Ideal boilers or Alpha boilers – Which is the best?
If the time has come to say goodbye to your old boiler, choosing a new boiler can be stressful. There are a lot of factors that need to be considered when buying a new or replacement boiler. This blog is going to be comparing Ideal boilers and Alpha boilers, taking into consideration price, reliability, energy efficiency, and aftercare, to help you find the best boiler for your home.
We’ve already covered premium brand boilers in our Worcester vs Viessmann, Worcester vs Vaillant and Vaillant vs Viessmann blogs. Premium boiler brands can be a little pricey, so a choice between Ideal boilers and Alpha boilers is definitely in a lower price range, so you could save a bit of money on your new boiler.
In terms of where Ideal boilers are placed in the boiler market, they are classed just above a budget brand. Their prices are that of a budget boiler but the product and the aftercare are that of a more premium brand. Alpha boilers are also known as budget boilers, so if you are looking for a new boiler that does the job, at an economical price, an Alpha boiler may be perfect for you. However, Alpha is often let down by its aftercare and customer services, according to its customers. We will explore this further in the blog.
If you’re interested in what the best cheap combi boilers, system boilers, or regular boilers are on the market, we have blogs that cover these too.
Before we get into the nitty-gritty, this is probably a great time to mention that if by the end of this blog, you’re still struggling to decide which boiler is best for your home, we have a Boiler Comparison tool that can help. This tool allows you to compare up to three boiler models or brands at one time, comparing efficiency, features and even brand reviews.
Ideal history
Founded in 1906, Ideal is a leading boiler brand with over 100 years of experience in providing high-quality boilers to its customers. From introducing boilers into household kitchens in the 1920s to developing new and highly efficient technologies today, Ideal aims to continually deliver reliable products.
Ideal has this to say of themselves on their website:
“Today, Ideal remains at the forefront of the domestic and commercial heating markets, leading the industry in setting new standards and challenging technological boundaries. Our company remains true to its founding principles of quality, innovation, and value – building on its rich heritage as we look to the future.”
Alpha History
Established over 50 years ago, Alpha has a long history, with core values of innovation, efficiency, and customer service at the forefront of their offering.
Alpha belongs to the parent company Immergas, which operates in 30 countries worldwide. Immergas is the market leader in Italy where it originates, producing an impressive 7 million boilers per year. One of the largest heating appliance manufacturers in Europe.
Alpha offers regular, system, and conventional boilers in a range of different kW sizes to suit any size of a domestic or commercial premise.
Comparison Tables
Below we will be comparing the Ideal Logic C30 combi boiler vs the Alpha Evoke 28kW combi boiler, the Ideal Logic Plus S30 system boiler and the Alpha E-Tec 30S system boiler, along with the Ideal Logic Heat 24kW regular boiler vs Alpha E-Tec 25R regular boiler.
Through comparing the same boiler type, with the same or very similar kW outputs, this will help us to discover the clear difference between them and see which boiler brand is the overall winner.
Let’s get into it!
Combi Boilers
| Make | Ideal | Alpha |
| Model | Logic C30 Combi Gas Boiler | Evoke 28kW Combi Gas Boiler |
| Efficiency Rating | 94% | 93% |
| Band Rating | A-Rated | A-Rated |
| Standard Warranty | 2 Years | 7 Years |
| Central Heat Max Output | 30.3kW | 28.3kW |
Dimensions | 700mm x 395mm x 278mm | 712mm x 440mm x 256mm |
| Flow Rate | 12.4 l/min | 12.1 l/min |
| Mounting | Wall Mountable | Wall Mountable |
| Cost (boiler only) | £656 – £848 | £630 – £690 |
| ERP Rating | A Heat | A Water | A Heat | A Water |
Both the Ideal Logic C30 and the Alpha Evoke 28kW are very similar in their performance when it comes to efficiency ratings, their flow rate as well as their dimensions. Both combi boilers are compact and lightweight and with an efficiency rating of 93% and 94%, both combi boilers will help you to lower your energy bills, depending on your current heating systems energy efficiency.
There is a difference, however, in warranty. The Ideal Logic C30 comes with a standard warranty of 2 years, whereas the Alpha Evoke 28kW comes with a 7-year standard warranty.
With that said, when you purchase a new or replacement Ideal Logic C30 combi boiler with WarmZilla, you will receive an 8-year guarantee on your boiler, for that extra peace of mind.
