Your thermostat is set for 70 deg. F. The temperature drops to 69 degrees and the boiler fires up. Based on the outside temperature of 50 degrees, your boiler reset controller determines that a water temperature of 100 degrees will provide the right amount of heat. The boiler starts heating your water until it reaches 100 degrees. Your home heats up to 70 degrees and the boiler shuts off, but the temperature doesn’t go up higher because your radiators are only 100 degrees. In order to maintain 70 degrees in your home, tha radiators must stay at 100 degrees so they will never cool down. Rather, they will stay at 100 degrees and maintain your exact set point of 70 degrees in your home. How efficient, How comfortable? As it gets colder outside, your boiler will automatically adjust the water in your system hotter and hotter to meet your exact heating needs. Imagine how comfortable it will feel in your home without temperature fluctuations? Imagine how quiet your system will be without the constant noise of your pipes expanding and contracting as they heat up and cool down. But most of all, imagine how much energy you will save due to this operating efficiency.

See this video to learn more about outdoor reset.

In my next post I will illustrate the heating cycle with a DVCB (Direct Vent Condensing Boiler) that is equipped with Outdoor Reset.

For more technical details about reset, see this article from John Siegenthaler

The following video is a great simulation of what happens in my favourite DVCB, the Triangle Tube Prestige during a heating cycle. Check it out!

The modulating boiler, however can adjust its heating power to match the actual requirements at the time. This is done in real-time adjusting the boiler’s power depending on weather conditions. Now your boiler is always just the prefect size for your home and is always operating at peak efficiency.

In next post I will discuss the advantage of Reset.

Proud of a great furnace install.

The energy savings of a condensing boiler is compounded by its operating efficiency. Operating efficiency means that the boiler operates in such a way to maximize savings and reduce energy consumption due to this special sequence of operation. This is all in addition to the fact that its combustion efficiency is high. There a several ways in which the modulating condensing boilers offer operational efficiency and depending on which boiler you select, you will benefit from some or all of these operational advantages.

1. Modulation.
2. Reset
3. Low water temperature operation.
4. Turndown to support zoning.

In my next few posts, I will elaborate on these operational efficiencies and explain them in detail. Please feel free to ask a question if you require additional information.

Proud of a great furnace install.

Hi,

Today I will discuss the Power Vented Boiler.  Power vented boilers can reach up to 85% efficiency which is a bit more than the old workhorse atmospheric. They are relatively reliable and are easy replacements for the old atmospheric. They look like the atmospheric with one difference, the atmospheric has the mushroom-shaped draft hood on top while the power vented boiler has an induced draft blower on the side of the boiler. Please see the picture below.

These boilers have a blower that forces the flu products out of your home, so they are a little bit safer than atmospheric boilers. However, since they rely on air from inside your home for combustion air, they still present some dangers and their installation are also restricted by the TSSA as follows.

1. A dedicated and properly sized combustion air duct directly from the outside must be installed in the boiler room.

2. Carbon monoxide detectors must be installed in or adjacent to every sleeping area in the home.

See the Safety Advisory below. Again, when I hear that these boilers require such extensive carbon monoxide monitoring, I would not consider installing these types of boilers in my home and jeopardizing the safety of my family. To me it is like throwing my child overboard in rough seas with a life jacket.

In my home, I would only install a direct vented boiler that we will discuss in my next post. These boilers have no restrictions on their installation because they are inherently safer than the 2 boilers we just discussed.

1. These boilers may only be located in a room that is completely sealed from the rest of the home.

2. These boiler rooms must have gasketed doors with automatic door closers to prevent any fumes from the boiler from getting into the living space.

3. These boilers may not be installed in a room that has a door directly into a bedroom or bathroom.

4. A dedicated and properly sized fresh air duct must be installed directly from the outdoors to the boiler room.

5. There must be CO detectors installed in or adjacent to every sleeping area in the home.

I don’t know about you, but these restrictions give me the creeps so I would never install a dangerous boiler like that in my home.

Please see a copy of the TSSA public safety order below.

This boiler has been the workhorse of the industry for many years. They are reliable, simple and relatively trouble-free. However, there are several problems with this style boiler.
1. They have been found to produce carbon monoxide, the silent killer, when they are not meticulously maintained.
2. For this reason, the TSSA mandated several conditions for the use of any existing boiler.
3. These boilers must be thoroughly tested and checked for CO each heating season. Please see the TSSA advisory below mandating the yearly testing.

In my next blog entry, I will tell you about the dangers of carbon monoxide.

He reports “The government’s regulator, the Ontario Energy Board, has prepared secret forecasts of how much Ontario consumers are going to have to pay for electricity over the next five years. The government won’t allow the report to be released. The next best estimate comes from Aegency Energy Advisors Inc., in a study it did for the Canadian Manufactures and Exporters group. Residential rates are expected to jump by 60% between 2010 and 2015. Industrial customers will be looking at a 55% increase.”

