Gas boiler costs

[Emslucky1]

I have been pretty religious with taking meter readings for the past month and know pretty much my upper and lower daily usage now, but I ran an experiment by not using any gas at all for a few days and found that it was using about 0.27 cubic meters of gas a day, purely when the boiler went into test mode (which it does several times per hour for about a minute each time).

I had been previously told not worry to as the costs are inconsequential. but. when I calculated the costs (my unit costs is about 5p/unit), the costs came to just under £5/month. That's £60/year just for test mode if I am correct.

Are my figures wrong or is there something weird going on with this boiler - as it seems too much energy to burn simply on test mode. Hoping some of you guys can give me your experiences and maybe some guidance and advice.

The boiler is an Ideal Isar He30.

 

[katykicker]

I would say that is probably right. The thing is if you turn if off you'll need to switch it on I fire up for everything - even Washing your hands. If your hands are dirty and you remember and have to turn switch on you are encouraging germs to breed.

Also, it fires up regularly to stay safe presumably. No build up of pressure or other dangerous nasties x

 

[katykicker]

Oh, your boiler name was familiar, I looked it up and it's the one we had. It was brand new when we moved in and after 20 months of battling with Barratt it was finally ripped out and replaced wih a Potterton one. We had the heat exchange plate replaced at least 10 times in that time. If you notice your hot water getting colder and colder over time (usually worse furthest pipe away) that's what it'll be.

Our whole building has them, after 4 1/2 years here at least 6 of the 16 residents I know have had similar problems / replacements. Was a right nightmare as I'm on the top floor and so they had to erect scaffolding for the flue!

 

[Emslucky1]

Thanks for your replies

Yep, I've had a fair few issues with it already and had to have the pump replaced just last week when the boiler wouldn't fire up. Thankfully it was through the council, so there won't be any costs involved for myself. When I read up on the make of boiler some time ago I noticed there were a fair number of negative remarks, surprising for a boiler that has an 'A' efficiency rating. One engineer even remarked how bad the particular model is - so could be typical council cutting costs I suppose.

Anyhow, now I'm thinking if I should switch it off at least overnight and wonder if it will cause problems with the electronics (which were also replaced a year ago), with switching on and off daily.

£5 may not sound much but it does irk me when I'm spending that and not getting any benefit from it at all, especially when I read other guides on how to save less than that amount through other energy saving means (not leaving things on standby etc).

 

[katykicker]

Yeah I understand your point completely, £5 is still £5.

I would say overnight would be fine and at least save you around 1/3 of that. Then it'll still be available when you need it.

When I had problems I read lots of councils and housing associations use that boiler. Must be cheap!