BOXT boiler installations come with free Nest thermostat and Google Home Mini
One of the issues with having a new boiler fitted is that many plumbers still want to install traditional heating controls, rather than smart ones. BOXT is looking to change that and has done a deal with Google to provide free voice-controlled smart heating with every boiler installation.
As part of the deal, all new boilers provided by BOXT will ship with a Nest Learning Thermostat and Google Home Mini smart speaker. The Nest Learning Thermostat is one of our highest-rated smart thermostats, able to learn how you use your home to generate a schedule automatically. With Home/Away assist providing geofencing, this Thermostat can turn off when you go out and on when you get home to further save money.
The excellent Google Home Mini provides a neat way to voice control the system, plus its built-in Google Assistant can control other smart devices, answer questions, tell you about upcoming calendar appointments and more.
Related: Best smart thermostat
To get the most out of smart heating, thermostats should be connected via the boiler’s digital interface using OpenTherm, which BOXT says it does. Using OpenTherm, the thermostat can adjust the temperature of the boiler to the most efficient level, saving even more money on your heating bills. Again, it’s a feature that many plumbers don’t use, opting for the standard on/off controls that traditional thermostats use.
As well as providing the smart thermostat and Google Home Mini, BOXT has a full online booking system that lets you get a fixed-price quote for a boiler installation. The selection of boilers given to you depends on answers to your questions, such as how many showers and bedrooms that you have. BOXT can then do a next-day installation using a network of local installers.
Getting a quote from BOXT, installation prices for a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house, started at £2,440 for a Worcester Bosci Greenstar 36CDi Compact combi boiler. Using British Gas’ online quote tool with the same options, the quote was £3,245, although the online quote didn’t say which boiler would be installed.
As well as boilers, BOXT also does air conditioning installations along the same lines, although these don’t include smart controls: you could add in the Tado Smart AC controller if you wanted this feature.
BOXT plans to expand to electric vehicle chargers and other smart home devices soon, and you can get a free boiler quote at www.boxt.co.uk.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.