People Are Switching To Boilers
My massage therapist purchased an old schoolhouse a few years ago and since they bought it her and her husband have been remodeling it in the hopes that she will be able to use it as her own little massage therapy kingdom and have a dozen therapists working there with regular yoga classes and whatever else massage therapists do. One day not too long ago I went over to look at the building and noticed that the doors were flung wide open and there were classes going on inside. Since it was summer time and 85 degrees outside I guessed that she does not have air conditioning in there yet and that is why the doors were open. So in my next appointment with her after my visit to her building I asked her about the environmental controls in there and what she planned on doing. She said that I was correct in my assumption that there is no air conditioning yet but then she also mentioned that, along with installing air conditioning next year, they would also be changing the heating system to a water boiler. So the central air conditioning would go through the ductwork that was installed for the furnace and the water boiler parts would be installed to heat the building after this winter.
I asked her why water boiler control as opposed to forced air heating like everyone else has and she said that water boiler heating, even if you are using an oil fired boiler, is cleaner and more efficient than forced air heating. So I was intrigued and started to do my own research and she is very correct in what she was saying. Water boiler heating is a contained unit that circulates warmed water throughout the building and gives off heat in each room using the heated water rather than forcing air through an opening in the wall of floor. I have seen efficiency ratings for water boiler systems as high as 93% and ratings for forced air heating systems as low as 55%. The difference was staggering and the benefits to a boiler system seemed unbeatable.
Converting to a boiler system is expensive and boiler repair is not cheap and nor should it be tried by an amateur. Only trained professionals should attempt water boiler repair and, since a boiler system is a contained system that cannot have any leaks or openings, repair can be costly. The savings in energy costs is pretty substantial and should definitely outweigh any repair issues but just keep maintenance in mind. Boilers need attention more than forced air units do and this could be one of the reasons why most homes are forced air. A boiler that is not vented properly will explode and they need to be checked once in a while to make sure they are not building up pressure. When your heating system can explode due to built up pressure it is a good idea to make sure you are home once in a while to check on it.