Intergas Rapid Plus TBC - a system boiler, regular boiler or combi boiler?

If you’re looking for a combi boiler for your house or flat, then the Intergas Rapid Plus TBC is one you may wish to consider.

In the past, most boilers needed one or more storage tanks to operate - one to store warm water and the other for storing water to be heated later. But storage tanks are problematic in properties where space is at a premium and particularly where there is no loft. Many properties in the UK are small and so manufacturers introduced combi boilers in the 1970s to eliminate the need for tanks.

With a combi boiler, the hot water for your radiators and taps is delivered on demand. The boiler instantly heats water it draws directly from the mains internally. It then distributes the heated water around your home at mains pressure as you need it.

It is important to bear in mind that, while combi boilers have many benefits, they can only heat a certain volume of water at any given time. This means that, if you run a shower at the same time as someone else is doing the washing up in the kitchen, the volume of water passing to each point will drop, causing a fall in pressure.

Is a Intergas Rapid Plus TBC combi a suitable choice for my house or flat?

Selecting the right boiler for your home means choosing a boiler that is the right size. And, by size, we don't mean how big it is, we mean how powerful it is - the "output".

Your boiler’s output is a measurement of the power it has available to it to heat the water you need for your radiators or for when you turn on a tap, bath or shower. A higher output rate means it has more power and can heat more water.

It's important to choose an output that matches the demand for water in your home because if your boiler has too low an output, you'll often find only lukewarm water comes out of your taps or heats your radiators. If it’s too high, you’ll be paying more for your gas than you need to.

The Intergas Rapid Plus TBC combi has an output of 32 kW, so which types of property would this Intergas Rapid Plus Combi boiler be appropriate for?

A heating engineer would recommend that this Intergas Rapid Plus Combi boiler would be a suitable installation choice for medium-sized homes and larger apartments with 10-15 radiators and two bathrooms.

Please remember too that all combi boilers draw water from the mains - they have no storage tanks. Combis heat the water from the mains on demand and then send it to wherever it's needed in the house, like a radiator, a bathroom or a kitchen.

The speed at which it can do this is called the "flow rate", which is measured in litres per minute. If you have a lot of radiators and bathrooms in your home and multiple people are regularly trying to use the hot water at one time, such as in the morning or evening, you'll need a combi with a high flow rate. This Intergas Rapid Plus Combi boiler's flow rate is 18 L/m.

However, it's not that simple. Combis can only draw water from the mains at the speed it's delivered. If the flow rate of the local water supply is 11l/m, you shouldn't purchase a boiler with a flow rate of 17l/m because it will never be able to use that extra capacity.

When our engineer comes out to quote you, they may recommend that you choose a heat only boiler or system boiler instead if your family's demand for hot water is higher than normal.

What size is the Intergas Rapid Plus TBC boiler?

The Intergas Rapid Plus TBC measures TBC mm in height by TBC mm in width by TBC mm in depth.

Rapid Plus TBC – condensing or non-condensing?

Because of their increased energy efficiency, we recommend to all customers that they select one of the latest condensing boilers. Condensing boilers capture the heat from water vapour condensation and flue exhaust gases and recycle that heat to warm water entering the boiler (for example, from your radiators).

The Intergas Rapid Plus TBC is a condensing gas boiler and choosing this model will result in a likely substantial reduction in your fuel bills, particularly if you're replacing an older, inefficient, non-condensing boiler.

Is the Intergas Rapid Plus TBC combi good for the environment?

The effects of climate change on the environment are leading many homeowners to question the damage they might be doing by the way they heat their homes.

14% of the total amount of greenhouse gases produced by the UK comes from the central heating systems we use. In some of Britain's biggest cities, gas boilers create dangerous levels of nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere.

Will choosing to install a Intergas Rapid Plus TBC combi in your home help the environment? Let's review the figures.

Boilers manufactured in the UK must be tested and, by law, achieve an energy efficiency rating of 92% or above, equivalent to a SEDBUK "A" grade. Most boilers achieve an "A" rating meaning they are at least 88% efficient.

The energy efficiency of a boiler indicates the amount of energy it uses (and wastes) during operation.

The Intergas Rapid Plus TBC has been assigned an efficiency rating of 93% with a SEDBUK rating of "A".

How long is the warranty period on the Intergas Rapid Plus TBC combi boiler?

Intergas’s Rapid Plus TBC boiler includes a parts and labour warranty of 6 years.