Trinity Lutheran Church in Perkasie, Pennsylvania leaped into the modern age when it replaced its 1.4 million BTU/hr. cast iron boiler with an AERCO KC1000 1.0 million BTU/hr. boiler. The church’s 60-year-old unit, whose design style dates back to the 1800s, was a giant, whose footprint measured 12' long x 6' wide. When it began to leak in 1996, Diversified Refrigeration, the maintenance company for the church – with the assistance of the Baase Company, Inc. – decided to replace it with a high-efficiency boiler that, at the time, had been on the market for just under ten years.

“We replaced a boiler that took up an entire room with an AERCO unit – just 57" long x 22" wide – that could fit comfortably into any closet,” said Gary Derr, president of Diversified Refrigeration. “It heats both the church and the adjoining education wing, which has a day-care center in its basement.”

Although compact boilers had been available for some time, it was AERCO’s modulating and condensing capabilities – which deliver up to 98% thermal efficiency – that truly set it apart. By precisely matching energy output with actual demand, the KC1000’s modulation ensures that the boiler consumes no more gas than is absolutely necessary. In contrast, other boilers continually cycle, alternatively firing at 100% and shutting down, to satisfy demand. By extracting energy from water vapors created as a by-product of the combustion process, the KC1000 maximizes usable heat from the gas that is burned. Noncondensing equipment, such as the original boiler that was replaced, cannot release this latent heat without damaging the heat exchanger.

The KC1000 unit paid immediate dividends on the energy savings front. When comparing the daily gas consumption for February in 1995 and 1996, records show that, despite colder temperatures, usage dropped by 21%. A total of 70,840 cu. ft. of gas was saved for the month.

Derr continues to embrace his decision to adopt what many still consider to be a new technology in the industry. “We’ve had the AERCO unit since 1996 and haven’t had any problems,” Derr remarked more than seven years later. “The boiler runs itself and hasn’t needed anything other than routine maintenance. It’s been a very low-key, high-benefit experience.”