What is a boiler?

January 20, 2015

The harshest months of winter Magnolia typically find us with more service and repair calls, some of which result in homeowners requiring new heating systems. You can find an array of home heating products on the market, from furnaces to boilers. Many people are unfamiliar with boilers. If you’re one of them, we can fill you in.

Types of boilers

Boilers are available in both steam and hot water models. Both supply heat throughout a home by means of either a radiant system that uses a boiler to heat water, or through forced air heating systems.

Steam boilers

Steam boilers are kind of like big tea kettles. They boil water until the steam builds to create enough pressure to push heat to radiators around your home. The heat is emitted into your rooms by air moving across the radiators. The cycle continues when the steam then cools and condenses to water, which then is sent back to the boiler to be reheated. Steam boilers are generally powered with natural gas or propane.

Hot water boilers

Like steam boilers, hot water boilers push warmth around your home, but with hot water in place of steam. When the water rasies to your desired temperature, it is pushed through the radiant system. Gas is often used to power water boilers, however, you will find oil-fired boilers in New England and the Northeast United States.

Benefits of boilers for home heating

Many people love boilers because of their extremely quiet operation. In fact, it’s difficult to hear a boiler operating at all unless it’s broken. They are also known for providing comfortable and even heat thanks to the design of the system with pipes installed inside the walls or under the floors. Boilers can also be useful, in non-forced air heating systems, to allergy suffers because they don’t blow air around and spread allergens.

Even though they can be pricier than furnaces, a lot of people find that boilers are the right heating system for them. If you want more information about high-efficiency boilers in Magnolia, look to JTech Mechanical. You can reach us at 281-231-8768 or schedule an appointment with us online.