On 11/28/2012 10:22 AM, Chris Barker wrote:
> Thanks a lot, Bill. That's a question that I can ask the would-be supplier
> of said heat pump. It would indeed be pointless to be using more energy just
> for the sake of new, supposedly low carbon, technology.
Aye, there's the rub. A couple of years ago, there were quite attractive
sounding government incentive/rebates for more
efficient devices, including furnaces.
I had the plumbing/heating contractor out for an estimate. My situation is
close to ideal. Ancient (in furnace years)
early 50s furnace and a flue that will work for super efficient furnaces.
The existing furnace replaced a double sided floor furnace, so they ran an
almost horizontal flue out the side of the
house, then vertically up to the roof. Cut off the vertical section, and it's
ready.
So, natural gas, electricity and flue in place, and plenty of room where the
larger old furnace is. I was shocked at the
after rebate bid. I've used these folks before, for sewer work here and at my
mom's and to replace a water heater.
Always reasonable, much cheaper than others for the water heater, and competent.
I ran the numbers, new, 95% efficient furnace vs. old, 60-65% efficient one.
Payout, 20-25 years. Estimated life of new
furnace, 15 years.
The existing furnace is close to 60 years old, dead simple, no electronics,
built for the ages, and still going strong.
I added some wiring and a relay to adapt it to electronic thermostats years ago.
I have a hard time justifying replacement while it works.
Of course, nothing was as cost efficient as the five years while our electric
meter was broken. If it weren't for those
d__n smart meters being installed, I'd still be heating electrically for free.
> But the temperatures don't get very low here in Cambridgeshire, so perhaps it
> would be OK. On the other hand, this is an old house (1750s) and has only
> single thickness wall and limited scope for insulation.
My house is much younger, but otherwise our situation is much the same. Hard to
monetarily justify new tech in a mild
climate.
Heat My Moose
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