Vokera Excel 29 Combi Boiler Review [And the Best Alternative]
Vokera’s Excel 29 has largely given way to the newer Vokera Compact 29. But it’s still available from plumbing merchants, and for some, it may well be a decent budget boiler option.
That’s why we’ve updated our review of the Vokera Excel 29, where we’ll cover its features, prices, sizing, and alternatives.
Vokera Excel 29kW Combi — Key Features
Below, we’ll walk you through some of the essential features of the Vokera Excel combi boiler.
A-Rated Efficiency
With its Excel 29 combi boiler, Vokera has hit the ErP A rating. This means a water heating efficiency of 84% (A), and seasonal efficiency of up to 93% (A++).
That’s up there with the best-of-the-best. If you’ve got a boiler that’s even a few years old, you’ll be looking at some big cash savings on your gas bill. You can check out this chart to see how much you could save by upgrading an older, inefficient boiler to the likes of the Excel 29:
| Old boiler rating | Bungalow (detached) | Detached house | Flat (mid floor) | Semi-detached house | Semi-detached house |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D (78-82%) | £105 | £165 | £50 | £135 | £115 |
| E (74-78%) | £120 | £205 | £60 | £150 | £130 |
| F (70-74%) | £135 | £255 | £65 | £170 | £145 |
| G (<70%) | £190 | £365 | £95 | £240 | £205 |
Figures based on November 2021 data from the Energy Saving Trust
Disappointing Warranty
I’m not a fan of boilers with short parts and labour warranty. Warranties tell you a lot about the amount of confidence a boiler manufacturer has in their product.
And the warranty on the Vokera Excel is a real disappointment. It’s just 2-years, and that’s not good for a boiler; arguably, it means that the manufacturer only expects their appliance to last 2 years.
Consider this. There are boilers out there with 5, 7 and even 10 year warranties. For example, you could go for a Worcester with 10-year warranty for a similar price. Using this clickable form, you’ll bet getting fixed prices on-screen within 90 seconds.
Compact Size
Compact combi boilers are the “in” thing right now. No surprise there — they’re really great for economising precious space at home.
And the Excel 29kW combi is about as compact as it gets. It’s got a low lift weight of just under 30kg, and easilyl fits in the average kitchen cupboard.
So, if you’ve got a large boiler fitted currently, getting an Excel 29 as replacement will free up some space.
LPG Conversion Options
As standard, the Vokera Excel is a gas boiler. However, Vokera do offer an LPG conversion kit, which is great news if you live off the national gas grid.
What kind of fuel does your boiler use?
Fixed price online with next day installation
Frost Protection
The Excel 29 comes with built-in frost protection. The frost thermostat turns the boiler on even when there’s no call for heat or hot water from the room thermostat, if the water temperature drops below 5°C. This way, the boiler’s internal components won’t freeze up and suffer damage.
Suitable Property Size
Before you purchase a boiler, you should establish whether it’s the right size boiler for your property.
Given its 29kW output, this Vokera Excel combi should provide a sufficient heating output and hot water flow rate for a typical 3-4 bedroom property.
This assumes that your family doesn’t have an excessive demand for hot water.
If any of the following sound familiar, you’ll need to speak with a Gas Safe engineer to make sure the 29kW will provide enough central heating and hot water output:
- More than one shower running at once
- Additional radiators or towel rails have been installed (for instance, in an extension)
- You’ve got exceptionally large 3-4 bedroom home with lots of radiators
We’ve created a guide to exactly what size boiler you need here.
That said, each property is different. Whether that’s the number (and size) of radiators it has, the internal space, the quality of the insulation, or simply your heating or hot water needs.
If you don’t want to consult with heating engineers, you can use Heatable’s online boiler calculator — it helps you determine what size you boiler need within 2 minutes.
Vokera Excel 29 Cost
All boilers (not just combi boiler from Vokera) fluctuate in price. Typically, however, you’d expect to pay around £700-£750 for a Vokera Excel combi (boiler only).
You can get a quote from a local installer by clicking here.
Alternatively, you can use Heatable’s calculator and see what the online installation company recommends for your property. They typically have great deals on Worcester, Ideal, and Alpha boilers, so you may be able to find something suitable for both your property and budget.
Alternatives to the Excel 29
Vokera boilers are known for being a fairly budget brand. So, you won’t get comparable pricing from the likes of Worcester Bosch, Vaillant, or Baxi.
As an example, the equivalent from Worcester Bosch would be their Greenstar 4000 30kW combi boiler, for which you’ll pay around £1,250 (boiler only).
You can check prices for a Worcester Bosch Greenstar 4000 using this quick clickable form.
Ideal Logic Plus 30kW
A better comparison comes from Ideal Boilers. They’re known for two things:
- Low prices
- High quality – comparable to Worcester, Vaillant, and Baxi
And that’s why Ideal combi boilers are a stellar alternative to both budget brands (whereby they’re better quality, and not much more expensive), and high-end brands (offering similar quality, but huge cost savings).
You’ll be able to compare Ideal and Worcester prices on screen and back to back here.
Suitable Property Size
Sincethe Logic Plus is a 30kW combi, it offers a similar output for heating and hot water flow rate as the Vokera 29kW.
Efficiency
Like the Excel 29, the Logic Plus 30kW also has an energy rating of A. So, both combi boilers can save you a sizable chunk on your energy bills.
Important: Warranty
This is where the difference becomes obvious.
The warranty on the Ideal Logic Plus is a massive 7-years. That’s 5 years more than the Vokera Excel.
We like to see 5-years+ warranty on new boiler installations, as a minimum.
Size
Like its Vokera counterpart, the Ideal Logic Plus 30 will fit in a standard kitchen cupboard.
It’s a compact boiler; you can see the dimensions here.
Cost
We’d expect to pay £750-£800 for the Logic Plus 30 boiler-only, and around £2,000 including the cost of boiler fitting. So, essentially, you’ve got a boiler that’s similar to the Excel 29kW, and it costs about the same, except:
- It’s manufactured by a more reputable brand
- The unit comes with an additional 5 years of warranty coverage
You can get a range of fixed price boiler quotes on brands like Ideal Boilers, Worcester Bosch, Viessmann, and others, by using Heatable’s online quotation tool.
Vokera Excel 29 Combi Boiler Review Verdict
The Excel 29kW is similar in price to the comparable Logic Plus, but lacks the warranty. So, whilst it seems like a decent combi boiler overall, the short warranty doesn’t exactly fill us with confidence. If you’re set on a Vokera, we’d recommend checking out the new and improved Vokera Compact 29, which also costs around £700 but comes with a 5-year parts and labour warranty.
What’s Next?
Hopefully this quick review of the 29kW combi boiler from the Vokera Excel range has been useful.
Got questions? Drop us an email via our contact form, and we’ll do our best to help you out.