Considering gas or continue with oil?

madaminx

I am considering sticking with oil or switching to gas and it appears that Phoenix is the only supplier for Belfast.
I have two questions:
1. I live in a small terrace house and currently use oil (oil tank location too close to house due to small yard and has a serious rust problem due to age), I am currently considering replacing tank and continuing with the oil or switching to gas. I know that people who live in bigger houses are recommending gas due to it being more efficient and cheaper etc, however would the same savings / efficiencies be experienced by someone in a small house who has an electric shower and electric cooker? i.e. it would simply by gas versus oil heating.
2. Also, a question for anyone living in a terrace house having had a gas installation – did the installer leave your house in a cosmetically sound condition or did you have to get someone else in to do tiling/plastering/ any type of cosmetic repair work? I just want to know the exact cost - i.e. does cost of installation include the cosmetic work post installation or will I have to pay extra for that?

I look forward receiving some advice.
Many thanks

Carol

rogerblack

Mains gas is considerably cheaper than oil.

Also - paint works.
As would covering the tank.

Gas heating is considerably cheaper than electricity - this isn't really the case for gas cooking.
It is probably worth strongly considering gas hot water too, this may be almost free in some cases, and will again be considerably cheaper than electric. (A third of the typical cost)
As to 'making good' - it all depends.
It may be considerably faster and cheaper if you get someone else than the plumber to do the making good.
You can ask for a quote including everything 'perfect' - but it will be higher than otherwise.

simbasheen

Oil prices have increased considerably over the last few years, however so has gas. The thing that we like about oil is that you can bulk buy when the prices are low. We usually buy enough when prices drop ,usually during summer to last us for about 10 months. We have a large 5 bedroom house and the oil heating costs us approximately £80 per month working it out over 12 months, but we don't often have the heating on over the summer months. I used to live in a house which was a 2 bedroom terrace and had solid fuel and used to cost £24 per week and that was 10 yrs ago.

So for us, we prefer oil heating, it puts us in control of being able to buy oil when we want, unlike gas who just seem to pass on price increases and not price drops to customers.:o

Ben84

rogerblack wrote: »

Gas heating is considerably cheaper than electricity - this isn't really the case for gas cooking.

Cooking with gas is a lot cheaper than cooking with electricity. You can save about £30-50 a year with a gas cooker. It's just not a massive amount of money to save each year as cookers aren't huge energy consumers in the first place.

Ben84

simbasheen wrote: »

Oil prices have increased considerably over the last few years, however so has gas. The thing that we like about oil is that you can bulk buy when the prices are low. We usually buy enough when prices drop ,usually during summer to last us for about 10 months. We have a large 5 bedroom house and the oil heating costs us approximately £80 per month working it out over 12 months, but we don't often have the heating on over the summer months. I used to live in a house which was a 2 bedroom terrace and had solid fuel and used to cost £24 per week and that was 10 yrs ago.

So for us, we prefer oil heating, it puts us in control of being able to buy oil when we want, unlike gas who just seem to pass on price increases and not price drops to customers.:o

You can of course price fix during cheap periods with gas - and use as much gas as you want at that price during the fixed period. You'll have a bigger choice of gas suppliers too.

I find being on the mains gas works out pretty well most winters for us when I do the right things at the right time. It is however easier with gas when you're busy to be complacent and just pay the bill and not hunt for the best supplier as it will just keep coming out the pipes and the bills will keep coming in the post. Oil does at least force you to be more active in the buying process.

rogerblack

Ben84 wrote: »

Cooking with gas is a lot cheaper than cooking with electricity. You can save about £30-50 a year with a gas cooker. It's just not a massive amount of money to save each year as cookers aren't huge energy consumers in the first place.

It's not much.
Gas is cheaper per kW than electricity, yes.
However, heating a pan on a ring for example is about 50% efficient, so that somewhat counters the starting saving.

Gas usually requires additional ventilation of some form, and this may leak heat when not used.

Ben84

rogerblack wrote: »

It's not much.
Gas is cheaper per kW than electricity, yes.
However, heating a pan on a ring for example is about 50% efficient, so that somewhat counters the starting saving.

Gas usually requires additional ventilation of some form, and this may leak heat when not used.

You don't normally need a vent for a gas cooker/hob. Only if there isn't a window that opens to outside seem to be the basic rule from what I've been told. Anyway, I've lived in many houses over the years with gas cookers and never needed a vent.

As for efficiency of heat transfer - how efficient are electric hobs? I find they get very hot all over during use, so I doubt they're that good either.

madaminx

Hi All

Thanks for all your feedback, although I'm still confused, it's a case of oil versus gas when living in a terraced house.

M

macman

What are you confused about? Gas is very much cheaper, but you have to be prepared to take a number of years to recover the capital cost of installing gas CH. But if your tank and/or oil boiler are nearing replacement stage anyway, then that's the obvious time to do it.
Electric cooking is a red herring, the gas usage for cooking is a relatively small part of your annual bill. What matters is hot water and heating, which are much cheaper on mains gas.

madaminx

macman wrote: »

What are you confused about? Gas is very much cheaper, but you have to be prepared to take a number of years to recover the capital cost of installing gas CH. But if your tank and/or oil boiler are nearing replacement stage anyway, then that's the obvious time to do it.
Electric cooking is a red herring, the gas usage for cooking is a relatively small part of your annual bill. What matters is hot water and heating, which are much cheaper on mains gas.

Thanks macman, your post has been very helpful.

I guess that's where my issue is a stickler, I have an electric shower and cooker - therefore questioning the justification of getting gas installed. the only thing that would be different would be the energy source for heating.

This might sound like a really really daft question but with gas heating will I still use any electricity to power whatever type of pump is used?

Thanks again for any advice.

GlynD

Mains gas is much cheaper and you can forget that ugly tank in your yard. The price of replacing the tank with a modern plastic one would go a long way towards changing your system - and I believe there are grants available.

Gas is much better for cooking as well.

Go for the gas.