Heating oil usage

Zing345

Hello,

I am finding my oil heating bills huge at the moment, I currently have about 50% of my radiators on, I was wondering with an oil boiler would I be better just putting them all on high as the oil is getting burnt anyways? Or would this make it worse?

Thanks

Rodders53

Zing345 wrote: »

I am finding my oil heating bills huge at the moment, I currently have about 50% of my radiators on, I was wondering with an oil boiler would I be better just putting them all on high as the oil is getting burnt anyways? Or would this make it worse?

More radiators on = More heat demand = More oil burnt to supply the heat.

You should look at ways to improve insulation, draught-proofing and heat losses from the building to reduce the heat (and therefore oil) demand.

Fill the oil tank when prices are lowest, usually in the Summer.

suki1964

Rodders53 wrote: »

More radiators on = More heat demand = More oil burnt to supply the heat.

You should look at ways to improve insulation, draught-proofing and heat losses from the building to reduce the heat (and therefore oil) demand.

Fill the oil tank when prices are lowest, usually in the Summer.

I always hear this advice - fill when cheaper ie the summer - and a) its not true and b) it makes no difference when you get through 3 fills a year :rotfl:

Zing, I only heat the rooms that are used - ie sitting rooms and mums bedroom and bathroom as she feels the cold. Rooms that aren't used, the rads are turned to frost setting and the doors are kept closed

I also don't have the heating on all day, a few hours at night and an hour in the morning, and I still get through 3000 litres a year :eek:

We supplement the heat in the sitting rooms with our stoves to keep them comfortably warm so we aren't sitting there freezing cold

Insulate your house the best you can. Block all draughts, put up heavy curtains at windows or line the ones you do have, even pinning cheap fleeces to the backs of them helps. Put reflectors behind the rads. If you have wooden floors, get rugs down. Use draught excluders at the bottom of the doors, hang a heavy curtain at front and back door. Get thermostats on your rads and control the temp of each room individually . Bedrooms do not need to be heated all day and night, you sleep better in a colder room with warmer bedding.

Put throws on sofas, wear socks and slipper, wear a fleece, use a hot water bottle if sat for long periods doing nothing. Even mum has come around to realising you cant be sat in short sleeves in the winter else we wouldn't be able to afford to eat as well as heat

G_M

Running an oil boiler is no different to gas. When heat is called for, gas/oil is used to heat the rads!


If the room thermostat and radiator stats are all set high, more heat will be called for so more energy used.


If set low, the boiler will work less hard/less often so less energy used.


As advised, turn off where no required. set lower temps. Insulate.

dunstonh

I just filled up with 700 litres of oil this morning. 5 weeks after putting 1100 litres in. Being gas or oil doesnt make the difference. It is how much you use that does.

We use woodburners to increase the ambient heat and have a long (very long) term plan to work the way around the property to improve insulation. That is where the real saving will be. Some of the radiators need individual thermostats put in place and I have been rebalancing them where possible (or turning right down in unused rooms) but it's going to be doors and windows where the real improvements will be seen. Roof could probably do with modern standards insulation too (looks like it was 1980s standard)