There has been a lot going on here.  So much in fact that I have not had time to sit and write about any of it.  I still can’t figure out what happened to November and soon Christmas will be here.

The big change is the heating system for the first floor has been completed.  It was a very difficult decision as to repair the first floor heat exchangers or upgrade the first floor to gas forced air.  I the end the new gas forced air system won out.  First it was slightly less expensive, it should be more economical to operate and we have the option of adding air conditioning to the first floor now.

Being the owners of a historic home adds a new dimension to the decision process.  We want to preserve and maintain the features and history of the home of course but it is our family’s home and that plays into the decision process as well.  We want to keep whatever we can original while making our family comfortable here.  A few of the decisions were forced upon us (such as the heating dilemma and master shower) because previous owners had not been good caretakers.  Many years from now when the home gets a new family, we don’t want people to come in and say the same of us.  The house is one of the gems in this neighborhood and we want to keep it that way.

Old heat exchanger

boiler pipes

heat exchangers were inside these giant wooden boxes

The pipes also in wooden boxes

Heat exchangers visable after boxes were removed

The dumpster after all the pipes and wood boxes were removed from the basement

We are still learning how to balance out the two heating systems.  The biggest problem is the grand staircase acts like a giant chimney and funnels heat from the first floor up to the second floor hallway where the boiler thermostat is located.  The third floor seems to be overly warm regardless of the temperature in the rest of the house.  Then there is the problem with heating the kitchen and laundry room.   Currently they are not in either system.  Still working on a solution for that!

New Furnaces

No more boxes

New ductwork

Boilers-still working!