When Should I Replace My Boiler or Furnace ?
One easy answer to this question is if you wake up one cold winter morning to find your furnace or boiler isn’t working! While not all failures require a complete boiler replacement, generally by the time the boiler fails, you’ve usually waited too long. Repairing your furnace or boiler is usually the less expensive option, though it is possible for some repairs to cost just as much as a furnace or boiler replacement. For some the decision becomes whether you want to put money into a failing piece of equipment or invest in a new heating system under warranty that will provide a bit more peace of mind.
When your boiler or furnace is not quite dead yet, the economics of boiler replacement tend to be all about the age and efficiency of your existing boiler system. Here’s the primary reasons why people replace their furnace or boiler systems before they die:
- The boiler breaks down frequently and is more than 10 years old. Ten years is a good life expectancy for a boiler. More than that and you risk becoming the obscenity screaming Dad from the movie “A Christmas Story”. After this much time repairs make less and less sense and a newer system is almost guaranteed to save you money on heating and repair bills.
- Conversions from Oil to Gas. This is pretty self-explanatory, and a good thing to do by the way.
- Increase in size of home area – Usually done to accommodate a new addition or other increased demand for heat in remote area’s of the home.
- Lack of Thermostat or Zone Control – If parts of your house are getting heated when no one is home, you are really wasting money. Sometimes adding a new zone to your heating system will require a full scale replacement of your furnace but it very much depends on the size and age of your existing furnace. Most boilers are oversized so some calculation is required to see if you really need to upgrade.
If however your boiler is too old to support programmable thermostats and such, then you are likely due for an upgrade.
- A desire to be green and cut greenhouse gas emissions which most modern furnaces do.
- You experience humidity issues or problems with excessive dust – Older equipment and leaky ducts can cause these problems. A qualified heating professional (ask us for names) will install new equipment as well as offer solutions for humidity and indoor air quality issues.
Whatever the issue with your current boiler system, the experts at Crosstown Plumbing can help you understand your boiler replacement issue and recommend the best solution for your situation.
Call us! Just ask for Lenny!
