What's different about a Slant/Fin boiler install in a townhouse compared to a detached home.
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Quick answer
Townhouse boiler installs in Metro Vancouver generally require council approval before work starts, since venting changes typically affect common property or the building exterior. Beyond approval, the practical constraints are fitting the boiler into a mechanical closet sized for the original equipment and meeting vent clearance requirements from closely spaced neighbouring units.
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As with most mechanical work touching a townhouse's exterior, a boiler replacement that changes venting type — say, moving from a chimney-vented unit to a direct-vent model — typically needs sign-off from the complex's governing council before scheduling. Even a like-for-like replacement sometimes requires notifying the governing council, so it's worth checking your complex's bylaws or contacting the property manager early in the process.
It's also worth asking the property manager whether a similar boiler swap has been approved elsewhere in the complex before — many councils move faster on a request that matches a precedent than on something they haven't seen before.
Townhouses are usually built with a compact, purpose-built mechanical closet, and a replacement boiler needs to fit that footprint, or the closet needs modification, which is a bigger and more disruptive job. Measuring the closet and confirming a comparable-sized unit is available should happen before a specific model is chosen.
Closets built for an atmospheric, chimney-vented boiler sometimes need a return-air grille or louvred door added if the replacement unit's combustion air requirements differ from the original, which is worth confirming against the closet's current setup rather than assuming it already meets the new unit's needs.
Direct-vent boiler models exhaust through a sidewall similar to a tankless water heater, and in a townhouse complex that means checking clearances from neighbouring units' windows and doors, which can be tighter than in a detached home. Where the mechanical closet backs onto a shared wall, the available exterior venting wall may be limited to one option, which is worth confirming before assuming any wall will work.
Some complexes meter gas per unit, others share metering with costs allocated through council fees, but either way the branch line serving your unit needs enough capacity for the new boiler's input rating, which a licensed gas fitter confirms before the install.
If the complex has had other units replace their boilers recently, comparing notes on install timelines and any council conditions attached to approval can save a round of back-and-forth with your own request.
Safety note
If you ever smell gas, hear a hissing sound near the unit, or the room feels unusually stuffy with a burning or metallic odour, leave the house and call FortisBC's emergency line at 1-800-663-9911 from somewhere safe before doing anything else. Only a Technical Safety BC licensed gas fitter should open a gas line, adjust a burner, or work on venting. CANRO holds gas licence LGA0043870 and boiler licence LBP0046450.
Often yes, particularly if the venting type is changing, since that typically affects common property or the building exterior — check the complex's bylaws or contact the property manager.
Usually, but closets are often sized specifically for the original equipment, so measuring first and confirming a comparable-sized replacement is available avoids surprises.
Only where it meets clearance requirements from neighbouring windows and doors, which can be more limiting in a townhouse than in a detached home.
It varies by complex — some meter individually, others have costs allocated through the complex's governing council — but either way the branch line capacity needs to be confirmed by a licensed gas fitter.
It depends on your complex's council meeting schedule and bylaws, so it's worth starting that process well ahead of your desired install date.
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