The price for an Ideal Logic C30, as we can see, is slightly more expensive. However, the Ideal Logic C30 was awarded the Queen’s Award in 2013 as well as the Good Housekeeping Award in both 2013 and 2017, this boiler is known for being a highly reliable combi boiler. For this reason, the Ideal Logic is the winner for us.
System Boilers
| Make | Ideal | Alpha |
| Model | Logic Plus System S30 Gas Boiler | E-TEC 30s System Gas Boiler |
| Efficiency Rating | 93% | 93% |
| Band Rating | A-Rated | A-Rated |
| Standard Warranty | 7 Years | 7 Years |
| Central Heat Max Output | 30.3kW | 29.7 kW |
| Dimensions (W x H x D) | 700mm x 395mm x 278mm | 712mm x 440mm x 256mm |
| Mounting | Wall Mountable | Wall Mountable |
| Flow Rate | N/A | N/A |
| Cost (boiler only) | £780 – £870 | £825 – £945 |
| ERP Rating | A Heat | A Heat |
Before we get into the comparison, it is important to note that when purchasing a new or replacement system boiler, you will need to accommodate room for an additional hot water cylinder tank that is usually installed inside an airing cupboard. For this reason, if your home has limited space, a combi boiler may be more suitable for you.
As we can see from the table above, both system boilers are similar in their key features. However, there are a few important differences to discuss.
First is the kW output. Although both boilers state that they are 30kW system boilers, the Ideal Logic Plus S30 system gas boiler has a maximum output of 30.3kW, which is higher than what is expected of it, meanwhile, the Alpha E-Tec 30S system gas boiler only reaches 29.7kW. Although this may not seem like a huge difference to many, this will affect the efficiency levels.
The second difference is the boiler prices. When comparing both boiler costs, the Ideal Logic Plus system boiler is our overall winner coming in between £45 and £75 cheaper that the Alpha E-Tec 30S system gas boiler.
Similarly to the Ideal Logic C30 combi boiler, when purchasing a new or replacement Ideal Logic Plus S30 system boiler with WarmZilla, you will receive an 8-year guarantee with your boiler.
Regular Boilers
| Make | Ideal | Alpha |
| Model | Logic Heat 24kW Regular Gas Boiler | E-TEC 25R Regular Gas Boiler |
| Efficiency Rating | 93% | 92% |
| Band Rating | A-Rated | A-Rated |
| Standard Warranty | 10 Years | 7 Years |
| Central Heat Max Output | 24kW | 26.1kW |
Dimensions | 700mm x 395mm x 278mm | 712mm x 440mm x 256mm |
| Mounting | Wall Mounted | Wall Mounted |
| Flow Rate | N/A | N/A |
| Total Cost | £778 – £1,027 | £709 – £809 |
| ERP Rating | A Heat | A Heat |
At first glance, we can see that both the Ideal Logic Heat 24kW regular boiler and the Alpha E-Tec 25R regular boiler are again, similar in their performance. One difference that we instantly see here, is the price. Now, although Alpha looks like it may be the winner for this round with a price difference between £69 and £218, it’s important to consider reliability and the build quality of the boiler.
With this said, the Ideal Logic Heat regular boiler also comes with a 10-year standard warranty and has been designed to be compact and lightweight and overall has a better build quality. This will be discussed in more depth later on in this blog when we discuss the Which? Best Boiler brand survey scores.
It is important to remember when purchasing a new or replacement regular boiler, that you will need space in your home for an additional hot water cylinder and cold water tank. These are typically installed in the attic and airing cupboard of your home.
For this reason, we do not recommend a regular boiler for homes with limited space, such as a flat or apartment.
If you’re unsure what kW boiler you need for your home, or what kW means when it comes to your boiler, we have separate blogs that cover this. Don’t worry, we’ve got your back!
The next section of this blog will discuss how both Ideal and Alpha customers found their experience with boiler installation and aftercare and most importantly, the build quality and brand customer reviews, which may help you decide which boiler is best for you.
Reliability
Ideal has been awarded the Good Housekeeping award for three years running, winning the ‘reader recommended’ award in 2019, 2020, and 2021. Ideal boilers have been endorsed by the Energy Saving Trust & have also been Quiet Mark approved, thanks to their developing technology.
Ideal comes out on top when it comes to comparing Trustpilot reviews. With a rating of 4.7 out of 5 from over 6,000 reviews. 91% of Ideal’s reviews are positive compared to Alpha’s 89%.
