Fuel Oil News

Fuel Oil News January 2012

The home heating oil industry has a long and proud history, and Fuel Oil News has been there supporting it since 1935. It is an industry that has faced many challenges during that time. In its 77th year, Fuel Oil News is doing more than just holding

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FOR CE D- A IR H E AT Let the Force Be With You F A look at the new forced-air systems on the market today BY S T EPHEN B E N NE T T ORCED-AIR SYSTEMS ARE MUCH IMPROVED OVER THEIR predecessors, but that message must be skillfully com- municated to homeowners. High-efficiency oil furnaces are officially identified with the Energy Star, which signifies a minimum 85 percent A.F.U.E... Most oil furnace manufacturers have models that achieve this rating within one to two percent. (In addition, there are oil-fired furnaces with still higher efficiencies. They condense flue gases by removing extra heat.) Some of the manufacturers of these units talked about the benefits the equipment offers, and how best to communicate those advantages to homeowners. for the home and the other 30 percent escapes up the chimney and elsewhere. "The average homeowner can't afford to throw away 30 percent of the groceries they put in their cart each month," Kuczynski pointed out. "They won't want to continue to waste that kind of money on fuel and will be more receptive to the idea of upgrading to a higher-efficiency unit." Newer units that feature an ECM direct drive variable speed blower provide more even, quiet comfort than their prede- cessors—a major selling point. Plus, utility rebates could be available, based on fuel efficiency and the electrical efficiency of the ECM motor. Present a high-efficiency home heating system as an invest- ment. The value of that investment to the homeowner will depend on their wants and needs and their available resources. Listen to your customer to get the best possible understanding of what is important to them. It may be monthly fuel savings. It may be comfort. It may be the peace of mind. The return on high-efficiency furnaces will depend on the existing system and the efficiency of the planned replacement. There are a number of on-line resources that can be used to cal- culate ROI including: www.aceee.org/consumer/heating. In today's economy, people are generally staying in their The Paradigm, manufactured by Granby Furnaces Inc. ECR INTERNATIONAL With the increased costs of gasoline and groceries, homeowners are increasingly concerned about rising fuel costs and how they're going to make ends meet each month, Carolyn Kuczynski, senior marketing representative, ECR International, Inc., said. The com- pany manufactures and markets Olsen furnaces. Sales reps should take the time to explain AFUE and give a savings example that everybody can relate to, Kuczynski advised. An older, low-efficiency heating system can have an AFUE of 70 percent. Explain to the homeowner what that means: 70 percent of the energy in the fuel that the homeowner buys becomes heat 18 JANUARY 2012 | FUEL OIL NEWS | www.fueloilnews.com homes longer. A high efficiency furnace will have an immediate impact while the homeowner is still in the house, reducing the monthly fuel costs and making the home more comfortable. Real estate listings (a first step in generating interest) typically include details regarding a home's heating system. Prospective buyers will be looking at the condition of the existing heating system and may also ask about monthly fuel costs when considering one house over another. A high-efficiency heating system will make the house more competitive in the market, reducing the time the house is listed and hopefully increasing the overall sales price. GRANBY FURNACES INC. – KERR HIGH EFFICIENCY CONDENSING OIL WARM AIR FURNACES "Still today in 2011 we see a lot of oversized equipment," Mario Bouchard, director of sales and marketing for Granby Industries, Granby, Quebec, said. "That's certainly something that we still need to put focus on. Guys need to do more heat loss calculations before they decide on the unit and the size of the unit they need to put in. "If a homeowner has a unit with a one-gallon-per-hour noz- zle input and that unit was installed twenty, twenty-five years

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