DIYbanter - View Single Post - New (house) heating system... is this a good/great deal?

Dan Musicant

On Sun, 03 Jul 2011 12:50:08 -0500, (Gary Heston)
wrote:

:In article ,

an Musicant wrote:
:I get an unsolicited call around a month ago and it's a woman who says
:they are with a program that might install a heater in my house
:(Berkeley, CA). [ ... ]
:
:Unsolicited calls concerning home improvement/repair are generally
:scams.

I've never let one get past my door before, but I did call my utility a
few weeks ago and ask if this company (California Energy Services) is
"legit" and they said yes and they didn't have the sound of a scamming
outfit so I decided to let them come and see what transpires.
:
: [ ... ]
:
:call to a guy in the office and asks about that and says they can get me
:an even greater rebate on a 2nd heater. If I have just one heater it
:will cost me around $7500, with 2 it will be $13,290 after 2 rebates
:from my utility company, PGE (evidently about $150 each), a "voucher
:amount" of $4000, federal tax credit of $400. [ ... ]
:
:Have you called PG&E and ask them about these vouchers and rebates? Or
:checked on their web site to see if they have any such program listed?

I went to PG&E's website this morning (it was one of the google hits
when I looked up California Energy Services) and I saw rebates that
appeared to be consistent with what these people are saying. That
doesn't prove a lot, though. The price could be way to high. I have to
consider this strongly based on the response to my OP. I will absolutely
not sign anything right now. I'm going to call contractors. I have no
reason to rush (other than the hurry up, the rebates/incentives may
evaporate very quickly admonition from the guy who came over yesterday,
but I'm not going for that). I've lived here with no central heating for
27 years, what's another winter?
:
: [ ... ]
:
:there's one they can hack into with saws. Presumably they'll repair.
:They say they'll install ducting (2"). What it actually says on the form
:he gave me is "Add new (if required) PVC 2" flue system up to 10ft." The
:heating system is rated at 95.5% AFUE (efficiency). The form says "Seal
:ducting system to current Title 24 standards as required by law." He
:said this included pressure testing.
:
:Red flag; inconsistent comments. 2" ducting would be tiny.

Check. I was wondering that (the 2"). What's inconsistent there? There's
a lot that wasn't talked about, though. Lots of reasons to ask
questions. I want to know with any job what the total cost is going to
be before I sign. Also, who's paying for permits.
:
:He tells me they have a program where I can go 1 year without interest
:if I start paying $450/month.
:
:What's the interest rate, and is that actually no interest for a year,

r you just don't pay the interest for a year and it accumulates on the
:balance of the loan?

Don't know. Absolutely don't know.
:
:Does this seem like a good/great smart deal? Or should I shop around?
:The company is California Energy Services, and their site is
:californiaenergyservices.com.
:
:This morning it occurred to me that I maybe should ask if it's possible
:to close off some of the supply lines (registers, I think they're
:called?). I live alone here and in a cold snap in the winter I might
:want to just heat part of the house or even one room if possible. If I
:keep the whole house warm or even half, it would use more gas than
:necessary. Is that a reasonable idea?
:
:Closing off ducts in a common practice, but there are limits to how many
:can be closed at once.
:
:I think you'd be better off with an electric space heater; it'll heat

ne room fine (assuming your wiring is OK) and should cost less than
:$20 to purchase. A spare blanket is also an inexpensive item to deal
:with cold snaps.

:Gary
:

I have several space heaters, more than enough. I've been using them
judiciously for several years along with a couple of 250 watt heat lamps
(in 2 different rooms) suspended from the ceiling that are either on or
off depending on the weather. A lamp like that can raise the temperature
of a small room by 10 degrees after a couple of hours.

One reason I want central heating is that a buddy of mine (well, he
lives 130 miles away) tells me that I can't expect to sell the house
without it. He says no bank will finance a mortgage on a house without
an installed heating system. I think not having a heater is also a no no
if I want a general homeowner's insurance policy. My current policy is
for the most part just fire insurance with the California Fair Plan.

Dan

Email: dmusicant at pacbell dot net