Forced Hot Air in North Jersey (home, live, installation)

[blahblahyoutoo]

Originally Posted by TLC1957

Lived in 2 homes in NJ, 1 home for 28 years and the other for 6 years with hot water baseboard heat with a natural gas boiler. 5 years ago we moved to Pa. into a 1928 cottage home with natural gas forced hot air.

A few things

1. The current home heats up fast compared to hot water baseboard which takes a long time to go say from 62 to 68.
2. Wife thinks not as much dust since the hot air furnace air goes through a 10” wide air filter replaced annually.
3. Our last home had baseboard and AC via a separate system with 2 ac condensers one for each floor. AC took a long time to cool down the house. The hot/cooling air system cools the home quickly.
4. Hot air system requires annual service of the system. We lived in the hot water baseboard home for 28 years and had it serviced perhaps 3 times in that time.

The home we lived in for 28 years was 3500 sq ft , 2 story constructed by us in 1987. Our current home is 1200 sq ft and 1.5 stories.

what annual service are you doing other than changing filters?

[TLC1957]

Originally Posted by blahblahyoutoo

what annual service are you doing other than changing filters?

Checking the heat exchanger to ensure no leaks is critical to prevent CO ( Carbon Monoxide) from killing you. The service folks have the equipment to check the system to make sure the heat exchanger is ok. As the system gets old the metal fatigues and can present a problem. Many systems over 20-25 years old can have this problem resulting the replacement of the entire gas furnace.

[blahblahyoutoo]

Originally Posted by TLC1957

Checking the heat exchanger to ensure no leaks is critical to prevent CO ( Carbon Monoxide) from killing you. The service folks have the equipment to check the system to make sure the heat exchanger is ok. As the system gets old the metal fatigues and can present a problem. Many systems over 20-25 years old can have this problem resulting the replacement of the entire gas furnace.

so just a visual inspection?
all I do is change the filter 2-3x a year.

[TLC1957]

Originally Posted by blahblahyoutoo

so just a visual inspection?
all I do is change the filter 2-3x a year.

Nope they measure the CO on the discharge side of the heating unit. They put a probe on the return air duct and in the discharge air duct and indicate the CO reading on the inspection report indicating if it is within safety limits. The also measure the gas pressure coming into the system and clean the burners. They adjust the burners to ensure it is operational at peak efficiency by adjusting the openings on the burner. This usually cost above $80 a year. Below is from the company that does the inspection

FURNACE MAINTENANCE CHECK LIST

1. Heat Exchanger – Inspected for cracks & deterioration
Heat exchangers can develop cracks with age. If they exist, there is a risk of serious illness from the toxic fumes emitted.

2. Burners – Removed & cleaned if necessary
Dirty burners can cause poor combustion, soot, condensation, and will shorten the life of the furnace. You pay for useful heat that ?goes up the chimney? instead of going into your house.

3. Fan Switch – Checked & adjusted
A fan switch that is not properly adjusted can waste energy and cause nuisance fan cycling

4. Pilot & Pilot Assembly – Cleaned & adjusted as necessary
Weak or dirty pilots can easily be extinguished causing the furnace to shut down

5. Safety Controls – Operationally inspected
Safety controls that do not operate can cause dangerous problems.

6. Gas Line – Leak checked from the furnace shut off valve to the burners
Undetected gas leaks are dangerous.

7. Combustion Air – Openings will be checked
Blocked or restricted combustion air openings can be dangerous.

8. Flue Pipe – Inspected
Flue pipe corrosion or leaks are dangerous.

9. Temperatures & Performance – Recorded
An accurate record of vital data can indicate potential problems that can be eliminated.

10. Panels – Secure all panels
Loose panels can increase operating costs and cause either a shutdown or a dangerous condition.

11. Controls & Safeties – Inspected & tested

Controls and safeties that do not function properly can increase operation cost and cause other components to fail.

12. Lubrication – Application to motors & bearings

Improperly lubricated rotating equipment will eventually fail.

13. Belts & Pulleys – Inspected & adjusted

Loose belts and worn pulleys decrease air flow, increase operating costs and shorten the compressor’s life. Belts crack and break with age.

14. Air Filter – Replaced at customer’s option

A restricted air filter can cause your air conditioning unit to waste energy and shorten the compressor’s life.

