Boiler Service in Alexandria

Our radiant heating experts service all brands of residential boilers. These brands include Lennox, Bosch, Weil-McLain, Lochinvar, Hydro-Therm, Crown, Navien, AO Smith, Buderus, Peerless, Westinghouse, and Triangle Tube.

There are a number of differences between furnaces and boilers. Which one is right for your home in Alexandria depends on your home’s size and existing features:

• Heat Source: The biggest difference between a furnace and a boiler is how they transfer heat. The former relies on hot air and ducts to acclimate your home. Boilers, meanwhile, use radiators and hot water to accomplish the same task.
• Fuel Sources: The two systems also use slightly different fuel sources. Boilers can use oil, wood pellets, natural gas, and electricity. Furnaces, meanwhile, are also compatible with propane but rarely oil and never pellets.
• Type of Heat: Radiant heat from boilers rises from the ground upward, allowing it to spread more easily. The presence of water and lack of ducts also make the air more allergy-friendly and comfortable. On the other hand, furnaces are unlikely to freeze in cold environments.
• Installation Cost: Though boilers last longer than furnaces (often 30 years or more), they are more expensive to install. The process is also much more complex than replacing a forced-air system. In terms of overall costs, a boiler is a much larger investment.
• Energy Efficiency: The AFUE for boilers varies depending on the fuel source. But 80% is the bare minimum. Because water heats more readily than air, radiant systems are considered more efficient. The leakiness of ductwork also contributes to heat loss.
• Risks: While both systems can leak carbon monoxide, boilers offer another means of disaster: leaks. If the tank is punctured or a pipe bursts, you can be left with thousands of dollars in damage. Preventing this is one reason yearly boiler maintenance in Alexandria is so important.

First, we’ll briefly explain what zoning is. This term is used to refer to the creation of individual heating areas in your home. This allows each one to be controlled via a separate thermostat. This makes your home more comfortable while eliminating hot and cold spots. While you can zone a hot water heating system, it’s not as simple as doing it on a forced air one. The technician will have to have both plumbing and zoning experience. You can expect to pay a minimum of $1500 for your first boiler zone in Alexandria.

Turning cold water into a source of home heating is a six-step process:

1. The tank is filled with room temperature or cold water
2. Gas, oil, or electricity is used to heat the water in the tank
3. The hot water is pushed throughout the home once the unit reaches the desired temperature (or turns into steam).
4. The water uses pipes and circles through your radiators
5. Now cooled, the water or steam returns back to the tank
6. Steps 1-5 are repeated until the desired temperature is reached

A properly installed boiler is a closed system. This means that while it doesn’t dry the air out, it will not add any humidity either. To achieve this, you can consider heating a pot of water on the stove in short bursts. Laying out water bowls near radiators can also lead to it evaporating into the air. Alternatively, a whole house humidifier in Alexandria could be a worthwhile investment.

While this depends on the temperature your home is set at, you should never directly touch a radiator. The risk of blistering and scalds is always present, especially for children. We recommend installing radiator covers to keep toddlers and pets from injuring themselves. Due to the fire risk, we don’t advise placing clothing or other items on radiators. For other safety questions, ask our Alexandria boiler specialist for more information.

As mentioned above, modern boilers are closed systems that don’t waste much water. While steam boilers lose a significant amount of water to steam, that issue is much less prevalent in condensing systems.

While changing fuel sources is possible—especially for oil or propane to natural gas—it’s often not economically feasible. Typically, this changeover runs somewhere north of $6,000. That means opting for a new boiler in Alexandria is often more cost-efficient. Feel free to call us to get a better idea if this option will work for you.

They both have tanks. Both use oil, natural gas, or electricity to heat water. In many ways, there are no operational differences between a boiler and a water heater. It’s their purpose that sets them apart. The latter primarily provides hot water for appliances, bathing, and cleaning. Boilers, meanwhile, increase a home’s ambient temperatures. Some boilers can do both. You can also add an indirect-fired water heater to your boiler for a similar outcome.

Go to where your home’s heating system is and look up. If you see several small pipes, you have a boiler. Furnaces, meanwhile, are hooked up to metal ductwork. Floor vents and wall units are also a sign of forced-air heating. A boiler primarily relies on radiators to spread its warmth.

They can not. A lack of innate cooling options is one of the significant disadvantages of radiant heating systems. If you want to add air conditioning to a home with a boiler in Alexandria, you have three options:

• Installing a ductless mini-split system
• Utilizing specialized aspirating or high-velocity systems
• Putting in a heat pump

When considering a new boiler, you'll likely to run into the word ‘condensing.’ Many homeowners in Alexandria aren’t exactly sure what that is. How is it different from a regular hot water heating system? In short, a condensing boiler is designed with efficiency in mind. Any produced water vapor is vacated through the chimney in a standard boiler. The more modern condensing units take the heat from the produced steam to shift it back to liquid form.

A standard boiler in Alexandria is comprised of 11 different pieces:

• Aquastats: These monitor the temperature of the water inside the boil. It’s their responsibility to maintain consistent temperatures in the system.
• Backflow Valves: This valve ensures water only flows in one direction. This prevents contaminants from entering your system and improves boiler safety.
• Combustion Chamber: As the name implies, this is the area where gas, kerosene, or electricity turns into heat. This heats up the heat exchanger inside the tank.
• Feed Pump: This part supplies the boiler with water. When levels dip, it’s the feed pump’s responsibility to restore them to proper levels.
• The Burner: Oxygen and fuel (or electricity) must be mixed before combustion. This happens at the burner. Your thermostat signals this part to start and cease operation.
• Heat Exchanger: This part is considered the heart of most heating systems. In a boiler, it transfers heat from the combustion chamber to the water in the tank. It's designed to keep temperatures high without allowing the water to boil. The constant high temperatures often lead to a cracked heat exchanger. The carbon monoxide risks lead to the condemnation of your unit.
• Safety Valve: When excess pressure is detected, this valve releases it. If not regularly checked, the pressure could grow to the point of explosion. This is one of the items paid particular attention to during an Alexandria boiler tune-up.
• Economizer: Many modern boilers have economizers to improve efficiency. This part recovers heat from water vapor before it leaves the chimney, reducing overall waste.
• Circulator Pump: You’ve got all this heated water in a tank. It’s the circulator pump’s function to push it from the boiler to the radiators. It’s also responsible for maintaining even water flow.
• Expansion Tank: Water expands when it’s heated. The expansion tank holds this excess heat and pressure. Without this vital piece, the risk of a pressure failure would be a lot higher.
• Control System: Think of this as the brains of your boiler. It monitors pressure and temperature and orchestrates pump and burner operations.

It should be noted, however, that many of these parts could be responsible for a sudden loss of heat. The only way to truly identify the issue is to contact an Alexandria radiant heating specialist.