler itself

Type of boiler

The first decision is whether the home suits a combi, a system boiler or a regular boiler. A combi heats water on demand and needs no cylinder. A system boiler works with a hot water cylinder, and a regular boiler usually also relies on tanks in the loft. Staying with the same type is often simpler than converting from one to another, because a conversion can mean removing tanks, adding or taking out a cylinder and changing pipework. Our guide to choosing between a combi, system or regular boiler walks through which suits which home.

Output and the size of the home

A boiler needs enough output for the heating and hot water the house actually uses. A larger home, more radiators or more bathrooms generally call for a more powerful appliance. Fitting one that is far bigger than needed does not help, so a proper survey matters more than a guess.

Gas or oil

Homes on mains gas usually have a gas boiler fitted by a Gas Safe registered engineer. Homes off the gas main often run on oil, which needs an OFTEC registered installer and has its own supply arrangements at the boiler. See our pages on gas boiler installation and oil boiler installation for more on each.

The make

Different manufacturers and ranges sit at different points in the market. Pro Plumbers is a Worcester Bosch accredited installer, and we also fit Vaillant boilers. The model chosen affects the quote, and so do the controls that come with it.

The work around the boiler

Often the appliance is only part of the story. These are the items that most often change a quote from one house to the next:

• Position and flue route. Replacing a boiler in the same spot with a straightforward flue is simpler than moving it to another room or running a long or awkward flue.
• Hot water cylinder. Keeping, replacing, adding or removing a cylinder changes the scope. An unvented cylinder needs a G3 qualified installer, explained in our article on unvented cylinders and G3.
• Existing pipework and radiators. A new boiler connected to dirty system water can suffer. If the radiators are full of sludge, a clean such as a power flush may be recommended first. If old pipes are corroded or leaking, some pipework replacement may be sensible.
• Controls and thermostats. A basic programmer and room thermostat, or more advanced controls, each change what is included.
• Access. A boiler in a tight cupboard or a loft, or a property with difficult parking or stairs, can add time.
• Paperwork. A new boiler installation needs to meet building regulations and be registered properly. That notification is part of the job, not an optional extra.

How we quote

We look at the house before we give a price. The engineer checks the existing boiler, the flue, the cylinder if there is one, the pipework and radiators and how the household uses hot water. From that, you receive a written quote. Minimum charge £90 + VAT, including the first hour on site. Larger jobs get a fixed, no-obligation price.

To be plain about it: the minimum charge applies to small jobs and call-outs, such as a repair visit. It is not the price of an installation. A boiler replacement is a larger job and always gets its own fixed price once we have seen the property.

Questions to ask any installer

Whoever you ask to quote, these questions help you compare like with like:

• Is the engineer Gas Safe registered, or OFTEC registered for oil, and can I see their ID?
• Which boiler and model is included, and why does it suit this house?
• Is the boiler staying in the same place, and what flue work is needed?
• What happens to the cylinder and any loft tanks?
• Will the system be cleaned before the new boiler goes in, and is inhibitor added?
• Which controls are included?
• Who registers the installation, and what paperwork will I receive?
• Is the price fixed, and what would cause it to change?

Small repairs versus replacement

Sometimes the right answer is not a new boiler at all. If the appliance is in reasonable condition and the fault is a single part, a repair may make more sense. Our boiler repair page explains what a repair visit involves, and our guide to call-out charges explains how small jobs are charged. If repairs are becoming frequent, or parts are hard to obtain, it is worth asking for a replacement quote so you can weigh the two.

Keeping a new boiler healthy matters too. Annual servicing protects the appliance and is often a condition of the manufacturer's warranty. Our article on boiler service costs sets out the choice between single visits and a plan.

If you would like a fixed price for a new boiler, call 01732 444555 or request a quote and we will arrange a survey from our Sevenoaks base.