'Best' type of boiler for heating and hot water? (oil, gas, LPG, etc)?

GustyGardenGalaxy

I currently have an oil fired boiler and am thinking of replacing it with something more efficient, environmentally friend, economical, etc.

I've had this oil fired boiler for some time as, due to my location, there is no gas pipeline nearby.

Is my only viable alternative LPG, or are there 'better' options?

I only live in a small bungalow so there's not a huge amount to heat.

Thanks

ElephantBoy57

A log burner would be good for the environment, but rather smokey for your neighbours. Around £2k but if you gather (judging by your user name) you own wood, it could work out cheaper in the long run. It might take 5 years before you cover the initial costs.

Hasbeen

GustyGardenGalaxy said:

I currently have an oil fired boiler and am thinking of replacing it with something more efficient, environmentally friend, economical, etc.

I've had this oil fired boiler for some time as, due to my location, there is no gas pipeline nearby.

Is my only viable alternative LPG, or are there 'better' options?

I only live in a small bungalow so there's not a huge amount to heat.

Thanks

The only energy that the government want at the end of the day is electric for the environment. Natural gas, Propane gas and oil will all be gradually be phased out.
I would keep the working oil boiler as long as you can. "If its not broken then do not fix it"

ASavvyBuyer

GustyGardenGalaxy said:

I currently have an oil fired boiler and am thinking of replacing it with something more efficient, environmentally friend, economical, etc.

I've had this oil fired boiler for some time as, due to my location, there is no gas pipeline nearby.

Is my only viable alternative LPG, or are there 'better' options?

I only live in a small bungalow so there's not a huge amount to heat.

Thanks

It might be worth looking at Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHP) that can be used as a heat pump & air conditioner. Take a look at the Green & Ethical thread on this Forum where there is a lot of advice and comments about using them.

Rodders53

Until the oil boiler goes wrong, or the storage tank etc.,. then you'll likely NEVER recoup the saving with an alternative fuel.  Kerosene is also meant to be cheaper per kWh than bulk LPG https://nottenergy.com/resources/energy-cost-comparison/ and even with heat pump efficiency electric is not too dissimilar (CoP of 3).
Air to air heat pumps (aircon/air heat units) don't do hot water (although I have them for room heating backup to the oil boiler and cooling in summer). 
Air to hot water heat pumps don't  usually cool.  Nor do they provide very hot water and they need regular immersion element use to protect against Legionella (some say not needed in small domestic systems where the water is used and changed a lot).  For central heating a second big hot water storage tank is required, radiator sizes need increasing to provide enough heat output so more expense and longer still payback (plus finding room for all the kit.
It may be the only option come the time for your boiler renewal, depending on any Laws and Regulations imposed on us?

GustyGardenGalaxy

Thanks for the advice. I've also been looking into an electric boiler but the current electricity prices make the running costs far too expensive unfortunately. I prefer the idea of electric, but a shame about the price!

Hasbeen

GustyGardenGalaxy said:

Thanks for the advice. I've also been looking into an electric boiler but the current electricity prices make the running costs far too expensive unfortunately. I prefer the idea of electric, but a shame about the price!

But it would be environmentally friendly! And as the fossil fueled power stations disappear and there is only wind power, I am sure all will work out well. Yes perhaps really more expensive though?

matelodave

GustyGardenGalaxy said:

Thanks for the advice. I've also been looking into an electric boiler but the current electricity prices make the running costs far too expensive unfortunately. I prefer the idea of electric, but a shame about the price!

An electric boiler is probably about as expensive as running a wood stove with £5 notes - There isn't anything that's quite so expensive to run.
As others have said, keep your oil boiler because doing anything else will cost you a lot of money to replace it and even more money to use.
If I was starting from scratch then I'd probably go for an air source heatpump (which I did) but the cost of upgrading your system would probably be somewhere around £10-£12k and it would still cost around the same, if not more than your oil boiler to run so there's no financial benefit although you might feel very fuzzy and virtuous because you think you are saving the planet.

Norman_Castle

Investigate improving your homes insulation. This would reduce your current systems running costs and environmental impact.

gsmh

I was having a discussion with a class of year 7 students at school. We were discussing what each of us does to help reduce global warming. I prodly told them I had just bought a new car which had low CO2 emissions and was frugal on petrol. I was suitably chastised by one 11 year old boy who told me it would have been much better just to keep running my old car. The carbon footprint involved in the manufacture of a new vehicle is much higher than it would have been running an older, less efficient  car. I was rather impressed with him and it has changed my perspective somewhat.