oil or nat gas fueled boiler?...no central air or ductwork system now?...crawl space?...

Natural gas

Installing duct work in an old house can be a challenge. A better alternative could be mini splits.

Removing radiators means patching holes in floors. It is easy if you have hard carpeting, more difficult with hard wood floors.

What is the issue with the radiators? What you have now is the quietest and most comfortable heating system. I wouldn't make a quick decision to remove them.

no ductwork system, a crawl space?...are you dissatisfied with your radiator heat as far as winter heating?...age of boiler?...pst back...

IMO

mike_home and tigerdunes,

There are only hardwood floors throughout the house (thank God--no carpeting). They're just very large and central air and heat just seems so much more efficient. Plus, it's a big old house and the current owner estimates they spend about $300-$400 a month for heat in the winter. There is a dirt-floor basement and a full attic. The boiler was installed in 2002. What are mini-splits?

Size and design/floor plan of your home?...I would think long and hard before decommissioning boiler and removing radiators...where is boiler located?...mini splits are type of split system that do not require a ductwork system...

It's a little shy of 3,000 square feet, central entrance, living room and dining room on either side in front, large (fully updated and gorgeous) kitchen, mudroom, and bedroom on first floor; upstairs are four bedrooms, two baths, and a laundry room. Boiler is in the dirt-floored basement.

Agree with tiger dunes. If I could afford it, I would get rid of central air for heat. Radiant heat using radiators is more efficient. The large cost of heating may be related more to a lack of insulation than the efficiency of the radiators. If you suffer from allergies, you will prefer radiant heat. If the style of the radiators are a concern, depending on whether they are water or steam boilers, more contemporary options exists for the radiators. Many who can afford it, put in radiant floor heat in their homes. I am putting in electric radiant heat in my bathrooms. Mini splits will also prevent the major construction to add ducts for air conditioning. You can also have backup heat with the mini splits.

Good luck!

I would leave the boiler as is.... Get several dealers out to your home to make assessment and suggestions...it would be helpful to know what your electric rate and nat gas cost/therm is to determine whether a HP would offer any operating leverage....for a home like you have, I would want 2 systems for best comfort and control...from a distance, I can't really say about mini splits but certainly worth inquiring about whether they would be a good fit for your home.

Good Luck!

IMO

How is the house being cooled now?

No central AC, maybe some window units?....

I would keep your natural gas boiler and radiators, and add mini split heat pumps to give you cooling and as a back up/hedge for heat. People are using heat pumps for their heat in northern Maine, so they should work western NC. Even if electricity is more expensive than natural gas, heat pumps are more efficient. My only complaint with them is that I prefer radiant heat to hot air heat.

Homepro01, windows and ceiling fans!? I'm a native Washingtonian (DC) and am very used to my comfortable central air, especially today!? I can't imagine a house without AC, but these wall units (mini-splits) seem to be very popular, especially for older houses where you don't want to demolish floors.

Tigerdunes, aesthetically, I'm opposed to window units...but never say never, right? I just can't imagine what it would run cost-wise and how many we'd need in a house this size.

Brooke909,

Are you missing the wonderful 100 degree weekend we are having here in the DC area?

I would use the mini split in your situation. You should do a little search on places like Youtube to see some of the manufacturer videos. The mini splits are not all wall units. They can be ceiling cassettes (they are flush to the ceiling) or they can look like regular ducted units. Ceiling fans also help circulate the ac and heat easily through the house.

Oh, no, not missing a bit of it--as I said, we're CONSIDERING buying this house in WNC; we're still here in the thick of it with everyone else in the swamp.

Homepro, your link to ceiling cassettes didn't work (the other one did).

mtvhike,

Sorry about the broken link. It was a youtube video showing the ceiling cassettes. Fujitsu Ceiling Cassette in a Bedroom.

Brooke,

It really has been insane this summer. I am happy that i still have power because during the Derecho, I did not have power for 7days.