Solutions to rising winter heating costs
The volume of complaints about last winter’s frigid temperatures were matched by grumblings over resultant home heating bills. With forecasters predicting this winter is going to be even colder, many homeowners can anticipate months of big bills. There are solutions, however, for people who refuse to weather through skyrocketing costs and take action instead.
For homes heated with natural gas, “high efficiency condensing furnaces have been on the market for some time now,” notes Dave Dufour, marketing coordinator at Baymar Supply, a premium HVAC product supplier located at 3200 Jefferson Blvd., Windsor. “Upgrading from a medium efficiency furnace to a high efficiency furnace can save around 30 percent on your gas bill.”
“We find that the biggest savings are with people who currently use oil, propane or electricity to heat their house,” Dufour says. “As the price for these commodities is much more than natural gas, their monthly bills are substantially higher than gas users.” During winter, “some people are spending $1,000 per month!”
There are better, more affordable ways to stay warm this winter. One is the Mitsubishi Hyper Heat Inverter heat pump system. “Homeowners are able to save up to 40 per cent off their heating bill,” says Dufour. The residence can be heated comfortably and reliably, even when the temperature drops to -25 degrees Celsius. “Being able to heat this low is revolutionary with heat pumps. It is substantially better than any other heat pump available. In addition, these are up to 30.5 SEER [Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio that measures efficiency], so homeowners are able to upgrade their cooling systems at the same time.” Dufour adds that contractors, including Bryant Heating & Air Conditioning, have had excellent success installing numerous systems locally.
Mike Horar, Bryant’s heating and cooling consultant, reports, “One of my customers saved 45 per cent over the previous heating season” by installing a Mitsubishi Hyper Heat system. “My customers are amazed by not only how efficient they are, but how quiet they are, as well. You can barely hear them running.” Customers also expressed they are “very pleased with how sleek-looking the installed units are.”
For larger homes heated by propane or oil, “we are using the Zuba Central, another Hyper Heat heat pump which replaces old oil and propane furnaces,” Dufour says. “This will replace a typical furnace-style air handler with a heat pump, use electricity only and save up to 60 per cent of the homeowner’s current bills.”
He explains, “The reason the Zuba Central can do this is due to a principle called the coefficient of performance. Essentially, we use electricity to pump refrigerant to move heat, instead of using the electricity directly to create heat. The result is we are able to be 300 per cent more efficient than straight baseboard heat.”
As a HVAC supplier, not an installer, Baymar Supply knows that purchasing a quality product is only one component in beating high energy costs. The other is having it properly installed by a qualified, dependable company, one that can also provide ongoing routine checks and maintenance.
Of course, there is cost involved in purchasing a new heating system and getting it installed. However, compared to the monthly outlay many homeowners are currently paying, a more efficient solution will eventually pay for itself.
The investment makes even more cents when homeowners factor in the Ontario Energy Board’s estimated 46 per cent increase in peakhour electricity prices over the last five years – and the projection for new increases amounting to 42 per cent over the next five years.