My wife and I own a beautiful older home in Wellesley that was built sometime in the early 1920s. Being outdoors enthusiasts, we have always felt a strong concern for the environment. We practice low-impact gardening by using as little fertilizer as possible and cultivate only native plant species in our yard to encourage wildlife to live on our property. A few years ago, in an effort to reduce noise and pollution, we switched to an electric lawnmower, weed whacker and leaf blower. So, when it became apparent that our heating system was “aging out” in 2022, we decided it was time to seriously consider decarbonizing for the sake of the environment.
As a baseline for our energy consumption, we were using approximately 3,000 gallons of heating oil per year to run our forced-air furnace and separately fired water heater. That produces about 34 tons of carbon emissions, equivalent to the combined weight of 17 average-sized cars being sent into the atmosphere. In addition, we had an older air conditioning unit behind the house that connected with a coil on top of the furnace.
It took about a year to solicit and evaluate multiple proposals and get our new heating/cooling and hot water systems installed. Our completed HVAC installation includes an LG 5 Ton VRF heat pump with its companion air handler. Conveniently, the air handler was easily integrated into the existing ductwork. The system is managed by an LG CRC2 fully programmable controller that works like a mini I-Pad. For hot water, we installed a Rheem heat pump water heater.
Was it worth the effort? We say a resounding yes!! The heat pump keeps us warm in the winter and cool in the summer, and it appears to run with minimal effort, maintaining a comfortable environment for us irrespective of the outside temperature. An added benefit to the heat pump installation is the space in the basement created by removing the oil tank. The new water heater has never failed to provide us with adequate water, even with additional guests staying in our home. Putting a heat pump water heater in the basement does reduce the temperature a few degrees down there, but it has not been a problem for us.
How are the economics working out? A detailed economic analysis would take a significant amount of work, which I intend to do in the future, but a simple comparison of total dollar expenditures per year indicates that our annual costs for energy have been reduced somewhere between 50 ~ 65% depending on what you use for the price of oil. Some of this reduction is no doubt due to the relatively low electricity rates from Wellesley Municipal Light Plant, which makes switching from heating oil to electricity more attractive.
