Author's product rating: 
| Advantages: |
Quiet,easy to use and good quality . |
| Disadvantages: |
Gets a bad reputation when installers fail to install them correctly . |
| Recommend to potential buyers: |
yes |
This review is about the Vaillant ecoTEC+ 800 series combination boilers.
The Vaillant ecoTEC+ 800 series boilers are the choice of many installers all across the UK, they are undoubtedly the best main stream boilers on the market.
Vaillant have been in the heating industry for over 130 years which means they have a lot of experience in manufacturing very good quality products. Vaillant boilers are made in Germany.
Enough about Vaillant now lets talk about the actual product.
Appearance:
These boilers are made to fit nicely in any standard kitchen unit, they have an attractive glossy white case which is made of metal.
The dimensions are:
824 and 831 models:
Height: 720mm
Width: 440mm
Depth: 335mm.
837 model:
Same as above but 403mm deep.
Functionality:
Combi boilers supply hot water on demand, so when you open a hot water tap the boiler fires heating up fresh mains pressure cold water.
Combi boilers cannot usually supply two outlets at once unless they have a very high hot water performance.
The Vaillant combi boilers have a very decent hot water performance, the 831 model is capable of delivering hot water at 12.7 litres per minute and the 837 15.2 lpm.
The boiler will modulate according to the demand, in simpler terms the boiler will only produce as much heat as it actually needs to in order to get the house to the correct temperature, this saves gas.
Controls:
If you want an efficient system it is vital to have the correct controls, the Vaillant control options a very flexible, you can go from a simple plug in timer that plugs into the boilers control panel, to a complex weather compensated controller that will run the boiler at the lowest temperature possible according to the outside temperature.
The control that I tend to fit Is the VRT360f, this is a wireless controller that allows you to set timed hot water and heating, you could have different temperatures throughout the day and night. With this controller there is no need for a separate thermostat and timer.
| do admit though that the Vaillant controls that are optional are not the most user friendly around.
The actual control panel on the boiler has two knobs; one for setting the CH flow temperature and one for setting the hot water temperature.
The CH knob adjusts the temperature of water flowing through the rads, it is best to set this just hot enough for your house to reach the required temperature.
There is also boiler display system which gives information to the user and the installer.
It displays the current flow temp, burner ignited symbol and a few other things that show the boiler is working correctly. It also displays fault codes in the event of failure.
The controls are well laid out and clear.
Noise:
These boilers are extremely quiet in operation, one of the quietest boilers around, in fact if it was fitted in a cupboard it might be hard for you to tell if the boiler is running.
Build quality:
This boiler has a fantastic solid feel to it, the control panel lid is no longer plastic but it is metal.
The knobs are very solid and shouldn't break in a hurry.
Ease of use:
You will only have to tweak the CH knob every now and again as the weather gets colder or milder, the hot water temp knob will need to be adjusted from time to time too.
There will be a plume of water vapour visible from the flue every time the boiler is on. The flue should be sited so it the plume doesn't cause a nuisance.
The boilers flue options are very flexible too.
Overall a very good boiler and it beats the overrated Worcester boilers.
Over 80% of boiler failures are caused by installer errors.
The users manual is easy to understand.
The boilers come with a 2 year warranty and 5 years on the domestic heat exchanger.
Expect to pay near a 1000 for the boiler.
If you need any help do not hesitate to leave a message in my guest book.
Update:
A customer had this boiler for three years and never had it serviced, the boiler had a major fault which Vaillant said was "beyond economical repair", two days later they sent a new boiler and fitted it the same afternoon!
Perhaps I was wrong about the customer service.
There was a recall on these boiler a few years back, provided that it had been registered Vaillant would come out and replace the faulty part FOC.
| More Reviews |
 Vaillant, A Valliant partner
Review of Vaillant by
gt5952
Advantages: Strong, Hard wearing, lost lasting, good quality
Disadvantages: Sometimes expensive
Vaillant have been in business of manufacturing first class gas appliances for years. They are renowned for making high quality heating systems that range in price from a few hundred to a few thousand pounds.
I own a Vaillant eco tec pro Combi boiler that both provides my central heating and hot water for domestic purposes. I have come in contact with Vaillant products the world over.
The Eco Tec Pro review:
With compact dimensions (H: 720mm x ...
