There are 3 different types of boiler systems, regular, system and combi. A combi boiler is a combination of water heater and central heating boiler all in a compact unit.
A combi boiler is fed off directly from the mains water supply which means it delivers a stronger pressure. While both regular and system boilers have a hot water cylinder to store hot water, a combi boiler will process hot water as and when required.
Combi boilers are preferred in the majority of new boiler installations across the UK as they are of higher energy efficiency, convenience and compact in size.
There is vast selection of new combi boilers available on the market with manufacturers offering multiple ranges such as gas, oil, LPG and electric combi boilers.
There are many advantages of having a combi boiler installed such as high energy efficiency, this significantly reduces your homes carbon footprint and potentially lowering your heating bills. Another advantage of having a combi boiler means having lower energy bills, due to 92% efficiency. When you consider that some of the older non-condensing boilers only reach 55% efficiency, it represents a significant saving. Due to combi boilers being in one unit, this makes them easy to install. They produce hot water on demand and have a much stronger flow of hot water as its coming directly from the mains.
Although there are many advantages to having a combi boiler there are also some disadvantages, such as them being not suitable for larger properties? This is because the water is coming directly from the mains and heats on demand, so if it is having to supply several outlets at once it will have to split the flow making it weaker. Combi boilers are also not compatible with old pipework which is designed to handle a weaker flow from a feed tank in the attic, your existing pipework may not cope with mains pressure.