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BigB
C & J are 10!
Member since 6/05 5914 total posts
Name:
Stacey
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Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
The inspector thinks we should have the boiler replaced for a more efficient one.
How much does that cost?
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Posted 1/20/14 2:16 PM  |
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Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate
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GoldenRod
10 years on LIF!
Member since 11/06 26792 total posts
Name:
Shawn
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
Gas or electric? How big is the house?
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| Posted 1/20/14 2:26 PM |
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
We had our gas one replaced after Sandy.
It can easily cost 5 or 6 grand on the low end with installation.
We have a small 3-bedroom cape-ish style house.
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| Posted 1/20/14 3:36 PM |
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BigB
C & J are 10!
Member since 6/05 5914 total posts
Name:
Stacey
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
It is an oil boiler. It works well but is not efficient.
The house is around 2700 sq feet
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| Posted 1/20/14 5:59 PM |
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alli3131
Peanut is here!!!!!!
Member since 5/09 18388 total posts
Name:
Allison
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Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
If it works well then I wouldn't rush out to replace it. Mine is from the 70s works great and at some point we will replace it but why spend the money if it works fine.
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| Posted 1/20/14 9:53 PM |
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
Posted by alli3131
If it works well then I wouldn't rush out to replace it. Mine is from the 70s works great and at some point we will replace it but why spend the money if it works fine.
I agree with this. Just make sure you have the $$$ set aside in savings in case something goes wrong down the road.
Inspectors are there to offer suggestions of things that you should be aware of.....not necessarily that you need to go out and fix immediately.
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| Posted 1/21/14 5:21 AM |
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JenMarie
One day at a time
Member since 11/07 7397 total posts
Name:
Jennifer
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
Posted by alli3131
If it works well then I wouldn't rush out to replace it. Mine is from the 70s works great and at some point we will replace it but why spend the money if it works fine.
I agree. Our inspector told us ours is older, but doesn't need to be replaced just yet. He just suggested we make sure we have the money set aside for it for when it does go.
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| Posted 1/21/14 9:27 AM |
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
Posted by MorningCuppaCoffee
Posted by alli3131
If it works well then I wouldn't rush out to replace it. Mine is from the 70s works great and at some point we will replace it but why spend the money if it works fine.
I agree with this. Just make sure you have the $$$ set aside in savings in case something goes wrong down the road.
Inspectors are there to offer suggestions of things that you should be aware of.....not necessarily that you need to go out and fix immediately.
I 100% agree. One of the home inspectors' jobs is to tell you the age of everything in the house. Not everything is going to be new, unless you buy a brand new construction. But older, or even nearing the end of its life cycle, doesn't mean broken or not functional.
I always tell my clients this story to put their mind at ease a bit: When I bought my house, we had a home inspection done in June 2008. The home inspector told us that both the roof and the CAC were on their last legs, very old, would likely need to be replaced soon.
We still have the same roof now, in January 2014, and it's still sound (doesn't need to be replaced). We did have a roofer come after Sandy to replace a few shingles that blew off, and he confirmed that the roof is still good. Part of the CAC did break last summer, in July 2013 (during the heat wave, lol!), so we did buy a new air handler then. I'm sure the new one is much more energy efficient, but the old one held up for quite awhile.
But my point is, if I had panicked and not bought the house over this, it would have been silly. And it would have been a waste for us to immediately replace major items that continued working great for years.
On the flip side - the washing machine or dryer (I forget which one) broke about a week after we moved in to our house, and they looked fine, not too old, etc. So you just never know!
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| Posted 1/21/14 3:38 PM |
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BigB
C & J are 10!
Member since 6/05 5914 total posts
Name:
Stacey
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
Thanks for all of your replies. The boiler is 93 year old! Can you believe it? It has been well taken care of and just had a new burner replaced last year.
The gentleman whose house it is says it is an Iron horse and not to mess with it! LOL...I am not sure that we will walk away for 5-10 thousand. I am just nervous about it if it goes.
We are going to contract as I type this.
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| Posted 1/24/14 11:04 AM |
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MrsG823
Just call me Mommy.
Member since 1/11 5570 total posts
Name:
S
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Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
The boiler in my house is from 1932 and it does so wonderful job heating the house. The best advice I was given was to get a service contract for the boiler-I have some piece of mind for $250/ year. Good luck!
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| Posted 1/24/14 11:40 AM |
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Beth
The Key to your new home....
Member since 2/06 24849 total posts
Name:
Beth
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
I have always been told that the old ones are almost as efficient as the new ones and the cost savings of replacing it isn't worth it
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| Posted 1/24/14 12:47 PM |
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BigB
C & J are 10!
Member since 6/05 5914 total posts
Name:
Stacey
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
Posted by Beth
I have always been told that the old ones are almost as efficient as the new ones and the cost savings of replacing it isn't worth it
Hey Beth,
I like your thinking! The old guy who owns the house said, if it isn't broke, why fix it. It does work well because I was very warm while I was there.
And I know it was meticulously maintained!
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| Posted 1/24/14 2:23 PM |
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Cheeks24
Living a dream
Member since 1/08 8589 total posts
Name:
Cheeks
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
Posted by BigB
Posted by Beth
I have always been told that the old ones are almost as efficient as the new ones and the cost savings of replacing it isn't worth it
Hey Beth,
I like your thinking! The old guy who owns the house said, if it isn't broke, why fix it. It does work well because I was very warm while I was there.
And I know it was meticulously maintained!
Our boiler is ancient too. Our inspector said it will outlive us and our kids! 
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| Posted 1/24/14 2:27 PM |
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Beth
The Key to your new home....
Member since 2/06 24849 total posts
Name:
Beth
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
I would just continue his service contract and not waste the money on a new one that might save 1 gallon of oil but cost $6,000 upfront
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| Posted 1/24/14 4:39 PM |
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Re: Had house inspection and I have a question about the boiler
Ive been doing home inspections for 10 years, so my reply comes from experience.
93 years old is really old for a boiler? How do you know its that age? Most boilers that old do not have a manufacture date on them and the serial numbers were not coded with dates. But either way if it old it will look it and will be the size of a small car.
If thats the case then yes it should be replaced for both reliability also. It will be an oil fired boiler if its that old and keep in mind you will need a stainless steel liner installed in the chimney if you convert to gas. Its required and can cost upwards of $2,000 additional just for that.
The advantage to old boilers, they tend to keep the basement nice and toasty warm in the winter because of all the heat loss from them. But that is the poor efficiency of them.
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| Posted 2/11/14 6:25 PM |
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