HEATING AND VENTILATION
CONTRACTORS REFERRAL SERVICE
Get cost estimates for heating and ventilation from qualified contractors.
- Boiler or Radiator Heating System - Install or Replace Typically has radiators in each room.
- Boiler or Radiator Heating System - Repair or Service Typically boiler is in basement & radiators are in each room.
- Central Heating System - Install or Replace Also called forced air systems. Very common type.
- Central Heating System - Repair or Service Also called forced air systems. Very common type.
- Heat Pump - Install or Replace Heats & cools. Has outside unit like air conditioner.
- Heat Pump - Repair or Service Heats & cools. Has outside unit like air conditioner.
- Electrical Baseboard or Wall Heater - Install Not for hot water radiators.
- Electrical Baseboard or Wall Heater - Repair Not for hot water radiators
- Radiant Floor Heating System - Install Tubes carrying heated fluid inside the floor.
- Radiant Floor Heating System - Repair Has tubes carrying heated fluid inside the floor.
- Radiant Panel Heating Units - Install Hi-tech heating panels mounted on walls.
- Radiant Panel Heating Units - Repair Hi-tech heating panels mounted on walls.
- Solar Water Heater - Install or Replace Includes heating, hot water & electrical systems.
- Solar Water Heater - Repair or Service
- Water Heater - Install or Replace
- Water Heater - Repair or Service Includes gas and electric water heaters.
- Geo Thermal Heating or Cooling System - Install Draws heat or coolness from ground or body of water.
- Geo Thermal Heating or Cooling System - Service
- Solar Heating or Power System - Install
- Solar Heating or Power System - Service Includes heating, hot water & electrical systems.
- Swimming Pool Heaters and Equipment - Install or Replace Filters, pumps, bubblers, heaters, chlorinators, etc.
- Swimming Pool Heaters and Equipment - Repair or Service Filters, pumps, bubblers, heaters, chlorinators, etc.
- Ducts & Vents - Clean Clean heating & cooling ducts, vents & registers.
- Ducts & Vents - Install or Replace Metal air tubes used for heating & air conditioning.
- Central Air Cleaner - Install or Replace Filters our dust, pollen & other particles.
- Central Air Cleaner - Repair or Service Filters out dust, pollen & other particles.
- Central Humidifier - Install or Replace Attaches to furnace to moisten the air.
- Central Humidifier - Repair or Service Attaches to furnace to moisten the air.
- Thermostat - Install or Replace Controls heating & cooling systems.
- Thermostat - Repair or Reprogram Controls heating & cooling systems.
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Oil Heater Tips
If you have oil heat in your home you will be in for an unpleasant surprise this coming winter. Just like gasoline at the pumps the rising cost of fuel oil will make your annual budget stretch to the breaking point.
A good habit to get into - if you already haven't been doing it - is to get an annual furnace cleaning. Any heating system is made up of three basic parts.
1. Thermostat: This both measures the temperature in your home and then instructs the furnace to start and stop to maintain a constant temperature. When the air temperature goes up to the desired comfort the thermostat signals the heater and the blower to turn off.
2. Furnace: Burners turn on and heat the air whereby a blower pushes it up through the ductwork.
3. Ducts: Heat travels upward from the heat source to the rooms and cool air is return is returned to the furnace via return ducts where it is warmed again.
Annual Check Up Pointers
1. Furnace Inspection: Take the cover off and check for soot build up or combustion residue. there shouldn't be any. Vacuum out the area. Turn the furnace on and see if the flame is blue and steady. If it is yellow and flickering then the burners are dirty or need replacing.
2. Change Filters: the filters are usually air filters. Take them out and replace them with new ones.
3. Fan Belt: This powers the blower. Check to see it has 1/2" play and that there are no cracks.
For better safety you should consult an HVAC professional. This is also good for insurance purposes.
Radiant Floor Heat
Text by Dierdra Doran
When choosing a radiant floor heating system, you can use either electric radiant heat or hydronic floor heating. The more commonly used and cost-effective type is hydronic heating which requires that pipes or plastic tubing be installed in the subfloor of the house. Most hydronic systems are embedded in an insulated concrete slab. Insulation is critical to the performance of these systems. It should be installed below the slab and around its perimeter to reduce heat loss, a potential problem in cooler climates. Many new materials and techniques now enable owners to exercise different options depending on the type of flooring used. Radiant floor heat can be installed over wood-frame floors by pouring a thin slab of concrete over the pipes, and then tiling over the slab. For wooden floors in new construction, aluminum heat-transfer plates can be attached to the subflooring, and then the tubes are pressed into the plates. In electric radiant systems, electricity is run through wires that heat the slab.
Radiant floor heating is a very efficient and comfortable way to heat. Unlike a forced-air system, radiant heat travels through the room air and heats by using infrared radiant heat transfer. This means that people and objects are warmed instead of just the air. Even with a lower thermostat setting, people feel warmer. There is more consistency in the temperature of the air in a room, unlike what happens with blowing air which can heat unevenly and create hot or cold "pockets".
Unlike a radiant floor heating system, a forced-air system can build pressure up and blow warm air out through cracks in the house greatly decreasing efficiency, as well as creating drafts. People with allergies to dust find that indoor air quality is far better with radiant floor heating.
Hydronic radiant floor heating used copper tubing in earlier systems, but now installers commonly use flexible, plastic cross-linked polyethylene or PEX tubing. The PEX tubing is not only durable and easier to install, but it is less likely to corrode and leak. Water is heated by the boiler or hot water heater and distributed by a manifold center to various circuits in the floor, dispersing heat. There is often more than one circuit, allowing zone heating of different areas of the house. After flowing through the circuits, the water returns to the manifold to be reheated and sent out again. In this way, a "closed-loop system" is created. The capacity of the system will depend on the amount of tubing, the adjusted rate of water flow, and floor mass.
Generally, floors that contain greater "thermal mass" will make the radiant in floor heating system much more efficient. Heat will be stored in concrete, stone or tile floors and be released slowly and evenly when the temperature around the mass falls. Due to the rate of thermal response, thermostat settings in this situation are usually kept constant during colder periods in order to maximize efficiency.
With the growing number of passive solar houses being constructed, another source for radiant floor heat is solar hot water panels, or collectors which are installed on the roof. In many of these systems, glycol or antifreeze is carried in tubes that are heated by the sun. This fluid is transported into a transfer tank where the heat is absorbed by the water which is then stored in a well-insulated tank. Solar hot water systems are often integrated with conventional systems, so less energy is used to bring water up to the right temperature.
Radiant floor heating has been around since the days of ancient Rome, when heat from fires was channeled under floors to a chimney in the wall. Today's systems of electric or hydronic heating have come a long way, offering energy efficiency, increased comfort and decreased cost.
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