Hot Water Heating Systems / Hydronics

We install hot water heating systems, known as hydronic systems, consisting of baseboard, radiators and/or panel radiators, for every space. Houses or buildings with these types of heating systems are usually divided into 2 or more zones, with 1 thermostat per zone. For example, bedrooms may be on one zone, living space may be on another, and unused rooms such as guest rooms, may be on a separate zone. Zones should be designed according to how you live in your home.

Sometimes, rooms in the same zone are out of balance with each other due to incorrect amounts of baseboard. We calculate the exact amount of heat needed for each room using IBR (Institute of Boiler and Radiator) calculations. With that information, we can balance each zone accordingly, with the correct amount of footage of baseboard needed. With properly calculated heat the correct installation, all the rooms operate at the same temperature without some being warmer than others.

Overheating of rooms often occurs with radiators, as they were frequently installed at a time when energy conservation was not a concern. With hot water radiators (see steam section for steam radiators), the water temperature can be controlled in the same fashion that radiant heat is controlled. By regulating the temperature of the water going into the radiator, we can now turn it down according to the outside temperature. This can be done with either injection mixing (see radiant heat for a further explanation), or by using a modulating boiler which will do it automatically.

We recommend Buderus boilers, with the high end gas-fired boiler, being the Buderus GB142 series of condensing modulating boilers. These qualify for every available rebate as they are all in the 98% + range of efficiency. Because of the modulating capability, they save up to 40% of fuel usage over a regular boiler. We can also re-zone your existing system into multi-zone, making it much more efficient.