10-25-2014, 03:34 PM
If you have hot water heating, with either standing rads or baseboard-type ones, there's no need for an air handler unless you also have ductwork for air conditioning, and in that case, it would be totally separate from the furnace.
Unless I've misunderstood the set-up, combining the hot water heater with the furnace sounds like a dumb set-up: surely there must be some way to separate the heating of water for the rads and that for household's hot water taps?
I'm surprised that a 21 year old hot water heating system would be anywhere near the end of its service life, as most are very robust, although perhaps not as efficient as newer models.
As for renting or buying, you should weigh the pros and cons of each. Most purchased systems have a warranty period, while I believe the rental ones also have the warranty but require that you purchase the maintenance package. While you shouldn't allow the systems to go without maintenance, make sure that you're not being sold more than is necessary for good operation.
Any heating contractor can do annual maintenance and most offer such services as "deals" in the Fall. However, you can often get an even better price on such work in the Summer, when furnace-related service calls are pretty slow.
As for the water heater, it's difficult for me to say: mine is electric and I own the heater, and service it myself.
While a heat pump can be very efficient, even in Toronto, chances are that it will be very expensive to install unless you are in the older suburbs with a large lot. Most in-town lots in Toronto have a high percentage of the lot occupied by the house, with the result that the in-ground piping will need to be installed vertically rather than horizontally - much more expensive.
Wayne
Unless I've misunderstood the set-up, combining the hot water heater with the furnace sounds like a dumb set-up: surely there must be some way to separate the heating of water for the rads and that for household's hot water taps?
I'm surprised that a 21 year old hot water heating system would be anywhere near the end of its service life, as most are very robust, although perhaps not as efficient as newer models.
As for renting or buying, you should weigh the pros and cons of each. Most purchased systems have a warranty period, while I believe the rental ones also have the warranty but require that you purchase the maintenance package. While you shouldn't allow the systems to go without maintenance, make sure that you're not being sold more than is necessary for good operation.
Any heating contractor can do annual maintenance and most offer such services as "deals" in the Fall. However, you can often get an even better price on such work in the Summer, when furnace-related service calls are pretty slow.
As for the water heater, it's difficult for me to say: mine is electric and I own the heater, and service it myself.
While a heat pump can be very efficient, even in Toronto, chances are that it will be very expensive to install unless you are in the older suburbs with a large lot. Most in-town lots in Toronto have a high percentage of the lot occupied by the house, with the result that the in-ground piping will need to be installed vertically rather than horizontally - much more expensive.
Wayne