Residential Boiler Heating 101

Whether it's new or retrofitting an existing boiler or water heating system, there are options to fit the situation in your home.  New boiler heating systems have the flexibility to be placed in a location that supports the clearance and service requirements of your mechanical room and residential boiler.  Retrofit systems can go anywhere but the most economical solution is one that fits in the existing space and is easily connected to the existing piping for the current home heating system.

Residential boilers can heat the space in your home, the water in your home, or both using a combination boiler. Heat from the boiler can be delivered through baseboards or in-floor radiant systems. You could even use a residential boiler to keep the driveway and walkways free of ice and snow in the winter when used in a snowmelt application or to heat a pool.

Residential water heatering can be accomplished with an on-demand tankless water heater or by pairing an Indirect Water Heater with a boiler.  Applications where you have an abundant amount of high flow water in short time, like a soaking tub, would be an ideal application for the Indirect Water Heater / Boiler pairing.  Today's tankless water heaters, like the LT Series, can handle sending hot water to multiple appliances.

In any of these situations, talking to the local heating contractor near you will help in deciding which solution is best for your application.

Gas-Fired Boilers Offer Many Heating Solutions for Your Home

Gas-Fired Boiler System Technology

You can run a high efficiency boiler heating system from standard wall thermostats or configure it into a wireless control system that communicates to your smart phone or anywhere in between. Whether you want to set it and forget it from a wall mounted thermostat or control your home’s temperature level when you travel, a gas-fired boiler system can work with all of these technologies.

Today's high efficiency and mid efficiency boilers also have advanced programming and accessories included that optimize their operation and minimize your heating bill.

One such technology is outdoor reset. It adjusts the boiler temperature that heats your home based on the temperature outside. This technology makes sure the system delivers exactly the right amount of heat to match the heat being lost out of the walls and roof. So you and your family feel an even heat that levels off as room temperature swings.

Laars gas-fired residential boilers offer flexbility of options and variety of models to bring comfort to your home.

Hydronic heating system layout in a home

You can heat both space and domestic water from the same residential boiler

There are combination boilers (combi boilers) that can heat both your home and domestic water.  This eliminates the need to have a standing indirect tank connected to your boiler.

You can heat your home's space with a boiler and add an indirect tank for domestic water

For homes with very large domestic hot water demands, such as large soaking tubs or hot tubs, you can pair a heat only residential boiler with an indirect tank.  You will experience high efficiency and high output in a pairing meant for your lifestyle.

Your residential boiler can even support a snowmelt system

You mean I don’t have to shovel the snow?!  If you want to install a snowmelt system to keep your driveway or walkway free of snow and ice in the cold months, there are residential boilers that can handle the addition of that load while satisfying your homes own heating needs.  Finding the right heating contractor is key when considering an advanced system such as snowmelt.  Search for a heating contractor using our contractor finder.

Laars Product Solutions

Residential Wall Boilers

High Efficiency FT Series Wall Hung Boiler

Wall mounted boilers are a space-saving residential boiler that has become popular over the last decade because it is hung on the wall freeing up space traditionally occupied by a floor residential boiler. The wall hung boilers offer the smallest footprint possible while operating with high efficiency.  High efficiency boilers (95 AFUE and greater) are easy on the wallet as they are energy efficient, add in available gas boiler rebates and the savings keep increasing.  These sleek units are a space-saving boiler heating system that has become popular over the last decade because of its high efficiency paired with the space saving design. Wall mounted boilers like the Laars FT Series provides hot water to baseboards, radiators or radiant floor tubing and have the smallest footprint possible.

Residential Floor Boilers

High Efficiency FT Series Floor Boiler

Floor boilers are found in most residential boiler installations since this is the original boiler design. Floor boilers have managed to reduce their footprint over time as well increasing their heating efficiency. Some floor boilers are considered high efficiency residential boilers and are eligible for gas boiler rebates.  The Laars FT Series floor boiler not only has a small footprint but is constructed for ease of installation whether that installation is a retrofit or in a new build.

Residential Combination Boilers

Combination, or combi, units can handle both space heating and domestic water heating in one unit. This means there is no need for a separate water heater tank. Combi boilers are an energy efficient option to meet heating needs while keeping energy costs lower than a traditional heating system.  The Laars FT Series combi residential boiler has models that are either wall hung boiler or floor boiler. The mini-indirect tank in the Laars FT Series models stores a small amount of water to eliminate the "cold water sandwich" problem experienced with brands utilizing flat plate designs.  Combi residential boilers come in a variety of sizes to fit the overall heating needs in today’s modern homes.

High Efficiency FT Series Combi boilers

Tankless Water Heaters

Tankless water heaters heat water instantaneously without the use of storage tank.  When a faucet is turned on, or an appliance calls for hot water, cold water flows through the heat exchanger.  As the cold water flows through the heat exchanger, the burner heats the water giving you a constant supply of hot water.  Laars offers the LT Series high efficiency gas-fired condensing tankless water heater that can meet demands of the multiple appliances in today's home.  Learn about choosing the right water heating option for your lifestyle.

 

FT Series Floor Boiler paired with Laars-Stor Indirect water heater

 

Traditional Residential Boiler Heating Systems typically include a floor boiler paired with an indirect tank. In this residential boiler heating system the boiler supplies hot water to a storage tank for domestic hot water use. When hot water is needed it is delivered from the tank to the outlet and is then refilled with hot water to prepare for the next call for hot water. The residential boiler will also supply hot water to the heating system through the piping of the baseboards or radiant tubes.   Laars high efficiency, high output indirect hot water tanks come in a variety of sizes to suit the needs of your home.  This pairing is ideal for homes with a very large domestic hot water demand, such as a hot tub or giant soaking tub.

FT Series Floor Boiler paired with Laars-Stor Indirect water heater