...commissioning and servicing
My Vaillant was installed by a Corgi fitter, and tapped into the existing heating system pipework. It replaced an old immersion heater system with a gas storage box.
I now have instant hot water for both heating and domestic purposes, which is great!
Vaillant boilers can be found world over, and are renowned for their quality. I have seen systems from the 60\'s still being operated in third world countries, and that ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful |
|
very helpful
02.11.2007
|
Simply the best
Review of Vaillant by
MichelleScott
Advantages: The best
Disadvantages: Cost
...The reason for this? Vaillant were the only boilers that they could rely on not to break down. They didn’t want to have to go back repairing the thing, so they only fitted Vaillant boilers, which came with a good guarantee and a lifetime of excellent boiling (or whatever boilers actually do). If it was an elderly person who really couldn’t afford a Vaillant, they would consider fitting a Worcester, which are nearly as good (see my separate review ...
...looking at those prices. Vaillant are a German make, excellent quality and workmanship. They are substantial, not the prettiest boiler in the world and a little bit larger than most combination boilers, but second-to-none for reliability. Combination boilers heat water so rapidly that the hot water calorifier scales up with limescale quickly. But Vaillant guarantee that theirs won’t for at least 5 years. My husband has replaced them on other good-quality ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful |
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very helpful
21.12.2000
(20.12.2000)
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Vaillant Eco max
Review of Vaillant by
cleanperson
Advantages: Efficient,easy to use,quiet.
Disadvantages: Price
...then a plumber told me Vaillant was a safer choice.
Why was Vaillant a safer choice?
It had a stainless steel heat exchanger,this is always better in condensing boilers as the condensate produced in a condensing boiler can corrode away a copper or Alluminium heat exchanger. Although the heat exchanger in the Worcester is Alluminium coated with silicone there is no guarantee of how long the coating will last.
Sedbuk band A efficiency.
Fault finding ...
...water heat exchanger.
So Vaillant it was, my installer came and took out the old radiators and the tank for my older conventional boiler and he of course took out the old troublesome Biasi.
Then he flushed out the system and added inhibitor to prevent sludge.
Once the boiler was installed he told me that because it is a condensing boiler the flue may produce a plume of water vapour in cold weather mostly.
He gave me a brass key much like a radiator ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful |
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very helpful
25.07.2007
(03.08.2008)
|
 -Kaboom- at Christmas
Review of Vaillant by
Manx
Advantages: It's not gone kaboom yet.
Disadvantages: It's threatend to go kaboom many times... and today is Christmas! The bugger!
...to pleased to hear our Vaillant acting up again.
Okay, so here’s the unit’s history.
We had it installed when we moved into the house, what, ten years ago. It was fine. It was wonderful. It’s a big, old house but this boiler kept even the top most rooms warm. There was no problem with the heater for years.
What is the life expectancy of a central heating boiler?
One year?
Five years?
Ten years?
A life time?
Well, it took about five years ...
...If you’ve got a Vaillant in your home I would not worry. Despite the gauge and the arrow having announced that a big *kablam* was eminent the boiler has battled on and has not given up the ghost yet.
Oh, we’ve got the Vaillant Combi-Heater TSW. ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful |
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very helpful
25.12.2000
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Vaillant boilers, an engineers view!
Review of Vaillant by
Aquaheat
Advantages: Reliable, robust, quiet, easy to install/service
Disadvantages: Maybe the one disadvantage is the price
...response to Davey's review of Vaillant (11/08), I am somewhat surprised that he has commented on the disadvantages and not the advantages of their boilers. I am even more surprised that he has suggested a "mid" range boiler such as Vokera or Ideal of which I wouldn't personally install in my shed!! My name is Nick Harris and my company is AquaHeat Oxford Ltd. My plumbers and I have been exclusively installing Vaillant boilers in the Oxon area since ...
...We are Accredited Installers with Vaillant too. In all honesty, we have only had 3 problems, all of which were dealt with very quickly and with no stress or strain on us or the customer. Not a bad ratio!! They are by far the best because they are very simple to hang and plumb in, commission and service. They are bloody quiet and their controls are very good too. Now, I understand that they are expensive, but you get what you pay for don't you? They're ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful |
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helpful
14.03.2009
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02.04.2008
09.10.2006