Here are some consumer reviews on Trustpilot:
“A quick response and a very efficient and friendly service. I highly recommend Ideal Heating”
“Always been a sceptic with warranties . BUT excellent service today from Ideal”.
Although Alpha also has 4.7 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot, they only have 1,097 reviews, with 89% of their reviews being positive. However, from a customer’s point of view, Alpha doesn’t seem to be living up to their word that customer service is at the forefront of their business.
After a little more investigation into the content of the Alpha reviews, it shows that a lot of the reviews are either from engineers fitting the Alpha boiler or from customers thanking engineers for coming out so quickly to fix issues with the boiler. This can be interpreted in two ways – firstly, that Alpha boilers require a bit of ongoing maintenance and are susceptible to breaking down, and secondly, that when they do break down they get engineers out pretty quickly and they seem to resolve the issue.
As we can see from the comparison table above, both boilers have an efficiency rating of 93% and an ErP A-rating for central heating. This shows that both the Ideal Logic Plus System S30 Gas Boiler and the Alpha E-TEC 30s System Gas Boiler are both highly efficient and could potentially help you to lower your energy bills.
Referring back to our point about taking reliability into consideration, although the Alpha E-Tec 30s system boiler is slightly cheaper, by looking at the customer reviews, Ideal boilers appear to be more reliable, they also have several awards to support that they are a reliable and efficient boiler brand.
Which? Best buy’s annual Best Gas Boiler Brand survey results in 2020 show that from 7,500 boiler owners and 153 Which? Trusted Trader engineers, Ideal received an overall score of 69%, and Alpha receiving 45%.
The survey was based on reliability, customer score, engineer recommendation, build quality, availability of parts and spares, ease of fixing a common fault and ease of servicing. The results from the survey are below:
Meanwhile, Alpha has recently launched its innovative GasSaver product. This top box, which is positioned above the boiler, removes the heat from waste gases and uses it to preheat the cold mains water before it enters the boiler. Alpha claims that results in around 35% less gas being used to produce hot water, which could help to potentially save money on your energy bills as well as increase efficiency. This could potentially help Alpha to become a more efficient boiler brand.
When it comes to reliability, it seems that you get what you pay for.
Both brands are budget boilers, meaning that you wouldn’t get the same level of reliability or longevity as you would with more premium boiler brands such as Worcester Bosch or Vaillant, but they will save you some coin.
Aftercare
Boiler warranties are there for extra peace of mind, however, they do vary depending on models and boiler brands.
Warranty is one of the key factors we look for when purchasing a new or replacement boiler, and can often be the deal-breaker when it comes to choosing the right boiler for you.
Ideal’s aftercare service is second to none, offering great customer service 364 days a year. Ideal offers a warranty of up to 12 years on parts and labour on their Vogue Max boiler range and up to 10 years warranty on other boiler models. Ideal also offer 25 years warranty on their cylinder vessels, along with 2 years parts and labour warranty.
Alpha offers a standard five-year warranty for their InTec range increasing to six years with the Cyclone Plus filter and seven years with the Premier Pack Plus. The longest warranty from Alpha comes with the E-Tec Plus Range plus Premiere Pack which is 13 years, which is amazing. However, this is only available if you have your boiler fitted by an Alpha boiler installer.
Ideal’s website offers a lot of tips and advice regarding aftercare with their boilers, including only help videos for that extra support once having your Ideal boiler fitted. Alpha also offer aftercare support online, however, offering answers to frequent FAQ’s and error codes is as far as they go.
Summary
Taking all the above into consideration, both boilers discussed have great features and are perfect for homes with up to 20 radiators and a main bathroom.
Although they are both cost-effective boilers, in our eyes, Ideal offers a wider range of excellent products at an affordable price and aftercare that is second to none, and therefore wins this battle for us.
If you’re looking to buy a new boiler then get a boiler quote from WarmZilla. It only takes two minutes, you don’t need to have any technical knowledge, and it’s all done online. Or, if you want to compare your current heating system with new boiler models or brands, you can use our Boiler Comparison tool to help you decide on the perfect boiler for your home. What more could you ask for?
*This is a guide price for a straightforward, like-for-like boiler replacement. Prices taken from BoilerPrices.co.uk. Installation costs will vary dependent on the work required.
**The WarmZilla Ideal Logic Max 30kW Package includes an exclusive 12-year guarantee, 10 years provided by the manufacturer, and 2 years provided by WarmZilla. More info is available on the WarmZilla T&C pages.
