Tuning-Up
New Heating Systems
by Harris Hyman, P.E.
When I bought a new truck, the salesman
was careful to invite me to bring it
back in after I'd put 1,000 miles on it.
At that time, the shop changed the oil,
tightened down the head, fixed a couple
of rattles, straightened a door hinge, and
greased the tailgate. I paid for the oil and
filter, but the rest of it—maybe two
hours of work—was absorbed by the
dealer as a normal part of doing
business.
Last year, I designed a heating system
for a school. It cost about ten times the
amount of the truck. With typical perversity,
the owner expected this extremely
complex system to function
perfectly from