Best way to heat and cool a house??

Jeff_15

If money wasn't an object, what's the best way to heat and cool an existing 2 story house, about 1800sqft.??? Would one use forced hot air ducted system with an added cooling cool?
Would one use hot water base board (oil or gas heated) w/ window/wall ac units for cooling? Or maybe heating/cooling fan coil units in the attic and basement creating 2 heating and cooling zones??

Which is the best, which is the worst and which is in the middle?? Feel free to mention any other methods that you think are usefull.

I guess the criteria to rate them on would be air quality, efficiency, cost of energy, cost of installation, etc.

Mike T., Swampeast MO

Whew...

I like to give complete answers but this would require a book! I can tell you the worst--a single forced air system for both floors that combines heat and A/C using electric resistance for heating and with the "typical" level of ductwork quality.

Can you reply with some specifics?

1) Current type of heating system.

2) Geographic location.

3) Unusual local conditions, i.e. heavy winter wind, extreme summer humidity, etc.

4) Assumed length of stay in house and type of occupants, i.e. adults only, adults and kids, elderly only, total mix, etc. Planning to retire here?

5) Town? City? Suburbs? Rural?

6) Fuels available in your area.

7) Your ranking of importance for: cost, material quality, longevity, comfort, system adaptability, aesthetics (i.e. how visible the system).