Heating Replacements & New Installations
On average, 50 percent of a home’s energy costs are due to its heating and air conditioning systems. Even if your heater is older but working relatively well, you will likely be surprised by how much energy is required to keep your home comfortable during the winter. Not only do many new heating systems come with federal tax credits and utility rebates, their lower monthly energy usage results in significant utility savings. Our technicians will examine your home for hot or cool zones, take account of the returns and vents, and make recommendations for high-efficiency heating systems that are customized to your home’s needs, family’s comfort level, and budget. Our technicians are also trained in installing high-efficiency condensing furnaces. You may want to consider upgrading to high-efficiency furnace venting.
Gas Furnaces, Heat Pumps, Oil Furnaces, Boilers
Heating a home is not a “one size fits all” business. Rather, it’s a matter of taking into account a home’s age, energy availability, and heating requirements, then making recommendations that will meet the customer’s budget, time constraints, and comfort level. A home’s heating system will fall into one of four categories:
- Gas Furnaces: The most common of all heating systems, a gas furnace is a forced-air system. A thermostat in the room sends a low-voltage electrical signal to the furnace allowing it to open a valve and let natural gas into the system. The gas is then lit on fire and a blower fan turns on, forcing warm air into the duct system in the house. Furnace Troubleshooting Tips You Should Know
- Heat Pumps: Heat pumps are used not only to warm your home in the winter but also to cool your home in the summer. The heat pump uses electricity to circulate heat from outside the home into the home. Even during months that seem too cold for heat to be present outside, heat energy is able to be absorbed by the pump and transported into the home. As an added bonus, the system can be reversed during warm months transporting heat from inside the home to the outside. Best of all, since the system is entirely electric, there is no need for natural gas lines or additional energy consumption.
- Oil Furnaces: Oil furnaces distribute heat in one of three ways – either by hot water run through a system along the home’s baseboards, steam through a home’s radiators, or warm air through vents. Regardless of how the warm air reaches the home’s occupants, oil furnaces work by mixing heating oil with air into a fine mist where it is then injected into the burner and lit on fire. Oil Furnace Troubleshooting 101
- Boilers: While a gas furnace uses air to distribute heat throughout your home, a boiler uses water. Using small pipes along a baseboard, radiant flooring systems, or cast iron radiators, hot water boilers distribute heat by running hot water through pipes. Steam boilers, on the other hand, distribute steam through a series of pipes to the radiators within the home. Boilers use either gas, electricity, or oil to create the fire that heats the water in the system. Top Common Boiler Issues and How to Resolve Them
Humidifiers
Like it or not, humidity plays a large role in how comfortable you are in your home. An ideal indoor relative humidity level is 45 percent, yet many homes drop well below this level during the winter. Unlike portable humidifiers that add moisture to the air in only one room, a whole-home humidifier can make your entire home more comfortable. Steam humidifiers in particular generate steam that is introduced into your existing ductwork. Known for its high performance and reliability, steam humidifiers can provide your home with optimal levels of humidity.
Farnen & Dermer has been serving the Baltimore County area since 1902. To speak to our heating repair team in Owings Mills, contact us today.
