Boiler

Boiler is an equipment which converts gas or heating oil to produce heat energy and hot water. Heating system is situated, usually, in the center of house and spreads the heat around the house. The distinctive feature of the boiler system is the slow dispersion of heat and also the possibility of creating condensed and non-condensed heat.

There are some types of Boilers:

• Gas-Fired Boilers are one of the most efficient systems. Boilers use natural gas or propane as fuel. But which kind of these to use is rather good question, because gas is not available in some places and propane is more expensive, but more available.
• Oil-Fired Boilers are recommended if you have no direct access to natural gas. Using this type of boilers involves storing enough oil-fired in the fuel tanks. In addition, if you don’t want to depend on rising oil prices, you can use biodiesel fuel, which some manufacturers offer. The advantage of the biodiesel fuel is its clean burning and good lubrication of the equipment, which makes it much easier to clean the boiler.
• Electric boilers are highly energy efficient, but for all its high efficiency, they consume large amounts of electricity, which is not a good choice for your utility bills. You can replace them by a heat pump.

Heat is distributed through…

• Steam Radiators. This is a traditional heating system, which is which are built into the wall or located around the perimeter of the room. Radiators are easy to maintained and spreads heat evenly. Some drawbacks are deformation over time, limited ability to arrange furniture and partial heat transfer outside the home.
• Hot Water Radiators. System creates the optimum temperature on each floor in modern houses without consuming a lot of energy. Radiators can be located under the baseboard or stand vertically, they, optional, can be equipped with special valves to connect them to separate thermostats. Most importantly, during the maintenance period, make sure that no water has entered the radiators
• Hydronic Radiant Floor Heating. The system is most often used for heating floors. From the boiler hot water flows to the pipes and heats the floor to the optimum temperature. Typically, the system is used for single rooms, more often such as a bathroom, children's room or bedroom. The advantage of the system is that it doesn’t dry the air and doesn’t consume a lot of electricity. However, hydronic radiant is still expensive system and do not work if the floor is covered with thick carpets.

Basic characteristics of boilers

Condensing & Non-Condensing Boilers.

Condensing type uses steam from the water heating in heating process of incoming cold water. Thus, the process has a cyclic character that provides its high efficiency. In contrast to non-condensing boilers, the first one can operate at lower temperatures without giving heat outside.

Sealed Combustion & Non-Sealed Combustion

Non-sealed combustion boilers are installed in houses with chimney outlet, because heated air enters into the room, but the product of combustion is directed to the vent. Therefore, for buying it is recommended to choose boilers; they are easier to install and you can avoid getting harmful products into your house.

What should You Consider

• Climate
• Fuel Type
• Sizing
• Cooling

Rating of Energy Efficiency

According to an annual fuel-utilization-efficiency (AFUE), boilers can be rated by energy efficiency, which is expressed as a percentage of energy and heat produced. The permissible rating of new boilers should be at last 80%, and high-efficiency boilers – from 90 to 98,5%. The higher the rating, the higher the cost of equipment, but by purchasing a boiler at a low price, you get an inefficient system.