Will the AHS 130 Heat a 3,000 Sq Ft House

 
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PatrickAHS
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Post by PatrickAHS » Tue. Feb. 03, 2009 9:50 am

It would seem that the 130 would handle your needs, based on the the average therms per month. However, it wouldn't hurt to have a back-up unit still in place.

 
rangaller
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Post by rangaller » Sat. Feb. 14, 2009 10:19 am

My first post here....

I very recently had an AHS 130 installed in my 4000+ square foot home which also has an additional 2400 SQFT of largely uninsulated basement and garage. It is routed through a new Weil Mclain Gold Series Oil furnace with 60 gallon DH tank (boiler currently disabled from firing by choice) and delivers heat through the existing hydronic setup in the house. My house was custom built about 17 years ago. Attic insulation is about R-50 (beefed it up this fall) and walls are 2X4 with outdoor taped inulating foam panels and Tyvek (?).

In all the years I lived in this house I had never really been able to stay warm in the winter. Fuel bills were based upon roughly 2000 gallons of oil per year and the thermostats set at 68F downstairs when home, 64F at night and 64 upstairs all the time. And one zone in the house (roughly 1000 ft2) was set at 55F and seldom used.

During the recent sub zero wether we had here we fired up the AHS 130. It struggled the first two days, having to heat the AHS boiler, water in the WM boiler and the DH storage area, as well as meet the demand for heating the house on those sub zero days and nights. Even with all that demand and severe cold the house stayed at 65F. Once the system managed to heat the added burden of all that added water in my circuits (2 days), it easily produced copious quantities of heat. I even found that when I set the thermostat at 75F it reached it with no problem at all. But then, I learned that such temperatures are very uncomfortale to live with so I set the temp down to 70F. :D Apparently, you can have too much of a good thing. ;)

I have to admit that now, with the AHS 130, the house stays uniformly warm all the time. I have never been more comfortable during winter than I am with this heating source. Kudos to AHS and their regional distributer that did the installation.

On bitterly cold days (0-15F) I may burn 150lbs of coal, and on moderately cool days less than 50lbs. Once the auger is installed from the coal bin to the hopper, my only chore, for the most part, will be emptying the ashes.

So, it is very likely that you can heat your 3000 SQFT with it. As they say, your milage may differ.

I buy my coal, 4 tons, delivered for 165 ton for pea. The savings in energy cost is staggering and my comfort level is.... well... to steal the MasterCard line... Priceless. During this brutal January/I was going through 400 gallons of oil in three weeks. Roughly $40 a day and was still cold and a quarter of the house shut down. Now, for a max of $12 a day and a minimum of $4, I get consistantly warm temps in the house with all zones running and all my domestic hot water.

Hope this answers some of the questions or concerns you may have had.

Stephen

 
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brckwlt
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Post by brckwlt » Sat. Feb. 14, 2009 1:23 pm

Stephen,

Yes you have answered a lot of my questions. Im sure if the ahs-130 heats your house it will certainly heat mine no problem.


 
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beatle78
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Post by beatle78 » Fri. Feb. 20, 2009 10:38 am

Hi Brock,

Just make sure you know all of your choices for stoker boilers.

Hopper Fed
Keystoker
AHS
Harman

Auger Fed
Axeman-Anderson (AA)
EFM

All designs have pros and cons. I personally like to know of all my choices before I make a decision.

When I was looking for a boiler, I was looking at the AHS-S130 for hopper fed and the AA-130 or EFM for auger fed.

I ended up with a used Keystoker KA-4 and I love it!

 
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brckwlt
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Post by brckwlt » Fri. Feb. 20, 2009 3:35 pm

beatle78 wrote:Hi Brock,

Just make sure you know all of your choices for stoker boilers.

Hopper Fed
Keystoker
AHS
Harman

Auger Fed
Axeman-Anderson (AA)
EFM

All designs have pros and cons. I personally like to know of all my choices before I make a decision.

When I was looking for a boiler, I was looking at the AHS-S130 for hopper fed and the AA-130 or EFM for auger fed.

I ended up with a used Keystoker KA-4 and I love it!
I have done a lot of research on this forum and the internet. I feel that they ahs-130 is superior to the other brands. now of course I have nothing to base this one besides what ive read and what others have said. I have a ahs distributor coming to my house tomorrow. He said he sells other brand name boilers as well as ahs. he said if the ahs isnt right for your house I wont sell it to you. I will feel out all of my options and do what I and the distributor feel is right for my situation and needs. I am very open minded to this decision. I want the right boiler, not the one is think is best. Thank you for your concern and letting me know there are other options I appreciate it.

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