How hydronic heat works and what it takes to retrofit or upgrade a system in Brentwood's older homes and newer builds.
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Quick answer
Hydronic heating circulates hot water from a gas boiler through radiators, baseboard convectors, or radiant floor tubing rather than blowing heated air through ducts, and a lot of Brentwood's remaining older homes already have some version of this system in place. For newer construction going up around the town centre, adding hydronic heat usually means planning it into the mechanical design from the start rather than retrofitting it after the fact.
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A meaningful share of Brentwood's remaining single-family homes were built with hydronic heat and cast iron radiators from the start, decades before forced-air systems became the default. These systems can run for a very long time when maintained, but the piping, expansion tanks, and sometimes the boiler itself are original or close to it. Upgrading the boiler on one of these systems while keeping the existing radiators and piping is a common, cost-effective path, provided the piping itself is in good condition and not leaking.
Where a homeowner is renovating and wants to add radiant floor heat to a new addition or basement suite space while keeping the existing radiators upstairs, a technician can usually tie a new zone into the existing boiler, provided the boiler has enough capacity for the added load.
Newer ground-oriented homes and townhomes going up in and around Brentwood are more likely to be built with forced-air furnaces by default, since that's often the lower-cost option for a builder. A homeowner who wants hydronic heat in new construction needs to plan for it during the build -- piping, a boiler, and often radiant floor tubing all need to be roughed in before the slab or subfloor goes down, which is a very different process than retrofitting an older home that already has the piping in place.
| Factor | Hydronic (boiler) | Forced air (furnace) |
|---|---|---|
| Comfort | Even, steady heat | Can feel drafty with temperature swings |
| Central AC | Needs a separate cooling system | Can share ductwork with AC |
| Retrofit into existing home | Simple if piping already exists | Simple if ducts already exist |
| New construction | Must be planned in from the start | Common builder default |
For a Brentwood home that already has hydronic infrastructure, keeping and upgrading it usually makes more sense than switching to forced air, since ripping out functional piping just to install ductwork is a major, disruptive project. The decision looks different for new construction, where either system is a clean install from scratch.
A lot of older Brentwood hydronic systems run as a single zone, heating the whole house the same way regardless of which rooms are in use. Adding zone valves and additional thermostats to break the system into two or three zones is a practical upgrade that improves comfort and can reduce how hard the boiler has to work, without needing to replace the radiators or piping themselves.
Annual boiler service, periodically bleeding air from radiators, and checking system pressure are the core maintenance tasks for any hydronic system. On an older Brentwood home, that annual visit is also the right time to look over exposed piping and radiator connections for early signs of corrosion, since replacing a section of old iron pipe embedded in a wall or floor is far more involved than catching a small leak early.
Safety note
If you ever smell gas, hear a hissing sound near the burner, or suspect a flue is spilling exhaust into the house, leave the home right away and call FortisBC at 1-800-663-9911 from outside. Don't try to relight a pilot or reset a boiler yourself if you smell gas first -- let a Technical Safety BC licensed gas fitter clear the appliance before anyone touches it again.
Yes, in most cases that's a practical and cost-effective upgrade, provided the radiators and piping are in good condition and not leaking. A technician checks the whole system before confirming the existing radiators can handle the new boiler's output.
It depends on the home's size and design, but it generally costs more upfront than a standard forced-air furnace since piping and often radiant floor tubing need to be roughed in during the build. It needs to be planned early rather than added after the fact.
Many older hydronic systems were built as a single zone because that was standard practice at the time. Adding zone valves and separate thermostats is a common upgrade that improves comfort without needing to replace the existing radiators.
An annual visit is the general recommendation, covering the boiler, pressure, and a check of the radiators and piping for older systems. Catching a small leak or a corroding fitting early is much less disruptive than dealing with a failure later.
It depends on the specific boiler's efficiency, how well the system is zoned, and the home's insulation, so there's no single answer that applies to every property. A well-maintained system of either type performs better than a neglected one regardless of type.
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