A new high efficiency hot water heating system was installed at our home recently to replace an old rusting gas-guzzling bucket of a heating system. The 'boiler' of the new system hangs on the basement wall and a small pipe sticks through to the outside for the exhaust and also for air intake. We went from one to three temperature-controlled heating zones, each with its own circulator displayed on a mounting board next to the boiler. The setup looks awesome.
The quoted cost for the different high efficiency systems were all about the same -- expensive. Hopefully ours will pay for itself through reduced use of fuel and low maintenance. We chose Viessmann after getting estimates. Interestingly enough, we were steered away from Viessmann in a couple of cases. Our best guess is that they were afraid of installing the high-end tech.
Among the features in the new system are a 'modulated' boiler temperature that adjusts to outside temperature. The furnace room controller for the unit seems complicated but still can be fiddled with to adjust the system according to time of day and other conditions. We are finding that the three zones is a wonderful improvement in terms of both living comfort and keeping down the use of heat. We are looking forward to find out where we end up on fuel costs this winter -- hopefully a lot less.