Picture this: It’s the deepest, coldest part of a Brooklyn winter, and your boiler goes out, leaving you and your family shivering. You call a heating technician to come out and take a look, but they only recommend a repair. Is that enough to last?
Boilers tend to break down with age and can even become hazards to homeowners if left unmaintained and damaged over time. If your boiler develops cracks or leaks, these can weaken the pressure vessel until, one day, the boiler explodes, flooding your home. How can homeowners avoid this disaster scenario? One way is to replace your boiler before it gets too old.
Most boilers last 15-20 years. No matter how tough, no boiler will last forever. Finding replacement parts can become an expensive hassle. Also, a lot of older units are very inefficient compared to their modern counterparts, and homeowners make the cost of a replacement back with cheaper heating costs.
One of the best ways to know if your boiler is on the way out is to keep track of how often it breaks. If you’re always having to replace parts or call repair technicians, or if it just never seems to keep up during the winter, it might be time to buy a new unit. Proper boiler maintenance can keep a unit running well through its intended lifespan, but a lack of maintenance can cause it to burn out. The next time you have your boiler repaired, talk to the technician to find out whether it’s time to think about a new one.
Finally, even if your boiler isn’t too old and it’s still running well, pay attention to your fuel bills each month. If you’re using more fuel, whether that’s heating oil or natural gas, it can be a good indication that the boiler needs maintenance or is just starting to wear down.
It’s important to consider the true cost of your existing unit: not just what you paid for it, but how much it’ll cost throughout its lifespan. If you’re spending more money to keep it running than you would on a new unit, it might be time to replace it.
Petri Plumbing & Heating is here to help. We’ve been in the boiler repair game for more than a century, and when we say we know our stuff, we mean it. Reach out to the Petri team at (718) 748-1254 or schedule an appointment online, and start thinking about next winter today.
We are the market leaders and want to hire people that grow with our company. We are looking for qualified, motivated technicians and pay competitively!