PE Mechanical
Boiler Installs in Winchester, MA
Hot water heat, done properly.
A boiler heats water, not air. The water runs through pipes to baseboard, radiators or a radiant floor, and those warm the rooms. PE Mechanical installs and replaces boilers in Winchester, Boston, Cambridge and Lowell.
What a boiler install covers
- Boiler
- Piping
- Circulators
- Vent
- Controls
Boiler, circulators, vent and controls
Wet heat, not forced air
What is a boiler, and how is it different from forced air?
A boiler heats water. A furnace heats air. That one difference changes the whole system. In a forced air house, a furnace warms air and a blower pushes it through ducts to the vents. In a hot water house, the boiler warms water and a circulator pumps it around a loop of pipe. The water gives its heat to the room through baseboard, radiators or a radiant floor, then comes back to the boiler to be heated again.
So a boiler install is not only the appliance. It is the piping that carries the water, the circulators that move it, the vent that takes the exhaust outside, the controls that run each zone and the near-boiler work that ties them together. The boiler is one piece of a system, and the system is the job.
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Baseboard
A low metal unit along the wall. Hot water runs through pipe inside it, and fins pass the heat to the room.
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Radiators
Units that stand in the room. The hot water fills them and they warm the air around them.
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Radiant floor
Pipe laid in or under the floor. The floor itself becomes the warm surface.
The mechanical room
What changes in the mechanical room
Most of a boiler install happens in one room. Here is what changes in it, in the order it happens.
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Water heater, not a boiler
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01
What comes out
The old boiler, shut down and emptied of water first. With it goes any piping, controls and fittings that the new layout does not use. We decide what stays once we can see it.
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02
What goes in
The new boiler, set where the vent route and the piping allow. Around it go the circulators, an expansion tank, valves to fill and purge the system, and the controls that run each zone.
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03
Where the vent runs
Every boiler sends exhaust outside, and a new boiler may not use the route the old one did. The vent can run out through an exterior wall or up a chimney. Which one is possible depends on the building, and it decides where the boiler can sit.
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04
What gets re-piped
The piping around the boiler is rebuilt for the new unit: supply and return, circulators, shutoffs, and the fuel and water connections. Piping further out in the house is judged on what we find. It stays where we can tie into it.
Price
What decides the price of a boiler install?
We do not name a number before we have seen the system. Three things move it most.
No figure goes on this page, because any figure would be a guess. Request a quote and tell us what is in the mechanical room.
Request a quote-
The state of the existing piping
Piping in good shape near the boiler can be tied into. Piping that has to be rebuilt adds material and labor. We cannot judge it until we see it.
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The vent route
A short, direct run out an exterior wall is one job. A longer run, or one that goes up a chimney, is another. The route we can use sets the materials and the work needed to get there.
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Whether zones are being added
Replacing a boiler on the zones you already have is one job. Each new zone adds a loop of pipe, a control and a thermostat, and more work in the mechanical room.
Where we work
Where we install boilers, and the work around them
PE Mechanical installs boilers in these towns. Pick yours to see the area page.
Questions
Questions about boiler installs
What is the difference between a boiler and a furnace?
A furnace heats air and a blower pushes it through ducts. A boiler heats water and a circulator pumps it through pipes to baseboard, radiators or a radiant floor. A hot water heating system has no ducts. That is why replacing a boiler is piping work as much as equipment work, and why it is a different job from a furnace swap.
What does a boiler install include besides the boiler?
The boiler is one part. The install also covers the circulators that move the water, the piping around the boiler, the vent that sends exhaust outside and the controls that run the zones. How much of that is new depends on what is already in the room. We look at it before we say what the job includes.
What decides the price of a boiler install?
Three things move the price most: the state of the existing piping, the route the vent has to take and whether zones are being added. We do not give a number before we have seen the system, because two houses with the same boiler can be very different jobs. Request a quote and describe what you have.
Can zones be added when the boiler is replaced?
Yes. A zone is a separate loop of pipe with its own thermostat, so one part of the house can run on its own schedule. Adding zones means new piping, new controls and more work in the mechanical room, so it changes the price. Tell us which areas you want on their own thermostat when you request a quote.
How long does a boiler install take?
That depends on what is in the mechanical room. The same three things that set the price also set the schedule: the state of the existing piping, the vent route and any added zones. A boiler job is more than a swap, so we look at the room before we talk about timing.
Where do you install boilers?
PE Mechanical installs boilers in Winchester, Boston, South Boston, Dorchester, Cambridge, Newton, Lowell, Lynn, Quincy and Brockton, Massachusetts. If your town is not on that list, ask when you request a quote. We will tell you whether we can take the job.
Boiler installs
Ready to talk about your boiler?
Tell us what you have now, what you want to change and whether you are adding zones. The quote is built from the mechanical room, not from a catalogue.
Request a quoteBoiler Installs in Winchester, MA
