Hi Paula, I am delighted to have found your review of the Combisave as I am seriously thinking about having one fitted, to the extent that I was trying to calculate the savings for our situation! My calculations have only been on the water wastage side, so any gas saving is a bonus. I measured the ‘unsatisfactory’ water during washing up and have found that it takes 0.5 to 2 washing-up bowl contents before the water is hot enough (this varies because there is a small hot water tank inside the boiler – is this pre-heat?) The bowl holds 5 ltr so wastage is 2.5 to 10 ltr, which twice a day means 5 to 20 ltr per day. CombiSave is a valve which is made from dezincification resistant brass and is a thermostatically controlled valve which is fitted with two rotatable elbows, which allows it to be fitted to a range of 15mm pipe configurations. Already have a quote? Accept it online. Book a free quote Frequently Asked Questions Why do I need a water softener?

Heating technician Ben Evans said: “Installing a CombiSave is a simple 20-minute job. For those on a water meter or for homes where there’s a long hot water run – for example if the boiler is on the top or bottom floor of a three-storey house – it can really help to save money.” Small changes to the internal workings of the device – which include redirecting the flow of water – mean that it now works more efficiently in areas of high water pressure.Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Rural Affairs, Lesley Griffiths, said: “This is great news. People are continuing to benefit from the Nest scheme which helps make their homes warmer and more fuel efficient.”

By making some relatively minor design changes we’ve created a robust valve that now works more efficiently in areas of high water pressure over prolonged periods. Turning to the gas saving, which can be more conclusive, I have seen an average daily usage of gas of 4.77 kWh per day in June. So, we can say that there is probably a small gas saving through the use of the Combisave device of 0.41 kWh per day. The flow of water is reduced to between 0.5 – 4 litres/min during the initial heating process – only returning to normal once the designated temperature has been reached (factory set at 45 oC but which can be reduced or increased by 5 o as necessary). You sound as if you have the ‘pre heat’ function on your boiler. That can, according to David from Combisave, cost you quite a lot over the year. I appreciate switching it off may mean you don’t get the heat in the airing cubaord in the summer months, but is that so much of a problem? I’ve never had an airing cupboard, although I remember one from my youth in my mum’s house, and so don’t really miss one. Switching the ‘pre-heat’ off might save a you a hell of a lot of money on your gas bill! Yes, it does work on the same principle as turning the hot tap slightly until the water is hot. But as stated, it would be unlikely that everyone in the house and their guests could be trained to do this each time accurately. Also you can’t regulate the flow on some appliances such as washing machines and showers. Just as we buy remotes for TVs but we could do that manually too!CombiSave is an innovative and award-winning British creation that’s designed to significantly reduce the amount of water and gas utilised in the heating process so homeowners can save time and money and help the environment at the same time. So would turning the tap on a bit achieve the same things as the CombiSave?? Would you get fed up waiting? Does it matter if you are close to the bolier? And yep, good point about the savings being seasonal on the water savings, I should have thought about that. I’ll continue to monitor over the coming months and into winter to see how the water savings change over the seasons. I guess there is an effect on gas too? but I will not be able to monitor that so easily as the space heating will be on over winter months which interfere with my gas readings. That’s the good point – the bad point is that if the internal ‘pre-heat’ tank is shut off the boiler, which floor-mounted in the airing cupboard, cannot be used for airing purposes – heap big problem for wife!