Throughout New York, there are two types of heating systems found in most homes: the forced-air furnace or the hydronic boiler. Both types of heaters have long histories, going back to times when they both used coal as fuel. In fact, when we started in business back in 1930, we delivered the coal furnaces in buildings burned to generate heat.
Today, most boilers and furnaces run from natural gas, which is also one of our specialties, as we’re an ESCO (energy service company) that allows customers to purchase their home’s natural gas directly from us. Furnaces and boilers can also operate from electricity, which generally makes them more expensive to run.
Why the Boiler Is Still Around
Although furnaces are the most popular home heating systems, not only in New York but across the country, boilers haven’t faded away. Many homes rely on them rather than use a heater with ductwork. This is common for homes that don’t have important cooling needs (or use window or wall units) and therefore don’t need the ductwork to supply cooled air during the summer.
Why do boilers remain competitive for home heating? There are some important benefits this type of heating offers:
- Energy-efficient performance: A boiler suffers from less heat loss during operation than a furnace. The reason for this is that water is a more effective heat transference medium than air. A furnace must heat air to send to the rooms, while a boiler heats water and pipes it to terminal points. The more effective transfer of heat via water means a boiler consumes less energy on average than a furnace.
- Fast, even heating spread: A trouble with furnaces is they tend to blow out heated air that gathers at the ceiling of a room. It takes a while for this heat to spread through the rest of the room. The spread is also uneven, leaving cold spots. Boilers don’t blow heat into a room. They radiate heat into a room by heating up surfaces. This heats up a room faster and more evenly.
- Long service life with few repairs: Boilers don’t have many moving parts to them, and this means they suffer slower from the forces of wear over time. You can expect, on average, five more years of performance from a boiler compared to a furnace. The smaller number of moving parts also means not as many repair needs over time, which is another way a furnace can help save money.
- Less dust and other air pollutants: The ducts hooked up to a furnace are magnets for dust, dander, lint, and a range of other airborne irritants. Each time the furnace blower turns on, it blasts out all these pollutants, which makes for dusty and sometimes unhealthy indoor air. A boiler radiates heat from surfaces and doesn’t kick up dust with air currents, making for a cleaner indoors. This can make a big difference for people in a household who suffer from asthma and allergies.
If you ‘re looking for installation or other services for a boiler in Staten Island, NY, we’re the people to contact. We can also arrange for you to receive natural gas delivery from us: we’re always looking out for the lowest possible prices to better serve our customers.
Scaran has served Staten Island and its neighbors since 1930.
