Is electric central heating a bad thing to have?

jojo_b_2

Hi

My other half and I are currently house hunting for our first place together and we saw a flat we really like at the weekend. The only thing is that it has an electric central heating system and no gas supply into the building. This is the third place like this that we've come across on our hunt and we're not sure if it is any diffrent to having gas central heating (which is what we're both used to!).

Does anyone know if it is more or less expensive than gas? Or if it makes no real difference? All help would be much appreciated as we're considering making an offer and don't know if we should or not!

Thanks!

Cardew

You need to be more specific on the type of electric CH.


It could be:


1. A wet(i.e. with radiators) CH system working from a electric boiler.


2. Panel heaters centrally controlled.


3. Night Storage Heaters on an Economy 7 electricity tariff.


4. A heat pump system.

macman

Makes no real difference? Standard rate electricity is about 300% more than mains gas per kWh (12p vs 4p), so wet CH and DHW with an electric boiler is about the most expensive method of heating ever devised. Why would anyone fit gas CH if the price was the same?
The only economic way of heating by electricity is to use NSH's and an immersion heater running on E7.
Edit: re Cardew's point, I'm assuming you mean System 1.

suse*

All flats I have ever lived in have storage heaters rather than gas. I guess it depends on the layout of the building etc as to if it is even possible for them to put gas in. I guess that is one of the problems with living in a flat.

Could you find out if there is any plans to add solar pannels to the building and if so how that might be shared between flats? I expect though that would increase the building maintance costs if they were planning something like that in the future too, so might be worth asking if it is an option either way.

Smiley_Dan

PV has its place but it's a bit of a stretch to have them make any noticeable impact on space heating. Better to heat hot water with them.

jrawle

If it's night storage heaters, these are a reasonably cheap way of heating, given the current high gas prices. One advantage of not having gas is that you only pay one standing charge. You just have to get used to setting the heating appropriately the evening before, and not having the flexibility to switch it on or off in an instant.

I would not want to live in a flat that had a gas supply. Think about it: you might keep your boiler and appliances serviced and in good order, but what if your neighbours don't? Their CO could seep into your bedroom. Also remember the Ronan Point incident:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronan_Point

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays

jrawle wrote: »

If it's night storage heaters, these are a reasonably cheap way of heating, given the current high gas prices. One advantage of not having gas is that you only pay one standing charge. You just have to get used to setting the heating appropriately the evening before, and not having the flexibility to switch it on or off in an instant.

I would not want to live in a flat that had a gas supply. Think about it: you might keep your boiler and appliances serviced and in good order, but what if your neighbours don't? Their CO could seep into your bedroom. Also remember the Ronan Point incident:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronan_Point

Scaremongering much?

AFAIA Ronan Point was down to inadequate building standards rather than the inherent unsafety of gas. In the intervening 46 years we've walked on the Moon, mapped the human genome and discovered the Higgs boson; I'm no engineer but I'd like to think we can build a flat safely and heat it with a primary energy source.

bluffer

jojo_b wrote: »

Hi

My other half and I are currently house hunting for our first place together and we saw a flat we really like at the weekend. The only thing is that it has an electric central heating system and no gas supply into the building. This is the third place like this that we've come across on our hunt and we're not sure if it is any diffrent to having gas central heating (which is what we're both used to!).

Does anyone know if it is more or less expensive than gas? Or if it makes no real difference? All help would be much appreciated as we're considering making an offer and don't know if we should or not!

Thanks!

a lot of the modern flats seem to be electric only - better use of space??

ive just moved into one from a gas ch system and havent a clue how to work them properly yet! any tips would be appreciated.

- jrawle gas ch was just brilliant if i was feeling cold, just switched it on and 10-15 min later warm and toasty! this whole business of working out a day in advance if you need heating is a weird concept.

jojo_b_2

Thank you for all your replies so far! We've asked the agent about the type of system but typically no-one has got back to us about it.

macman

Many modern flats (often destined to be buy to lets) are electric only because the capital costs are lower. It benefits the developer and the landlord, but the tenant pays for the much higher operating costs.
OP, if you saw a separate boiler (possibly in the kitchen) )in the kitchen and conventional wet rads, then it's 'system 1'.

jojo_b_2

macman wrote: »

Many modern flats (often destined to be buy to lets) are electric only because the capital costs are lower. It benefits the developer and the landlord, but the tenant pays for the much higher operating costs.
OP, if you saw a separate boiler (possibly in the kitchen) )in the kitchen and conventional wet rads, then it's 'system 1'.

Ah I see, I guess the lack of maintenance costs makes it easier for landlords. We'd want to live in it ourselves though and I'm not sure the re-sale value will be there later on so I think we're not going to put an offer in. The search continues. London is a nightmare for first time buyers

Thank you for all the advice though guys!