Hot water heating systems need regular maintenance if you want them to run efficiently. From powering your morning shower or weekend bath to giving you a hot running tap to wash the dishes, your hot water system handles a lot in the home.
That’s why it’s essential to have adequate hot water boiler maintenance and servicing every year. But hot water cylinder maintenance for traditional systems can be expensive, and costs can quickly add up. The most cost-effective hot water systems not only operate at maximum efficiency, but they are low- to no-maintenance, giving you a reliable solution that ensures value for money.
In this post, we discuss the maintenance requirements for traditional hot water cylinders vs. low maintenance options like Sunamp.
How to look after hot water cylinders
Conventional boilers with a hot water cylinder are still used in many households. While there are some benefits, such as being able to store a certain amount of hot water and being easily compatible with heating systems, they are complicated both to install and maintain.
The performance constraints and high maintenance requirements mean that homeowners have to fork out extra costs to keep things running.
Hot water cylinders need to be serviced every 12 months, and in most cases it will be stipulated by the manufacturer in order for the warranty to be valid.
Each year, you will need a suitably qualified service engineer to check the cylinder for defects, check expansion systems for correct installation, as well as check seals, valves, flexible hoses and electrical wiring to ensure everything is working properly.
In addition to the annual service, it is also your responsibility to carry out periodic hot water cylinder maintenance and inspection. This means you need to inspect your system for cracks, and wear and tear. And to maintain the functionality of your hot water system, you should regularly inspect the relief valve to make sure it is able to let out excess pressure.
Carefree maintenance with Sunamp
While hot water boiler maintenance is costly and time-expensive for traditional hot water systems, Sunamp provides a completely worry-free solution for homeowners. As well as simple installation with no pipework required, this on-demand hot water system doesn’t need annual servicing – making expensive hot water boiler maintenance a thing of the past.
With the Sunamp hot water heating solution, there are no hot water maintenance requirements. You will not need to periodically check for wear and tear or see to the boiler pressure, and you won’t need to pay an engineer to come out every 12 months.
A quick comparison of conventional systems vs. Sunamp:
- Hot water cylinders last 8-12 years – With Sunamp you can put 40,000 charges of the phase change material with zero degradation. This can equate to 20+ years of life.
- Hot water cylinders need annual servicing – Sunamp is maintenance-free
- Hot water cylinders store water – Sunamp gives you hot water on demand
Cost of investment vs. savings
If you need to replace your hot water heating system, you’re probably interested in finding the most cost-effective solution. A typical hot water cylinder replacement can cost anywhere up to £1,300 depending on the type of cylinder you need. On top of that you will need pay for labour costs (generally 3-4 hours), which can take the total cost up to £1,620.
Annual servicing and repair costs can range from around £150 to several hundred pounds, depending on the condition of your system, and whether anything needs replacing. And most manufacturer warranty periods only stay valid if servicing is done every 12 months, and to the manufacturer’s guidelines.
For a Sunamp system, installation starts at £2,500, but there are no hot water maintenance costs to bear.
But the biggest cost saving is in the efficient system, with our customers saving at least £3,912 over a 20 year period after switching to Sunamp!
If you want to find out more about how much you can save, get in touch with North East Heating Solutions today. Call 0800 808 5816 to speak to our team, or get a free survey of your property.