Energy-efficient furnace bought with donation

Photo: Kayla Collins

ENERGY-EFFICIENT— James Reid and Andy Grant of James Reid Heating, Inc. in Hebron, stand next to two new oil boilers that they had recently installed at the Second Congregational Church in Norway. According to Reid, the church is expected to see 30 percent in savings on oil costs.

NORWAY — The Second Congregational Church on Main Street is now equipped with two brand-new oil boilers, thanks to the work of local heating expert James Reid, and a generous donation from Hayward A. Luck, who passed away in 2006.

"It was a godsend. Now, we are warm and comfortable due to [the] generosity," said Kate Wood, treasurer of the church. The cost of the project was $30,000. It was paid for entirely by a bequest from Luck, a former church member, said Wood.

According to Wood, Luck was a prominent member of the Norway community. On June 14, 2006, he passed away at the Maine Veterans' Home at the age of 74.

"When our old boiler started to die, it wasn't a matter of us sitting around and raising $30,000. Someone was watching out over us," said Wood. "If we had been standing around trying to collect [money], it would have taken a very long time. And, as it was, we were very cold."

The previous furnace was too old, and did not function properly, said the Reverend Leslie Foley.

"It was from the '50s. It was huge. It took up the whole room," she said of the old boiler. "It looked like something from the Eisenhower era. It needed to be replaced."

The church's original chimney was also in need of some work, she said.

Wood said that, of the several contractors that made bids on the project, James Reid, of James Reid Heating Inc., in Hebron, was the most highly-recommended.

James Reid has 22 years of experience in the heating industry. He specializes in oil, propane, and wood boilers, as well as solar energy and radiant floor heating.

"Jim came highly recommended by several of our parishioners who had him do work in their homes," said Wood. "He had a very good proposal. He is a very pleasant, talented man. He knows what he is talking about, and is very easy to work with, ... extremely professional."

"The old one was ugly and nasty," said Reid of the hot air furnace that he and another employee, Andy Grant, removed over Thanksgiving weekend. Reid said that the old furnace was constantly running at 200 degrees.

The chimney, said Reid, was also outdated.

"It had no liner," he said. "The State of Maine requires that each chimney have a liner, and it was never lined."  

The liner was installed by Supaflu Chimney Systems out of Scarborough, said Reid.

"It saved them from having to build a new chimney."

He also said that without a liner, the fear was that the gases traveling up through the chimney could seep out and make people sick.

With the two new oil boilers, said Reid, the church is expected see 30 percent in savings on oil costs. He said that the new furnaces will adjust themselves automatically through a device called the tekmar® boiler control, as it monitors the outside temperature.

According to Reid, the Buderus 350,000 BTU boilers are 70 to 86 percent more efficient than the old furnace, and the percentage of heat being lost up the chimney has decreased by nearly half, he said.

"The less heat that goes up the chimney, the more efficient it is," said Reid.

"It's not circulating all the time like the old one had to," said Wood.

Foley said that the new boilers are much more energy-efficient, because they are specifically designed to use less oil.

"Once it gets colder, one [boiler] will run for 40 hours, then the other one will kick in and run for 40 hours," said Reid. Unlike the old furnace, said Reid, it doesn't need to be manually switched on and off.

Reid said that a tekmar® boiler control can be retrofitted to anyone's residential boiler for $800.

Installing the new oil boiler is part of the church's mission to "go green," said Foley. Like everyone else, it is trying to cut costs and be as energy-efficient as possible, she said.

According to Reid, the new boilers were installed within a week. Work included dissecting the old furnace room, painting the room, and assembling the new equipment. 

"I promised the church that when the cold weather struck, there would be heat," said Reid, who installs between 60 and 70 boilers per year. 

"It's pretty exciting," said Wood. "It's a very fancy system. We are optimistic that we will save on fuel, and conserve, and be warm into the next century."