Dave-G Posted September 23 Report Share Posted September 23 Our youngest is possibly buying a 40's built house which has a Rayburn cooker. The house has no central heating and is nowhere near any wooded area's so I'm wondering if that is such a good idea for him. Is he even allowed to burn wood or must it all be 'approved materials' given the lack of coal mines in the UK. He's not a shooter (till he's about to inherit my guns) so is not a member on here but I can send him a link to this topic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gameking Posted September 23 Report Share Posted September 23 One option to consider is to convert to oil . Lots of original wood/coal burning AGA's and Rayburn's have had this done. I live in a rural area with no mains gas and oil is still cheaper than LPG . HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westward Posted September 23 Report Share Posted September 23 A Rayburn is essentially a boiler with some attributes of a cooker. Fair enough if that's what you want, but the real deal is the Aga which is essentially a cooker that can also be fitted with a water jacket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enfieldspares Posted September 23 Report Share Posted September 23 He'd need to know what the Rayburn installed is set up to do. Heat water, heat water and cook, heat water, cook and run central heating or just cook. AGA now owns the brand so maybe a close inspection of the appliance and a telephone call to AGA so as to know what he needs to look for? Plus of course approximate costs of running it and also maintenance. Now the good news! If it is Leicestershire (and some other counties) if the premises has never had central heating and the person gets certain benefits there is an up to 100% grant to install such. Ditto double glazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
udderlyoffroad Posted September 23 Report Share Posted September 23 I wouldn’t let whether or not a Rayburn is fitted have too much of an impact on whether to purchase a house per se – as you’ve stated its off the mains gas grid with no CH, so that needs to be factored into a purchasing decision. As others have said, a lot depends on how it’s fitted and plumbed in. I suspect in this case it might be heating the hot water only, as you state 'no central heating' but I could be wrong. Surely the estate agent would know? If it’s a deceased estate and the executors do not know, a local friendly builder/plumber should be able to tell, probably in far better detail than trying to call Aga with a model number. Unsure why a previous poster thinks the ECO4 grant that he is presumably alluding to, is limited to certain counties. It isn’t, though the companies offering it may have chosen to limit how far away from home they will operate. Or, as I suspect is more likely, the previous poster has seen an online ad that uses IP-address location to serve up custom ads "Good news, thousands of homes in Leicestershire eligible for a grant" etc. Annyway. If the house has no central heating fitted, an ECO4 grant could indeed get him a central heating setup, complete with air source heat pump. I can hear sharp intakes of breath, but keep in mind that there’s nothing stopping you from subsequently fitting an oil boiler if you find the ASHP to be too expensive to run. I was in this position myself -albeit in my case the house previously had storage heaters - and got the grant, and I got complete CH system with radiators fitted. The heat pump kept the house very warm last winter (albeit it was quite mild, I wonder if this winter will really test the system, and my wallet). Again though, it was fitted at £0 to me*. One note of caution; if the Rayburn is connected to the hot water or heating system, they’ll want it decomssioned/removed as part of the grant. Gotta lower them carbon emissions doncha know. Nothing stopping you from disconnecting it and saying it’s used for cooking only**… As it happens, I am currently researching options with AGAs/Rayburns as the missus wants one in the kitchen – she had one growing up and thinks they’re excellent. Sadly the cylinders supplied with the Eco4 grant are designed to accept one input only (per the aforementioned aim of lowering carbon emissions), so I need to budget for a replacement cylinder. *Other than through taxation. Oh and much disruption to every room in the house. **In case you didn’t know, never run anything with a back boiler in it without having it connected to a properly vented system. Either leave the connections unconnected & open at the back or remove the back boiler altogether. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enfieldspares Posted September 23 Report Share Posted September 23 22 minutes ago, udderlyoffroad said: Unsure why a previous poster thinks the ECO4 grant that he is presumably alluding to, is limited to certain counties. That's good news for the OP although my reply was because I assumed that the OP's youngest was likely also in Leicestershire and if not I wan't sure if other counties did or if metropolitan authorities offered it or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted September 23 Author Report Share Posted September 23 Our youngest is well paid so won't be claiming any grants. He's currently living in Middlesbrough but intends to move back to Leicester. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
udderlyoffroad Posted September 24 Report Share Posted September 24 (edited) 9 hours ago, Dave-G said: Our youngest is well paid so won't be claiming any grants. He's currently living in Middlesbrough but intends to move back to Leicester. I thought I would be ineligible, but my missus was between jobs so counted as low income. They were lowering the bar for entry as the 'pot' was pretty full following the energy crisis/Ukraine, it's funded through the 'green levy' on your electricity bill. Point is, if you live rurally off the gas grid, it's always worth getting surveys/seeing what your eligibilty is. Might as well get some benefit from the current, uh, insane energy policies. Edited September 24 by udderlyoffroad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted September 24 Author Report Share Posted September 24 (edited) 2 hours ago, udderlyoffroad said: I thought I would be ineligible, but my missus was between jobs so counted as low income. They were lowering the bar for entry as the 'pot' was pretty full following the energy crisis/Ukraine, it's funded through the 'green levy' on your electricity bill. Point is, if you live rurally off the gas grid, it's always worth getting surveys/seeing what your eligibilty is. Might as well get some benefit from the current, uh, insane energy policies. Its not a rural location, a built up area on a busy long established road between a town and the city. I don't recall if there is gas to the house but I suspect it has a supply. Its a lovely house that should have been snapped up by now having been on the market for over a month and we're beginning to wonder why its not sold yet. I remember seeing two large bore copper pipes running to upstairs from it. Edited September 24 by Dave-G Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
udderlyoffroad Posted September 24 Report Share Posted September 24 45 minutes ago, Dave-G said: Its not a rural location, a built up area on a busy long established road between a town and the city. I don't recall if there is gas to the house but I suspect it has a supply Your local gas network website (Cadent?) will have postcode checker. Apologies; will wind my neck in. I’m fairly ‘evangelical’ for want of a better word, about these grants, as they are for a change, a government programme that is a net positive for the end user. There are issues with them of course – disruption, silly rules that must be complied with, little to no coordination between trades or phases – but on the whole absolutely worth it if you’re eligible and can cope with the upheaval. And for a change, rural people benefit from this first and not last. 46 minutes ago, Dave-G said: Its a lovely house that should have been snapped up by now having been on the market for over a month and we're beginning to wonder why its not sold yet. On 23/09/2024 at 10:58, Dave-G said: The house has no central heating This would put a lot of people off, surely. It’s not just the cost, but to get a tidy job of putting CH into a house that’s never had it, will likely require at least some redecoration in every room. Secondly; if the previous occupant was too set in their ways/tight to pay for CH, what necessary maintenance went undone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted September 24 Author Report Share Posted September 24 1 hour ago, udderlyoffroad said: Your local gas network website (Cadent?) will have postcode checker. Apologies; will wind my neck in. I’m fairly ‘evangelical’ for want of a better word, about these grants, as they are for a change, a government programme that is a net positive for the end user. There are issues with them of course – disruption, silly rules that must be complied with, little to no coordination between trades or phases – but on the whole absolutely worth it if you’re eligible and can cope with the upheaval. And for a change, rural people benefit from this first and not last. This would put a lot of people off, surely. It’s not just the cost, but to get a tidy job of putting CH into a house that’s never had it, will likely require at least some redecoration in every room. Secondly; if the previous occupant was too set in their ways/tight to pay for CH, what necessary maintenance went undone? No neck winding in needed, you made good points given the scant information you had available thanks. I've sent my lad a link to this topic - so he will or has read it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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