These huge increases, he says, are directly due to the Feed In Tariff that George Smitherman so proudly developed and announced in October of 2009 when he was energy minister of the Provincial rates.

See the announcement of the Feed In Tariff in the video below.

Are you happy with the direction of our rates? Will you be able to afford your current lifestyle if your energy rates are 2-3 times what you are paying now?

Energy Poverty is a term coined in the UK. Middle class people are unable to afford to heat and light their homes due to the skyrocketing costs? We in Ontario seem to be headed down that road.

Please see the entire article by clicking here.

Watch this video to get an understanding of the Green Energy Act and Tariff program.

In order for any home comfort product to work properly, it must be installed according to the way it was engineered and designed to be installed. Some of the items that require special care in order for your furnace or air conditioner to work according to the manufacturer’s specifications are:

1. Ductwork
2. Venting
3. Controls and wiring.
4. High voltage electrical
5. Drain
6. Equipment Leveling

In my next post, I will explain the importance of proper ducting.

1. How much cooling does your house need?
2. How much heat does your house need?
3. Does your home get too dry in the winter? Does anyone experience nosebleeds? Is there static in the house?
4. Does your home have proper air filtration? Are there people in your home with breathing issues? Allergies? Asthma?
5. Do you have young children? Does your home have proper air sanitization? Are you concerned about bacteria, mould and other growing organisms in your air?
6. Does your home have adequate ventilation? Is the air stale and stuffy at times?
7. Does your home suffer from too much moisture? Do your windows drip in the winter?
8. Is your home evenly heated and cooled or are there areas that are too cold or too warm?
9. Is your home drafty?
10. Does your current system use too much energy? Are your utility bills too high?
11. Is your current equipment located in the most practical and appropriate spot?

These are some of the important issues that must be clarified and discussed before any comfort advisor can propose a home comfort system for you.

Make sure that you have a chance to discuss all these issue so that your investment in your home health and comfort will pay off.

Tomorrow, I will outline the information that must be gathered in this audit.

Some day your home will be cooled by the power of the sun. The hotter the sun gets, the more your air conditioner will cool with no environmental penalty.

I am also very pleased to announce that Stephen has agreed to join me as a co-blogger and will be chiming in from time to time with helpful information for all of our customers.

At our last meeting, we had a fabulous training seminar on the new requirement to include an harassment policy as mandated by the new Bill 168.

So, as you can see, by caring and sharing with each other, our group can go a lot further than any one member would be able to go on his/her own.

I am proud to be a member of this group and I am proud to be associated with the many special, wonderful and professional people who make this group so remarkable.

As a member of ClimateCare, I have learnt and continue to learn how to service my customers better.

Please visit the ClimateCare website to learn more about us.

Tomorrow, I will present the third strategy.

ClimateCare is a cooperative of HVAC contractors that work together as a group to raise the bar in all aspects of the HVAC business. This includes quality of service, training of technicians, business practices, honesty and integrity. Each member company is audited yearly to ensure compliance with all the relevant safety, quality and business best practices. We are all held accountable by each other to maintain the highest level of performance. In order to achieve these lofty goals, there are three main strategies. Firstly, we meet for 2 days 4 times each year. During these meetings, training is provided to each member on any current and relevant issues to our industry. At these meeting all of us are able to share ideas during informal social time that allow each member to benefit from the great ideas put forth by the group. It is at these social events that I gain the most since everyone in the group is so friendly and eager to help every member.

In the next post, I will discuss the second strategy.

This weekend was no different, in fact it seemed worse.  My attempts to logically tell them that it is a nearly seven years old and I have no intention of buying a new car fell on deaf years, as did my argument of the total environmental cost of owning a Prius being higher than even a Hummer. [reference: The Belmont Club: Which is Greener: the Prius or the Hummer?, the Recorder, and Samizdata].

So here is what I’ve done…  I found a site called ClimateCare which allows you to estimate your carbon footprint for your home, travel, gifts, and yes, your car. 

ClimateCare helps people like you make a difference to this unique planet, lowering business  and individual carbon emissions because we all want to make the biggest impact we can in tackling climate change.  We do this by helping you reduce your CO₂ emissions, giving you the advice you need to reduce your carbon footprint or calculate and buy carbon offsets through transparent projects in renewables and energy efficiency.

Once estimated, the site gives you suggestions as to how you can offset those carbon emissions or purchase credits.  I have completely offset the entire life of my car to date, all 125,000 miles that have been driven and I have a certificate to prove it!  For comparison purposes, my car costs about $100.00 per year to offset, a Prius costs about $50.00 for similar mileage (that doesn’t sound that much better to me).  Ironically, I spent $100.00 filling up my tank today at $4.33 per gallon, so over all the cost of offsetting the carbon footprint of my car seems totally worth it.  And the bonus of being able to end the constant discussion is even better.  My SUV is now greener than the vast majority of cars on the road. 

My car is greener than yours!