New Heating System: House wont Go Above 69 Degrees when Its below 10

My new heating system was working great when it was 25 degrees and above but when it goes dramatically below, it wont heat above 69 degrees. I asked my heating installer and he told me there is nothing wrong with my system, its going at full speed, it’s just given how cold outside, with the system on full speed, my house won’t warm up above 70 degrees. I am less concerned about myself but I have tenants. One thing to point out is I have very old original windows and they are not insulated well and one side of my house is detached so it probably does not help. So probably my insulation is what makes it much worse as the boiler is trying hard but with radiators super hot my house is still very cold 🙁 Any ideas what I should do? Thank you.

deva

in Roofers 11 years and 5 months ago

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jib | 11 years and 5 months ago

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Is it every room that you have trouble heating? That strikes me as strange. You should check out individual spaces.I have an almost identical problem to you. Having an end of block house does add to heating costs unless its very very well insulated on that wall-mine isn’t. I have no drafts or leaky windows just a very large under insulated room which probably needs more radiators. My tenants have smaller spaces and they’re fine. I just accept that on these very cold days I will have a living room that doesnt get above 59\. The loss of space and cost of adding interior insulation does not make it worthwhile for me to change that for now. FYI – your not required to heat your tenants above 68degrees during the day which is plenty warm i think.

daveinbedstuy | 11 years and 5 months ago

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Also, make sure your thermostat isn’t right next to a duct or radiator

daveinbedstuy | 11 years and 5 months ago

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What kind of house do you have? If it’s a brownstone, get insulation blown into the “cockloft” above the top floor ceiling. That will make a huge difference for starters. Use the plastic wrap that you shrink around the interior of the windows with a hair dryer. It’s those drafts that are causing your biggest problem. If there are drafts coming through the casings, remove them and shoot some minimally expanding spray foam insulation in behind them. You can get it in cans.

Master Plvmber | 11 years and 5 months ago

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Gennady is right. Modulating boilers solve that problem, but they don’t work with steam heat. Only circulating hot water.

ellenlourie | 11 years and 5 months ago

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Most of heating systems in NY were designed for 11F design outdoor temperature. If systems would be designed for lower then 11F outdoor temperature, they would not perform well 98% of the time during heating season. They would be over-sized and short-cycling.

BobMarvin | 11 years and 5 months ago

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All the suggestions above are good but IMO they will mainly make your heating system work less hard and save you a lot of money, which is a worthy goal. 69 degrees is plenty warm, and will feel a lot warmer once your house is less drafty. You may find that you won’t need to set your thermostat higher once the wind stoipps whipping through your living space.

metalwork | 11 years and 5 months ago

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I totally agree with Apop. we use plastic wrap and seal out the cold on our windows.

BSDOD | 11 years and 5 months ago

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Sounds like you already figured out the real problems. Insulation is the key, in the short term, you may need to shrink wrap your windows, it makes a big difference. I have new windows and when it gets really cold the aluminum gives off a definite chill. I saved up and retrofit insulation behind the walls in the front and back, and where my house is partially detached from my neighbor. The last few winters have been mild, so I didn’t notice…but there’s been a big difference in the performance during the recent polar vortices.

shahnandersen

in Roofers 11 years and 5 months ago

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What kind of heating system? Steam or hot water? If it’s hot water, you can turn up the temperature of the aquastat which will make the radiators even hotter. On these cold days, we have ours set at 185°.

anotherposter | 11 years and 5 months ago

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Replacing the original windows in our very old brownstone made a big difference in temperature control. Even though the previous heating unit we had that wasn’t sufficient for the house seemed better after getting new, quality windows. Of course, once we finally upgraded the heat to a unit meant for this much space, it is great. Now it doesn’t have to run non-stop to keep it about 75\. On the really cold days, I do still stuff a towel at the bottom of the old drafty doors and put the curtains down to retain more heat. Our old doors really are drafty despite several attempts to remedy that so we’re also planning to replace one of those that is not nice anyway, and I expect that to make the house even warmer. If you really can’t afford to replace the windows or want a quicker solution, I suggest getting heavy curtains to cover windows and possibly something for gaps around doors.