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Written by Jay Elert | October 3, 2023
Whether you own a new or older home, a reliable heating system is a necessity. There are many ways to heat a home in Wisconsin, which can make it difficult to determine which equipment is right for your home.
All Comfort Services services and installs a wide range of systems to keep your property warm throughout winter. Count on our experts to help you select the best system for your heating needs.
You can choose between gas, electrical, and oil furnaces. These heating systems generate intense, fast heat and pass it through your home.
Combustion-based furnaces require safe ventilation and have unique fueling concerns, but gas and oil tend to cost less than electricity despite a somewhat lower efficiency at converting into heat.
Electric furnaces are inexpensive to install and avoid many complications, but they can cost more to operate. However, furnaces are generally the least efficient heating option, even at their best.
A heat pump system doesn’t generate heat directly like a furnace. Instead, it compresses heat from the air outside your home and transfers that heat into your home via refrigerant lines.
It’s akin to a reversed air conditioner. Heat pumps can also cool your home in the summer by reversing the process.
The heat is vented at a central air handler, like the one on your furnace, which blows heat through ducts to different rooms.
Heat pumps lose efficiency at low temperatures, but ones designed for cold environments operate fine.
Dual-fuel systems combine a gas or oil furnace with a heat pump to allow for intense heat when you need stronger, faster heat and gentle, efficient heat when that makes more sense.
As heat pumps have become more efficient and effective even at the lowest temperatures, dual-fuel systems have become less necessary for comfort, but they still offer some value.
A ductless system uses the same heat-moving technology as a heat pump but doesn’t release heat at a central air handler to be delivered via ductwork.
Instead, refrigerant lines run to mini-splits throughout your home, each with a fan to vent hot air directly into the room.
This reduces energy waste through ductwork and can allow for even greater efficiency. You can also set up zoned climate control for different temperatures in different spaces.
Boilers leverage the exceptional heat conduction of water to transfer heat efficiently through your home via water or steam pipes.
They come in hot water and steam variants and can run on gas or electricity, though all run similarly. This allows them to offer superior heating efficiency to furnaces while also offering a gentler, less dry heat.
You give up air circulation but eliminate the mess and inefficiency of ductwork. Boilers also last longer than any of the other systems mentioned if well-maintained, somewhat countering their higher installation cost.
Determining which system is best for your Wisconsin home will depend on several factors, including:
Overall, the latest heat pump systems are the most popular option for a home, but your specific preferences and needs will matter more.
If you’d like to learn more about your options for heating a home in Wisconsin, contact the experts at All Comfort Services today. We offer free installation estimates, with upfront and honest pricing on all services and products.
Contact All Comfort Services today to request a free heating system installation estimate.
Jay has been a comfort consultant with All Comfort Services since 2012. Jay grew up on the east side of Madison and has been in the HVAC industry since 1998. He studied HVAC at Madison College for four years and is a journeyman pipefitter. Jay is one of the three Comfort Consultants who will visit your home when you need a free in-home estimate on a home heating and air conditioning solution.
“When I started working in this industry, one of the things I was surprised to learn was that, according to Consumer Reports, ‘seven out of ten home heating and air conditioners are not properly installed,” says Jay. “I know how important it is to have a system properly installed and want to make sure customers have the best performing system that works for their home.”
