- Westminster Village in West Lafayette, Ind., replaced aging volume water heaters and boilers with high-efficiency commercial units to resolve persistent hot water issues and rising maintenance costs.
- The CCRC estimates the upgrades generate $2,000-$3,000 in monthly energy savings; utility rebates identified during the project helped offset installation costs and strengthen the return on investment.
- The project shows that proactive infrastructure investment in senior living communities can improve day-to-day operations, reduce maintenance demands, and create a more dependable environment for residents and staff alike.
Gary Elliott (Image credit: Courtesy of Westminster Village West Lafayette Inc.)
For senior living communities, reliable hot water and heating are not simply building services. They’re essential to resident comfort, clinical care, and daily operations. At Westminster Village, a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) in West Lafayette, Ind., maintaining that reliability meant rethinking critical infrastructure that had reached the end of its useful life after decades of service.
Founded in 1976, the nonprofit CCRC serves approximately 425 residents across independent living, assisted living, memory care, rehabilitation, and skilled nursing. Over the past five decades, Westminster Village has expanded more than a dozen times while evolving alongside the needs of residents. Like many existing senior living communities, Westminster Village faced a familiar challenge: how to modernize aging mechanical systems while maintaining uninterrupted service for residents and staff. Infrastructure upgrades rarely attract the same attention as new residences, dining venues, or wellness amenities because they are largely behind the scenes and invisible to residents and visitors. Yet they play a critical role in supporting daily operations and resident quality of life.
By 2025, Westminster Village determined it was time to replace its aging water heaters and boilers. Rather than waiting for a major system failure, community leaders began planning a phased modernization effort designed to improve reliability, reduce maintenance demands, and support resident comfort.
How to update infrastructure systems in existing senior living communities
Westminster Village’s hot water and heating systems consisted of two aging volume water heaters, which supplied hot water throughout the property, and two boilers that provided hydronic heating. One boiler operated 24 hours a day, seven days a week. A second unit was required during periods of peak demand, particularly during the winter heating season. As the systems aged, this set-up made it increasingly difficult to maintain consistent hot water temperature and volume throughout the community. Maintenance costs continued to rise, replacement parts became more difficult to source, and unexpected service interruptions became a growing concern.
Rather than waiting for a major failure, leadership chose to invest proactively. Working alongside North Mechanical (Lafayette, Ind.), the property’s long-time contractor, the community evaluated options and developed a phased modernization plan that included replacing the facility’s aging volume water heaters with two commercial water heating units and its boilers with two floor-standing condensing boilers. Together, the upgrades improve efficiency while simplifying long-term maintenance.
Outlining a phased modernization plan at Westminster Village’s CCRC
The project was broken into two phases, with the first one focused on replacing aging hot water heater equipment with high-efficiency commercial units sized to support varying demands across multiple levels of care. The second phase delivered the high-efficiency condensing boilers that provide space heating throughout the community.
Each unit delivers up to 999,000 Btu/h input, with thermal efficiencies up to 99 percent for hot water and 98 percent for heating, among the highest levels available. By contrast, the previous boiler configuration relied on one unit operating continuously while the second supplemented capacity as needed. The new multiple-unit configuration automatically sequences units on and off to match demand, reducing unnecessary runtime while balancing operating hours across the boilers to help maintain reliable performance during peak demand and extreme winter weather.
Improving hydronic heating performance, energy savings in senior living communities
Senior living communities operate around the clock, making long-term operating costs, maintenance requirements, and system reliability as important as up-front purchase price. Utility incentives, projected energy savings, and reduced maintenance demands strengthen the business case for investing in higher-efficiency technology rather than pursuing a like-for-like replacement.
Working with the local utility provider, the equipment manufacturer’s specifying team also identified rebate opportunities that had not previously been considered. These incentives helped offset installation costs, improving the project’s return on investment while supporting projected energy savings. Westminster Village estimates the upgrades are generating approximately $2,000-$3,000 in monthly energy savings while reducing maintenance costs.
Equally important, the performance issues that initially prompted the project have disappeared. Following installation, commissioning, and a brief period of controls adjustments, the recurring hot water temperature and volume issues staff had previously managed were resolved, and the system has delivered dependable performance across all levels of care.
Modern mechanical systems reduce maintenance and increase reliability
The modernization improved more than system performance. It also transformed the mechanical room into a quieter, cooler workspace that’s easier for facility staff to monitor and maintain. Replacing large, aging boilers and water heaters with modern, high-efficiency units freed up space, and the project concluded with a thorough cleaning of the room and repainting of the floor.
Two condensing boilers and two commercial water heating units mounted on integrated casters provide easier access for service, while common digital controls and integrated displays simplify routine monitoring and maintenance. The transformation also attracted interest from Westminster Village residents, including retired Purdue engineering faculty and engineers. Several requested a tour of the mechanical room and were surprised to learn the sleek, modern units were boilers, commenting that they looked nothing like the ones they remembered.
Infrastructure investments support the future of senior living communities
As Westminster Village celebrates its 50th anniversary, the project reflects the same long-term planning that has guided the community’s growth for decades. By modernizing critical systems before they became a larger operational challenge, the CCRC’s leadership strengthened the foundation for the next generation of residents and care services.
For senior living providers, the project demonstrates that infrastructure investments often deliver benefits well beyond simply replacing aging equipment. Thoughtful planning and modern, high-efficiency systems can improve day-to-day operations, reduce maintenance demands, and create a more dependable environment for both residents and the teams who support them.
Gary Elliott is director of plant operations at Westminster Village (West Lafayette, Ind.) and can be reached at [email protected].
