My friends often tell me that they are looking at a new construction building to buy a condo. They claim that if it's new it won't have any problems that older buildings have. It must be great! They never believe me when I say to stay away. I say this because we are called out very often to see new constructions that have been occupied for 5 years or even less with nothing but problems.
We see hi-tech systems installed like regular systems, not properly set up, not completed in their installation. We see each apartment with their own boilers. The apartments are getting smaller and smaller while the boilers are getting bigger and bigger, with fewer piping. It's a shame to see such gorgeous buildings with such terrible heating systems. Builders and tenants alike don't realize how important a properly designed mechanical system is until they are faced with loud banging, cold winters, open windows, and law suits.
The pictures above are a before and after in a new construction (little to no heat for 5 years). As you can see, the first picture has half the installation missing. In the second picture we have completed the original builders installation to provide heat to a 25 unit building.