Whichever fuel the boiler is running on whether it s mains gas oil or lpg it enters a sealed combustion chamber inside the boiler and an electric ignition sets it alight.
Combi boiler sealed central heating system diagram.
You should read this page in conjunction with the page on boilers and the page on heating controls.
A secondary plate heat exchanger.
How a combi boiler system works.
Central heating is a really convenient luxury to have.
A primary heat exchanger.
Central heating systems are either open vented or sealed systems.
Hot water is made instantaneously so a hot water cylinder isn t.
An automatic bypass valve is fitted inside most combi boilers by the manufacturer these days.
So in places where space and hot water requirements are limited such as flats these can be very popular systems.
Your combi boiler doubles as a central heating unit by adding a radiator.
Sealed system using a combination boiler the majority of modern combination boilers often include a pump pressure gauge expansion relief valve filling loop and expansion vessel in with the boiler.
For central heating 2.
No external pump no tanks no external expansion vessel no motorised valves and in many cases item 6 is not needed either.
The vented boiler regular boiler and combination boiler systems probably account for over 95 of water based central heating installations.
A combi boiler system combines central heating and hot water within the same compact unit.
Those over 10 years old have a simple heat exchange system which can be as low as 70 fuel efficient.
The boilers fitted to older central heating systems i e.
Everyone has a basic understanding of how a boiler works.
A modern condensing boiler maximises fuel efficiency by extracting heat from the latent waste flue gases by means of a condensing system.
Combi boilers are available in gas electricity or oil depending on your fuel preference.
Hamworthy s upton condensing boilers and stratton mk2 wall hung boilers are suitable for installation in sealed heating systems only.
System boilers are slowly becoming more common.
Combi system this diagram illustrates how simple the heating system connected to a combi boiler is.
However our purewell variheat cast iron condensing boiler can be.
They house two heat exchangers.
The combi boiler doesn t require a bulky storage cylinder and can easily fit into most kitchens or storage cupboards making them the ideal system for houses with limited space.
Nb not to be confused with vented and unvented hot water tanks which are explained in our guide to hot water cylinders many homes in the uk still have an open vented heating system and in some cases they are the better option for your home.
This helps the installer create a sealed system when installing central heating.
The diagrams below show three central heating types.