Switching from Oil to Gas

mark_cycling00

Heat pumps can work well in any property. It's just that the amount of additional insulation needed, changes to pipes and radiators etc varies substantial. You might need to insulate walls etc. first so it can operate at a low temperature. This means extra cost 

If you just go ahead and get something installed by an energy supplier with your £7500 grant, it may be fairly unsuitable and cost a lot more than gas to run.

QrizB

That post reads like it was AI generated? It's not very accurate. For example, the RHI closed to new applications in March 2022.

400ixl

QrizB said:

That post reads like it was AI generated? It's not very accurate. For example, the RHI closed to new applications in March 2022.

Thats because it was, as are the other posts they have done.

We need a category in the report posts for reporting GenAI bots or people who just post it verbatim.  GenAI is great to inform the human but not so much if the human dumbs down the GenAI.

tacpot12

newbieni said:

QrizB said:

newbieni said:

tekie said:

Are you considering heat pump solutions as well?

I was told that the house (1965) was too old for this to work.

Whoever told you that (a heating engineer? a random middle aged bloke in a pub?) was wrong.

It was a heat engineer who fits pumps. He also advised that he encountered many problems with them.

There a plenty of people using heat pumps in Victorian houses, but heat pump systems do require careful design. 

If you can't find someone who can give you confidence that they can design a low-temperature heat pump system, then it would be best to pass up on the opportunity. Gas is polluting, and is going to get more expensive over the next 20 years, especially as more people switch to heat pumps. The grants that are urrently available for heat pumps are generous, and should result in the cost being around the same as a switch to gas. 

newbieni

tacpot12 said:

newbieni said:

QrizB said:

newbieni said:

tekie said:

Are you considering heat pump solutions as well?

I was told that the house (1965) was too old for this to work.

Whoever told you that (a heating engineer? a random middle aged bloke in a pub?) was wrong.

It was a heat engineer who fits pumps. He also advised that he encountered many problems with them.

There a plenty of people using heat pumps in Victorian houses, but heat pump systems do require careful design. 

If you can't find someone who can give you confidence that they can design a low-temperature heat pump system, then it would be best to pass up on the opportunity. Gas is polluting, and is going to get more expensive over the next 20 years, especially as more people switch to heat pumps. The grants that are urrently available for heat pumps are generous, and should result in the cost being around the same as a switch to gas. 

They don't seem to be available in Northern Ireland.

tetrarch

The other alternative is a pellet boiler. Quite a bit more manual intervention but they also qualify for a £5,000 installation grant

Regards

Tet

PS I have a Winghager pellet boiler and they are certainly less smelly than a oil boiler 

35har1old

newbieni said:

Hi All,

I live in Northern Ireland and I am in the process of buying a new house. The house is currently heated with oil but the oil tank is cracked and needs to be replaced and the oil burner is very old and will likely soon need to be replaced. This also contributes to the house having a very low energy performance rating.

I thought it would make more sense at this stage to switch from oil to gas. Has anyone else made this transition and do you recommend it, also what are the costs associated with it?

Thanks in advance. 

Might be eligible for a grant for gas £400
No grants currently available in NI for heat pumps possible cost of £14000
England and Wales  grant £7500

35har1old

tetrarch said:

The other alternative is a pellet boiler. Quite a bit more manual intervention but they also qualify for a £5,000 installation grant

Regards

Tet

PS I have a Winghager pellet boiler and they are certainly less smelly than a oil boiler 

Does the grant apply in NI?

35har1old

casper_gutman said:

Is mains gas available where you are? Perhaps not, otherwise why would the current system use oil? Would you be looking at having LPG delivered to on-site storage? The issues with the two options are quite different!

Gas may only have come available 
Gas only came to parts of NI  in 1996

dr_bogenbroom

I’m in NI - from what I gather (and feel free to correct me) heat pumps are not really pushed as much here as we don’t get the same grants as GB. 

You’re talking a thousands more for a heat pump over here when you factor it all being on your own dime and the cost of other house upgrades. I also think knowledge and support is lacking over here hence why heating engineers might give out inaccurate information as pointed out by other posters. 

Heat pumps are fantastic when set up correctly in any property but can costly when not!

I stayed with oil because where I am in the NW it’s about 35% cheaper than gas although we only have Firmus here to choose from.

What is the size of your property and how many bathrooms etc?