Home Ownership Despite the charms of these alternatives, Canada is a centrally heated nation and even homeowners choosing 'soft' (such as solar or wind) energy paths will maintain a traditional heating system as the primary or secondary heat source. Mainstream system options for areas without natural gas service include:

• propane furnaces

• propane conversion burners for oil furnaces (only within the natural gas corridor for New Brunswick and Nova Scotia);

• electric furnaces;

• electric heat pumps;

• electric plenum heaters for oil furnaces;

• electrically powered hot water systems;

• unitary electric heating systems.

Where piped natural gas is available, you can consider:

• natural gas furnaces;

• natural gas hot water systems.

Your best bet may be concentrating on adaptations that will improve efficiency:

• retrofitting a smaller gauge spray-nozzle and delayed-action solenoid valve (oil-fired systems only);

• increasing the circulating-fan's "on-time";

• electric ignition and built-in vent damper (gas-fired systems only).

If you live in the prairies, you probably heat with natural gas already. If you choose to develop a hybrid system (wherever you live), you may want to combine space heating with a backup central-heating system.

Space can also be a problem. If there's only a crawl space between the foundation and ground floor of your house, there is the option of installing a horizontal furnace, either electric or oil. A horizontal oil furnace operates in the same manner as its upright brother, only it takes return air in one side and discharges warm air out through the other. Due to limited space in the furnace, you won't be able to use the economics of a plenum heater (unless future designs account for its use).





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May 20, 2012