15. Voltage & Amp – Draw of the blower motor, compressor & condenser fan motors checked & recorded

Improper voltage and amp draw increase operating costs and can shorten the life of any motor.

16. Thermostat – Checked & calibrated

[bbnetworking]

I have steam air boiler, not a fan.. 2 years ago, it had a cracked in the boiler, had to replace the whole system (expensive)

it always making noises here and there.. I prefer force air.

[Lillie767]

I found that the baseboard hot water system provided a more even heat than forced hot air. When the hot air system is on, it's blowing hot air out the vents. So the house gets hot. Then, blimey, it shuts off. No more hot air and the house get cold quickly. Then boom, it's on again, and so on and so on.

The hot water system, gently and gradually heats the air in the room to a pleasant temperature. Then the boiler shuts off, but the water circulator continue to move the still hot water around the house. It takes quite a while for the air temp to drop enough for the boiler to start again. Meanwhile, the room temperature slowly drops, creating a more pleasant environment.

Also, the air isn't as dry with hot water heat as with hot air heat. Always needed a humidifier with the hot air system.

[vision33r]

Originally Posted by Lillie767

I found that the baseboard hot water system provided a more even heat than forced hot air. When the hot air system is on, it's blowing hot air out the vents. So the house gets hot. Then, blimey, it shuts off. No more hot air and the house get cold quickly. Then boom, it's on again, and so on and so on.

The hot water system, gently and gradually heats the air in the room to a pleasant temperature. Then the boiler shuts off, but the water circulator continue to move the still hot water around the house. It takes quite a while for the air temp to drop enough for the boiler to start again. Meanwhile, the room temperature slowly drops, creating a more pleasant environment.

Also, the air isn't as dry with hot water heat as with hot air heat. Always needed a humidifier with the hot air system.

The real upgrade is radiant heat which is very expensive but works pretty much the same way that it warms the living space without drying up.

The problem with forced hot air is that the house becomes too dry so it doesn't stay warm very long. The solution to that is having a good warm mist humidifier or a unit that connects to the air duct to release humidity into the air.

[BillCashman]

When looking at homes with forced hot air, make sure the heating vents are located on the perimeter of the house. The return vents should be in the interior walls.

I know someone who bought a home with forced hot air and the heating vents are in the interior walls.

The walls with the windows and entry doors are always cold.

[BugsyPal]

Forced air heating has always largely been a "hot" and "cold" thing. When heat is blasting you are warm, when it shuts off you soon are cold.

Radiant or convection heating (sometimes combination of both) via steam or hot water provides far more steady and comfortable temperatures.

For one thing they warm objects in rooms that will continue to give off heat even after steam or hot water stops circulating. In case of cast iron radiators and risers heat is given off long after steam or hot water has stopped coming up from boiler.

Really is a shame steam or hot water heat was demonized so much in post war years, and the rise (or need) to build homes faster and cheaper gave rise to forced air heating.

To be fair of the two hot water heat (baseboard, in floor radiant, etc...) manged to hold a bit of its own against force air.

Hot water heat is usually quiet and even. Steam when properly installed and maintained can be just as quiet and even (especially two pipe steam systems), but sadly many steam heating systems are neither properly maintained and or installed.

Back in day they had vapor/vacuum steam heating that rivaled hot water for even silent heating and energy efficiency. Plus you had the benefit of not having water travelling all around buildings. The push towards one pipe systems helped kill off steam.

Because one pipe systems carry both steam and water (condensate) there is often where you get banging, clanging, leaking, hissing and many of the other negative things people associate with steam heating. Again those things can be eliminated or kept to a minimum in a well maintained and properly installed system, but...

[Mike_J]

Originally Posted by Lillie767

I found that the baseboard hot water system provided a more even heat than forced hot air. When the hot air system is on, it's blowing hot air out the vents. So the house gets hot. Then, blimey, it shuts off. No more hot air and the house get cold quickly. Then boom, it's on again, and so on and so on.

The hot water system, gently and gradually heats the air in the room to a pleasant temperature. Then the boiler shuts off, but the water circulator continue to move the still hot water around the house. It takes quite a while for the air temp to drop enough for the boiler to start again. Meanwhile, the room temperature slowly drops, creating a more pleasant environment.

Also, the air isn't as dry with hot water heat as with hot air heat. Always needed a humidifier with the hot air system.

You’re 100% right. Forced hot air sucks when compared to hot water baseboard. It’s not even close.