Mr T, near Langport, Somerset, (not the gold chain wearing hard man from the A-Team) rang us in a bit of a quandary, because he and Mrs T had invested in a log-fired biomass boiler approximately four years before, but they had reached a point where it was getting to be a bit of a chore to keep loading it with logs and cleaning it every couple of days, and they wanted to change it for a pellet boiler. Their problem was that they were worried about losing their 
Domestic RHI tariff, because the rate for new applicants had diminished by three quarters since their boiler was installed. Looking into their imminent retirement, they realised they had little choice but to change the boiler, whatever happened.
Fortunately, Ofgem allow you to replace an accredited boiler with a new one of the same technology, i.e. biomass boiler for biomass boiler, but not biomass boiler for heat pump. As long as the boiler is MCS accredited and the company making the swap is also MCS accredited, you can swap out your old boiler and carry on with the same tariff you had before for the remainder of your term.
Mr T’s original installation company had ceased trading (like so many others), and he was looking for a higher specification boiler this time around, with a few creature comforts, so he approached Commercial Biomass Ltd.
We conducted a thorough site survey and specified an ETA PC40 boiler, with internet connectivity, high efficiency combustion, automatic fuel conveying system and a 320 Litre pellet store, as there was no opportunity to install a larger bulk store within twenty metres of the boiler. Mr T now fills the store with 10kG bags of pellets once a week, or whenever he feels like it, empties the ash can three to four times per year, and leaves the combustion chamber cleaning to us on its annual service. We were able to install the new ETA boiler into the existing buffer vessel and the existing flue with very little upheaval and inconvenience.
The new boiler installation cost was a fraction of the price of the original, due to the fact that most of the existing equipment could be re-used. Mr T is very pleased with the new ETA PC boiler, and says it’s changed his life for the better — he’s no longer a slave to the old Vigas log boiler. The new boiler sends him an email when it’s getting low on pellets, another when the ash can needs emptying, and another when it needs an annual service. He can set his heating times from the user friendly touch screen, or through internet connectivity on his smart phone or computer.
Thanks to his high RHI tariff and our reasonable pricing, Mr T will still have a nice sum of money left over at the end of his payback period.
If we can help you with changing your boiler for a newer, better one, please call us on 01935 476927 or email us on admin@commercialbiomassuk.com and arrange a visit.