Home Heating, Should it be a DIY Project?

You're reading this article for advice. You are one of the hundreds of thousands of American's every year who has finally got to make the decision to replace the heat pump or gas furnace. This is a big decision. The cost of a new heat pump will start somewhere around $5,000 and go up from there depending on size and add-ons. You want to make sure that you get the most you can for your hard earned dollar so do some homework before you buy.

Luckily for those of us who are looking to replace old heating and air conditioning systems today's models are more energy efficient than models just ten years old. Heat pump systems are far superior and can actually cost 40% less to run than an outdated system. If you've an old heat pump system you probably feel that it never warms efficiently. Even more pleasant with today's newer models is that when you want cold air the air truly comes out of the system cold, and if you want heat the air will be hot.

Whatever type of heating or air conditioning you're replacing check the SEER rating. SEER or Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio is a gauge of how efficient and cost effective the unit will be. The higher the SEER the more energy efficient it is. The higher the SEER rating the more expensive the unit is too. You'll want to try to balance out cost and efficiency.

Talk to professional installers before you choose a system so that you can get several estimates to choose from. Some of the most trusted heat pump manufacturers and installers are Lennox, American Standard, Trane, AirPro, Bryant, Thermal Zone, Guardian, Goodman, Grandaire and Carrier. It's always a good idea to talk with family and friends to see who they may have used to update their heating system and what type of experience they've had.Visit one of the many online sites where you can learn about SEER ratings and EnergyStar ratings. Visit Consumer Guide and the EPA site or the American Council for Energy Efficient Economy.

Don't forget what you can do yourself to save heating and air conditioning costs. Weather strip and caulk around doors and windows. Check the insulation in your attic and basement. Think about adding a blow in insulation in your walls. Wrap any water pipes that are in unheated basements to prevent freezing. Most dial thermostats get inaccurate over time. Install a new digital thermostat so that you can get an accurate temperature reading in your home.

Most home heating experts advise against any type of DIY heating. It's generally a task that is over the heads of most DIY homeowners. Installing a heat pump means updating sheet metal and your electric box. You'll need to have refrigeration gauges to check the final pressures in the unit. It's too much. Also, think about warranty coverage. Rudd and Goodman sell installation kits for heat pumps and air conditioning systems. If you're comfortable with it you can try to install it, but what if you have a problem? Who do you call? It's generally not worth the money you'll save.

One type of DIY heating is solar. Solar panels are relatively easy for those with DIY experience to install. There are many different makes of solar panels for passive solar power, they are Carmanah, Duralite Global Solar, Kyocera, Mitsubishi, Photowatt, Schott, Schuco, Shell, Sun Power, Sun Tech, SunWize, Uni-Solar, Webel and Yingli. Depending on the size you want panels can be bought by watt, from 1 watt to 5 watts to 200 watts and greater. Best of all passive solar panels require virtually no maintenance and last for decades.

Another way to make sure that you get your money's worth is to buy the proper sized window air conditioner. Believe it or not, you can buy a unit that is too big. If a window air conditioner is oversized it will cool the air too quickly and not run long enough to pull humidity out of the room. You'll be very disappointed because you'll have a cool and wet room. Don't let a salesman talk you into too big of a unit. All it will do is cool inefficiently. It's very easy to measure how many BTU's a unit must be. Once you measure look into well known brands such as Kenmore, Frigidare, GE, Sharp, Sunbeam, LG, Fedders, and Whirlpool.

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About the author: Norman Fleming is a heating, ventilation and air conditioning specialist. He has information about home heating and air conditioning and passive solar heating on his site.