Installing and Maintaining an HVAC System

Factors to Consider Before Upgrading Your Heating System

11 July 2017

Aaron Kennedy

Several factors should be considered before you invest in upgrading the heating system of your home. This article discusses some of the factors that can help you to determine whether upgrading the heating system is the best option.

Thermal Envelope Upgrades

A thermal envelop refers to anything that demarcates the interior of your home from the exterior. This includes the walls, windows, doors and the roof. Any change in the thermal envelop may affect the heating system. For example, installing double-pane windows in the place of single-pane ones will lower the amount of heat that leaks out of those windows. Consequently, a smaller heating unit will be sufficient to address the heating needs of your home. Conversely, defective seals on doors can result in heat losses to the exterior of the home. A bigger unit may therefore be needed to keep your home heated despite those leaks. The changes to the thermal envelope of your home should therefore guide you about the necessity to upgrade the heating system.

The Age of the Current Heating Device

How old is your current heating system? It is usually beneficial to upgrade older systems, such as those approaching twenty years, in order to benefit from the efficiencies of newer technology. A new heating system is likely to have superior control systems that can enable you to optimise the performance of that heating system. Newer systems usually consume less energy than the older systems. You should therefore opt to upgrade the heating system in case it is approaching the end of its service life. However, put off any upgrades if your current system is just a few years old. This is because that existing system may be having the technology that new systems have. Additionally, you may not have recouped what you invested in that system.

The Level of Comfort

Have you noticed that some sections of your home remain hotter or colder than other sections? The heating system may be incorrectly sized for your home. Alternatively, leaks may be compromising the performance of the system. First ask an expert to rule out preventable causes of that uneven heating before you upgrade the system.

As you can see, careful thought needs to be invested into the decision to upgrade the heating system. You should therefore avoid spur-of-the-moment decisions so that you don't spend money that would have been saved if you had taken time to think through your options. Contact companies like Kintore Airconditioning for more information.

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