Switching gas heating/water to oil heating/water - good idea?

lohr500

@markin. I don't see anything in the posts saying the existing boiler is 40 years old. And as per my post, installation cost for my 2500 litre oil tank was £2400 all in, so I'm not sure how you get to £6k just for a tank.

markin

lohr500 said:

@markin. I don't see anything in the posts saying the existing boiler is 40 years old. And as per my post, installation cost for my 2500 litre oil tank was £2400 all in, so I'm not sure how you get to £6k just for a tank.

From the post history for the boiler age.

• That's a possibility thanks. Realistically, the house need knocking down. Updating would cost tens of thousands. It has had pretty much no maintenance work or decorating done on it. The boiler is at least 40 years old, everything leaks, there are mice, and it's full of hoarded stuff. Getting on top of it would be a full…

  in Energy news in general Comment by What_time_is_it 28 July at 2:05PM

Even at the cheaper end 2400 is a big outlay. https://thetankshop.co.uk/collections/2500-litre-bunded-oil-tanks

Mstty

This maybe help it's a table comparison which works for me

https://nottenergy.com/resources/energy-cost-comparison/

lohr500

markin said:

lohr500 said:

@markin. I don't see anything in the posts saying the existing boiler is 40 years old. And as per my post, installation cost for my 2500 litre oil tank was £2400 all in, so I'm not sure how you get to £6k just for a tank.

From the post history for the boiler age.

• That's a possibility thanks. Realistically, the house need knocking down. Updating would cost tens of thousands. It has had pretty much no maintenance work or decorating done on it. The boiler is at least 40 years old, everything leaks, there are mice, and it's full of hoarded stuff. Getting on top of it would be a full…

  in Energy news in general Comment by What_time_is_it 28 July at 2:05PM

Even at the cheaper end 2400 is a big outlay. https://thetankshop.co.uk/collections/2500-litre-bunded-oil-tanks

Apologies, I hadn't checked any other posts from What_time_is-it. Based my question on the contents of the current post.

Mister_G

lohr500 said:

Wow. Is that 6.2p/kWh on a never to be repeated fixed contract or the current spot price? When I last looked at LPG it was more expensive than oil.

I currently pay 38ppl from my local independent.  It was 33ppl until recently. I'm not in contract.

I used the notts energy table to work out the price per kWh.

https://nottenergy.com/resources/energy-cost-comparison/

I have seen others paying a similar price for a 2 year fix on the LPG thread.

It certainly appears that LPG is considerably cheaper than oil at the moment.

QrizB

markin said:

But yes including controllers, Many boilers claim over 100% efficient. 

I don't recall seeing one mentioned on this forum.

Please provide examples of these over-100%-efficient combustion boilers.

BUFF

There is a methodology under which manufacturers can claim over 100% efficiency . I don't think that it is possible to hit 120% though.
Viessman is 1  manufacturer that sometimes does., https://viessmanndirect.co.uk/files/3041e9dd-2dc1-4b7d-9ebf-a125011d439d/WB1 Data Sheet 5822 149-5 GB.pdf "standard efficiency: up to 107%"
https://ramboll.com/ingenuity/energy-efficiency-of-more-than-100-pct
https://www.kane.co.uk/knowledge-centre/boiler-efficiency "Under certain circumstances this can lead to net condensing combustion efficiencies of greater than 100%."

Section62

What_time_is_it said:

Thanks @victor2
All good advice. Better controls is an absolute must. It's either on (heating AND water) or off. And in winter it is on. All the time.

I wouldn't agree with the BiB - for example to be "messy" there would have to be something very wrong with an oil system (e.g. leakage).

There are some more practical issues to think about before deciding what type of boiler to get.  For example, her high usage is likely to be a function of the lack of efficient control systems and the old boiler having a relatively low efficiency.

To get to the right decision, you need to work out what her energy consumption might be if the heating system was upgraded along with a more efficient boiler.  And potentially with improvements to the property's insulation.

There are other factors - does she live in a rural area where oil is a common heating method, is there space for an oil (or LPG) tank, does she cook with gas as well? Also, might she be eligible for any grants or help etc?

Don't jump to a decision on the basis of other people's beliefs about the different fuel options.  To get to the right answer requires seeing the whole picture, and whoever told you to consider oil was doing you/her a favour if that leads to stepping back from a like-for-like replacement without any further consideration of alternatives.

wittynamegoeshere

Switching gas heating/water to oil heating/water - good idea?

No!

Almost everyone who uses heating oil only does so because mains gas is not available where they are, it's a more expensive, messier and more complicated option.  There's also a significant risk of theft, given that the contents of your tank may be worth lots.  Not only do you lose the contents, you also need a new tank at a huge cost as a result of the forced entry, often done by some form of cutting, plus the damage done to the soil from any leaks that resulted from it.

Our neighbours had an accidental oil leak in their garden, they had to have loads of anti-pollution work done on the soil afterwards, at great expense.

Section62

wittynamegoeshere said:

Switching gas heating/water to oil heating/water - good idea?

No!

Almost everyone who uses heating oil only does so because mains gas is not available where they are, it's a more expensive, messier and more complicated option.  There's also a significant risk of theft, given that the contents of your tank may be worth lots.  Not only do you lose the contents, you also need a new tank at a huge cost as a result of the forced entry, often done by some form of cutting, plus the damage done to the soil from any leaks that resulted from it.

Our neighbours had an accidental oil leak in their garden, they had to have loads of anti-pollution work done on the soil afterwards, at great expense.

Please explain how oil is "messier".  Also, how is it "more complicated"?

What is the actual risk of theft, particularly in the OP's case where the location of the oil tank could potentially be designed to minimise that risk?

What percentage of oil thefts result in the tank being damaged and/or a leak to the environment?  Is it 100% as implied by your post?

What is the relative risk of an oil leak vs a gas leak? (anyone who doesn't believe domestic gas leaks happen only needs to google for examples of homes being destroyed by gas explosions)