Choosing the right size boiler for your home is a crucial task for homeowners and landlords, as it will hopefully be providing the heating and hot water for your property for the next 15 years. Because boilers come in a range of different types and outputs, it can be difficult to work out what you need. So we asked our Southern Heating home experts to provide a rough guide, to help you get the right size boiler for your home and your budget.

1. Size is important! If your boiler is too small you will not have enough warmth or hot water.

If your central heating boiler is undersized for your property, your property won’t have any heating and hot water properly circulating around your home. Your radiators, and hot water cylinder won’t receive enough hot water. This means your family (or tenants) won’t be warm or happy during the colder months.

2. Vice Versa If your boiler’s too big, you could be wasting your hard earned cash.

An overpowered boiler won’t provide you with any extra benefits. However, a modern condensing boiler can automatically tweak its output to meet your lower demands. The increased output could be too much for your heating system to cope with so that extra power is wasted. But keep in mind, you’ll have to spend big money on a new boiler you may not need.

Types of boilers

combi boilers Verse conventional boiler

Combi boilers heat water directly from the mains when you turn on a tap. With a combi boiler you don’t need a hot water cylinder or a cold water tank in the loft space, roof or basement. For a 4-person family or an average-sized home, combi boilers are usually the most efficient option.

However, if you have a large property with 3 or more baths or showers that could feasibly be used at the same time, a combi boiler may not be the right choice for you. A conventional boiler will likely be more suitable (with a hot water tank as this will have a volume of water heated to 60oc that can be delivered to multiple outlets at the same time without a significant drop in flow rate or pressure.

Combi boilers are generally available in three size ranges;

24 kW
Suits most flats, apartments and smaller houses, with 1 bathroom.

30kW
This is perfect for a medium to large 3-4 bedroom house with 1 bathroom and an ensuite bathroom.

35kW to 42kW
This suits a large house with anything over and 2 bathrooms.

When a combi boiler won’t cut it

Important information: Combi boilers don’t fare well when there’s more than one shower running at the same time. If yours is a busy household or you’re a landlord of a multiple occupancy property, consider a system boiler with an unvented cylinder.

Size matters
We hope we’ve helped you understand what type of boiler size you need for your home. If you run into problems with your current boiler. Get an estimated new boiler quote and find the perfect boiler for your home. Please contact us Phone 01322 836266 or Email info@southernhvac.co.uk.