totally new HVAC system or replace boiler?
Hi all,
This is my first post but I have a question. I dove into my first project back in April. I still have not decided if I should flip it or hold it. I like the area and believe there is a strong possibility of appreciation and feel that getting the experience of land lording will be a good learning experience. However I need to make the place habitable and do to do that I need to install a new steam boiler the old one is broken.
This is where I ran into my 1st hicccup. The town that the property is in wants a heat loss study done. This will apparently cost me $1,500 dollars. The installation of the boiler is another $6,000. Has anyone ever heard of such a thing where in order to replace an existing boiler with one of the exact same model you have to pay an engineer $1,500 for no reason? what is my actual downside on trying to replace it without the study?
I felt like the heat loss study was such a pain that I should look into a central air and furnace system. The house has no ducting or no attic so that is eliminated. I am now looking at a mini split system which would give me AC and heat and be very efficient. I got a quote that said it would be $26,000 to put this system in. Now I guess the question is would the mini split system raise the value of my house by more than $18,000 ($26,000-$8,000).
There is 1 more hiccup. The pipes in the house are relatively old and the house was winterized and thankfully there have been some very minor but fixable leaks, however, the radiators look like water has come out of them I cannot tell if they are in good shape and the technician said the only way to know is when you hook up the boiler. So I am worried that if I hook up the boiler I am going to have broken radiators and god knows what that will cost to replace. I am looking for any guidance here.
thanks to everyone on these forums