Oil Fired Central Heating ???

Macker1

Moving to a new home that uses OFCH. Its a 4 bed semi cicra 1340sqft. Having never used oil before I'm just wondering about the approx costs of heating the home. What are the usage rates on average which leads into how often would the tank need to be refilled.

Have used Gas for the last number of years and have been very satisifed with the exception of the cost rising.:eek:

kc66

In my house since last September Iv spent €800 on oil. Not sure how many litres. Its been on pretty much constantly. Tanks nearly empty now. Its a reasonably big house too.

Macker1

Are there many companies involved in supply of home heating oil. Do they try to outdo each other with lower prices / special offers.

lomb

costs the same everywhere give or take 3ish per cent.the main factor is the international crude price and the dollar/euro exchange rate which does vary alot:rolleyes:

joejoem

It cost me about €300 to get through the winter. the heat is on for an hour in the morning and four hours in the evening. Sometimes turned on for an hour at other times if it is cold. My house is around 900 sqft

kc66

The difference per litre can make a big difference when filling a tank (€40-€60) see http://www.irishfuelprices.com/homeheat_index.php

god's toy

I normally fill my tank once per year (1000 litters Kerosene), around €600+/- or split it into a 50/50 Autumn/spring delivery to keep it topped up.

as already pointed out, irishfuelprices.com is a good place to look...

TheBigLebowski

god's toy wrote:

I normally fill my tank once per year (1000 litters Kerosene), around €600+/- or split it into a 50/50 Autumn/spring delivery to keep it topped up.

as already pointed out, irishfuelprices.com is a good place to look...

How long would you have it on for, on average?

Lex Luthor

I have a 5 bed semi with about 1600sq ft and over the last few years and this would be fairly consistent, I have filled once around October and then again in Feb/March. When I mean fill I mean 1000litres.

Up to a few years ago I was probably doing at least 3 1k litres a year until I decided to use a digital thermostat with timer to control the heating on/off times and I also got the full house rads balanced.

Also, since I got the 2 extra bedrooms put on 3 yrs ago, the house on the side the extension was put on, seems to retain the heat a lot better and the heating doesn't seem to be on as much.

I think you'll find oil heating just as economical as gas, if not better, but the usage can all come down to how well your house is insulated and how well you control the heating on/off times.
Plus in the rooms I don't use as much, I would have the rads turned down more than other rooms.

god's toy

Hmm ok, it's on from 5:00 am to 6:00 in the morning, and on and off every HR in the evening like: 5:00 pm to 6:30, 7:30 to 8:30, 9:30 to 10:30 and 11:30 to 12:30 X7 nights a week more or less.

The house is fully insulated so I suppose that helps too.

Lex Luthor

god's toy wrote:

Hmm ok, it's on from 5:00 am to 6:00 in the morning, and on and off every HR in the evening like: 5:00 pm to 6:30, 7:30 to 8:30, 9:30 to 10:30 and 11:30 to 12:30 X7 nights a week more or less.

The house is fully insulated so I suppose that helps too.

I used to set mine like yours in the evening until I installed the room thermostat...found I was going thro oil more and the house temp fluctuated a lot..sometimes too hot, sometimes too cold.
Get yourself a room thermostat with timer and let it control how it should be on...you'll find you only need it on less

god's toy

Yea I'm thinking of a digital one alright just have to get round to it I guess.
Must also look into getting the rads balanced too.

However the house is never cold really thank god!

Wanted Man

Have you considered a wood chip burner? Will pay for itself in a few years, and you won't have to worry about rising oil prices...plus it's environmentally friendly and sustainable...

Lex Luthor

Wanted Man wrote:

Have you considered a wood chip burner? Will pay for itself in a few years, and you won't have to worry about rising oil prices...plus it's environmentally friendly and sustainable...

I've thought about one but don't you need a lot of space indoors for the hopper?

bennyc

Lex Luthor wrote:

I've thought about one but don't you need a lot of space indoors for the hopper?

Remember you need a lot of space outside too as you have to get it by the ton. Also are they not supposed to be higher maintinance that regular solid fuel. I looked into both and ended up with a solid fuel