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The right heating choices can ensure your family's comfort and slash operating costs. Radiant Heat - see comfort in a new lightWhen you look at a floor warmed by radiant heating with an infrared camera, you see how energy is broadcast from the floor. People and all the objects in the room are bathed in radiant comfort. Radiant heat is the same form of energy as light. Radiant heating gently and quietly "illuminates" your living space with warmth. The floor becomes the warmest surface in the room, not the coldest. And valuable energy isn't lost at the ceiling, because radiant rooms don't "stack" hot air like forced systems. |
Comfort, efficiency . . . you have options
When it comes to the right heating system for your home, there are many choices. With fuel costs skyrocketing, making the right choice has become more important than ever. While the expense of running your heating system is of increasing importance, it's only half of the equation.
Selecting the type of heating that's right for your home and family can be complex. While the basic heating system types, forced warm air (furnace) or forced hot water (boiler) and hybrid may seem straight forward enough, there are many options to consider. Next we’ll briefly explain these different types of systems and their individual features and benefits.
Forced Warm Air
This is one of the most commonly installed systems. One reason for this is the systems’ ready adaptability and flexibility. Because this type of system utilizes ductwork throughout the home, adding central air conditioning and/or high efficiency air cleaning is straightforward and relatively easy — whether at initial installation or anytime in the future. Warm air furnaces are available in a range operating efficiencies with a unit that’s right for almost any budget.
Forced Hot Water
Forced hot water (also known as hydronic) systems are also very 
popular. Some of the reasons for this are quiet operation and the ability to divide your home into several independent heating zones. Because a zone can be as small as a specific room, this allows you to vary the required temperatures throughout your home (depending on how it's “zoned”) lowering potential operating costs by reducing heat to seldom used or unused areas.
Another reason for the popularity of forced hot water systems is the ability to simultaneously heat your home and your hot water supply, potentially lowering your operating costs. Hot water boiler systems offer two basic options for this — indirect water heaters and tank less water heating. More information on these water heating options can be found here.
Hybrid Systems
This may be the ultimate in flexibility by combing the best of both worlds! At the heart of many hybrid systems is a boiler. A boiler provides the greatest number of options by easily adapting into an existing warm air (ductwork based) system. This is called “hydro air” and combines all of the benefits of a warm air system (including the options for central A/C and air cleaning) with the flexibility of a hot water system (indirect water heating and additional heating options such as baseboard or radiant for specific areas of the home).
The point is that today's heating options, for both new and existing homes, are highly flexible and rich in choices. These options can dramatically impact efficiency (the cost of heating your home) as well your family's overall comfort. When you are considering a new or replacement system for your home, make sure you choose a contractor that can expertly present all of your options in clear, understandable terms and provide you with a complete solution that is balanced and truly tailored to your family's specific needs and budget. Our nearly 30 years of system design and installation experience along with our family of satisfied customers makes AGS Services a good choice. Call us today—we look forward to working with you!