Anyone went from oil/lpg etc back to solid fuels?

Rolandtheroadie

I was wondering if anyone has went from oil or lpg fired central heating to a multi fuel stove.

We looked at combining our oil with a stove a while back (using a dunsley neutraliser) but at the time there was no stoves avaliable that we would have bought.
We eventually just installed a stand alone multi burner

As oils only going to go up, I've started thinking I should just get rid of it altogether and install a solid fuel burner that will heat the water and run the central heating.

Has anyone done this? If you have, do you have any regrets?

Gloomendoom

Have you worked out what the solid fuel is likely to cost you?

My neighbour switched from solid fuel central heating to mains gas because the former was costing him an arm and a leg to run.

muckybutt

Had oil in our place when we moved in some 6 years ago, price steadily went up. Now we have two open fireplaces so started using them as well which made the oil last longer.

The other year we got a government grant for Air Source heating, so the oil was ripped out and replaced, what a mistake ! the cost of running the blasted thing was more than oil used to cost, so thanks to a HMRC rebate next month were having a Charnwood Cove 2 boiler stove installed to do heating and hot water, weve loads of free dry wood so envisage it costing roughly £40 -60 per month to run.

Anyone want a secondhand 9Kw Air source heat pump ? just been serviced as well !

olias

What about a wood pellet boiler?

Olias

Rolandtheroadie

Luckily it will be a fire that can burn anything. Coal is avaliable from a local quarry at £90 a ton and it's not too expensive locally for wood (£50 a ton for beech).
A friend uses their stand alone fire all day every day through winter and goes through approximately 4 tons coal per year.
So without shopping around, my 5 tons beech and even 5 tons coal would work in at £700. My last 1100 litres oil was £740, I average that 2.5 times a year.
I've no doubt your neighbour costs more if hes buying from the coal man ( local garage is about £7.50 per 20 kg bag).

I read about the ground source heat pumps and it advised that unless the house had very good insulation (current standards) it wouldnt work as well. Savings against oil wernt that great ( although this has probably changed with current oil prices).

Rolandtheroadie

olias wrote: »

What about a wood pellet boiler?

Olias

Not looked too much into them (was in the pub last night with a guy that installs them coincidentally), was put off with installation costs. Again that may have changed, (it was a couple of years now when I had a quick look).

Gloomendoom

scotsman4th wrote: »

Coal is avaliable from a local quarry at £90 a ton and it's not too expensive locally for wood (£50 a ton for beech).

Where are you? I want to know!

muckybutt

Gloomendoom wrote: »

Where are you? I want to know!

X 2 !!

We looked into wood pellet burners, look good I gotta admit a bit pricey but savings to be made.

Canucklehead

Lots of info on biomass available here. Watch for the introduction of residential renewable heat incentives starting in 2012. We're planning to add biomass to our heating specialisms later this year.

HTH

Canucklehead

aboard_epsilon

muckybutt wrote: »

X 2 !!

We looked into wood pellet burners, look good I gotta admit a bit pricey but savings to be made.

Gov and industries are building wood pellet power stations everywhere.

They call them biomass power stations

i can see wood pellets becoming a commodity ..supply and demand etc demand stripping supply..so imports

and price going up to equal other fuels .

log wood fuel stoves have to burn seasoned wood..about £60 for a months supply if you cant get it free .. seasoned or you don't get the full efficiency

all the best.markj

Rolandtheroadie

Wood comes from a local farmer and the quarry just happens to have hit coal and sells it direct.
I say £50 a ton, that may not be quite right. It was £250 for one of these full to the top.