Heating statistics source?

JohnNY

Can someone help guide me to a reliable source of percentages of heating systems in use today in the US residential market, please?

For example: Steam is X%; forced air is X%; hot water is X%, etc.

I know Daniel-san has this info somewhere, but I can find it.



Thanks in advance.



JohnNY

DanHolohan

I believe hydronics is 11%,

and that would include steam, which I'm guessing is about 3% out of the 11%

JohnNY

That crazy!

I am equally surprised every time I hear those numbers.



Thanks, Dan.

DanHolohan

Actual numbers

Here we go:



In 2009, there were 130,112,000 houses in the U.S.



86% were occupied; 68% were owned (that's scary)



The median age of all homes is 36 years (which is why there are so many furnaces)



Two-thirds of American homes have furnaces.



12% have electric heat pumps.



11% have hydronic heat (steam and hot water)

JohnNY

Alarming.

And you said there's been very little movement in those numbers in years. Kind of makes me think I may be in the wrong business.

I guess I'll add that to the list of reasons.

DanHolohan

The future of hydronics

is commercial. 

JohnNY

Interesting answer, Dan.

Is that where the market is growing best?

DanHolohan

Well, that 11%

hasn't changed in the 41 years that I've been at it, so I think residential hydronics continues to be a profitable, non-growth business. If you consider the sort of boiler, controls, valves and circulators we're seeing these days, everything is pointed at the commercial market, with lip service paid to the residential business because it is, as I said, profitable for now. But forever, non-growth.



Anyway, that's my take. What do you think, John?

Paul Fredricks_3

?

I find it interesting that 14% of the houses in the US are un-occupied. That's a huge number of homes!

DanHolohan

Paul,

those are the foreclosures. The result of that last year was that the traditional total number of boilers sold was off by 50,000. If no one is living in the house, the boiler doesn't get replaced.

Tim_D

18 Million

14% un-occupied is over 18 million empty homes.

US citizens living in the streets.

Billions spent on helping other countries with thier internal problems.

Sorry but I don't get it!

Charity starts at home.

Jean-David Beyer

Charity starts at home.

True, but in this country, and in most others, charity goes to the friends of the politicians. While socially concerned individuals give some of their time and money to charitable causes  the government, especially the federal government, gives billions to its friends.



It seems to me that if there can be millions of empty houses, and millions of homeless people, that there should be something that could be done about that. Similarly, that there are food surplusses that go to rot, and starving people. I do not suppose it is up to people in the heating business to fix this, but it indicates to me that capitalism, as it is practiced, does not seem to have an answer to questions like this. I wish I could suggest a better economic system.

Tim_D

Ducks

Yeah, I have a friend in Minnesota that raises corn. He is paid (by our government) to dump the excess into the river. Good for him and good for the ducks but what about our citizens who have no food? There are all sorts of programs for farmers, fisherman, and so on. They get paid to waste resources or not to grow or catch them at all. This is not capitalism. The government needs to stay out of things and let the natural evolution of business take place.