Potentially new retro fit heating installation needed..

katzeyes_2

Hi all,  I live in a 40 year old house with oil CH/hot  water, supplemented by a wood burner.  The CH pipes are buried in the concrete slab and what I have been dreading happened a few days ago, I have damp creeping up the wall in the hall where I know a central heating pipe is.  The floor there is warm in winter...I know if it has failed there it will be a matter of time before it fails elsewhere . I know this is going to mean major works to fix it now and long term but what are my options apart from dropping down to each radiator on the ground floor (8 in total).  
I'm wondering if keeping the oil boiler in the kitchen, but only run to the upstairs radiators and hot water tank with perhaps infrared panels down stairs plus solar panels sounds a possibility or sensible option?
Who would I contact for an unbiased opinion of what needs to happen...gas isn't an option in the village.
Hope I have posted in the correct place...
Thanks in advance

Netexporter

I'm fitting an retrofit underfloor heating system, with a heat pump, to replace an LPG gas central heating system. The main thing to look out for is whether you can alter doorways to accommodate the build-up. It could be as little as 20mm with vinyl over an 18mm gypsum board system, or up to 45/50mm with some insulation under the gypsum boards and a timber or tile finish above. Or somewhere in between with other set-ups, like carpet, but that would have lower heat transference.

FreeBear

katzeyes_2 said: but what are my options apart from dropping down to each radiator on the ground floor (8 in total).

What I did when replacing my wet CH system is to run a pair of 22mm pipes from front to back between the joists on the first floor. Radiators are mounted back to back on the internal walls, with just one drop per pair of radiators. Upstairs, again, radiators mounted on internal walls, and short tails to each one.

The plumbing has been routed with a heat pump in mind at some point in the future (also oversized the radiators whilst I was at it). Combined with new double glazing and an ongoing programme to insulate (plus killing cold draughts), the house is nice and warm in winter.

If I were doing the work today, I'd seriously look at fitting a heat pump rather than retaining an old boiler (Octopus were quoting around £2700 earlier in the year).

Reed_Richards

Heating oil currently costs about 65 p per litre.  That will give you 10.35 kW h of heat if burned with 100% efficiency so if your oil boiler is 85 % efficient you pay about 7.4 p per kWh.  if you are on a standard tariff for electricty you will pay around 22p per kW hour from July.  At these prices the electric panel heaters will cost about 3 times as much to run as your radiators.  So if half your heating costs are for downstairs and half for upstairs then replacing the downstairs radiators with panel heaters will double your total heating costs.

Getting solar panels would not have much impact on this because solar panels generate much less electricity in winter than they do in summer.  In winter days are shorter and the sun in lower in the sky so less of the sun's power reaches the ground.  That's why it's cold in winter and why solar panels don't do much for you in winter.