Abbeyfield Hatch Mill Care Home, Farnham, Surrey — replacement of the boiler plant with a new cascade arrangement, plantroom refurbishment and integration with the existing LTHW system, completed within one week in an occupied care home.
One week, and the building stays warm
A care home is the least forgiving environment for heating works. Residents are in the building continuously, many are vulnerable to cold, and heating and hot water are not services that can be suspended while plant is replaced.
The Hatch Mill boiler replacement was delivered in one week. That programme was not chosen for speed on its own — it was chosen because every additional day is another day of temporary arrangements in a home full of residents. Works were phased to maintain heating and hot water throughout, with temporary provision put in place where it was needed.
Why a cascade arrangement
The new plant is configured as a cascade — several smaller boilers operating together as one heat source rather than a single large unit.
That configuration matters particularly in care. A cascade matches output to demand, so the plant is not running a large boiler at low load through a mild afternoon. More importantly it builds in redundancy: if one boiler in the cascade is out of service, the others continue to carry the building. In a residential care setting the ability to keep heating and hot water running while a fault is attended to is a resilience requirement, not an efficiency one.
A prefabricated low loss header and distribution pipework were installed to connect the new plant to the existing LTHW heating circuits.
Scope of works
- Strip-out and disposal of the existing boilers and redundant plantroom equipment
- Supply and installation of new high-efficiency commercial boilers in a cascade arrangement
- Installation of prefabricated low loss header and distribution pipework for the LTHW heating circuits
- Modifications and connections to existing plantroom pipework including flow and return integration
- Installation of new flue systems and condensate discharge pipework
- Integration with the existing pumps, controls and distribution systems
- Pipework insulation
- Associated electrical works to support the new plant
- Full system flushing, water treatment and commissioning prior to handover
Working in an occupied care setting
Risk assessments and method statements covered every stage, with particular attention to resident safety, access control and safe working practices. Close liaison with the home’s management determined when plant areas were worked on and how operatives moved through the building.
Integrating with the existing pumps, controls and distribution — rather than replacing them — kept the intervention contained to the plantroom and shortened the period during which the home was reliant on temporary arrangements.
Outcome
The new plant was commissioned and integrated with the existing system, and the home was left with boiler plant that carries redundancy it did not previously have.
Boiler and plant replacement in occupied buildings sits at the centre of the commercial heating work ComGas delivers for the care and healthcare sector, where continuity of service governs how the works are planned. Plant of this kind is also covered by our planned service and maintenance.
