Re: OT: Winter Electric kw/h Savings

Nancy Young wrote:

"Pete C." <aux3.DOH.4@xxxxxxxx> wrote

Dave Smith wrote:


While I am glad that I did not get sucked into converting to heating with
electricity, oil heating has got pretty expensive lately. I am thinking
of
switching to gas. Last year my insurance company made me get a new oil
tank
because the old was more than 20 years old...

Insurance companies are getting really antsy about underground
tanks. I've been notified just this week they no longer cover them
under my policy. Luckily I don't have one.

He didn't indicate it was an underground tank. In the northeast where
oil heat is common, the usual case is a 275 or 300 gal tank located in
the basement. Underground tanks are mostly gone and were mostly use in
rather old homes.


Heating with electricity is very expensive here.

Yes / no. It depends on what system you use. Electric heating with a
resistance type heater is very expensive, but electric heating with a
high efficiency heat pump, particularly a ground source one, is
relatively cheap.


My oil furnace is getting close to the end of its life. I think that when
it needs replacement I will be switching to gas.

If you've already got a new oil tank, and can get your gas connect at no
charge (watch out for service charges), I'd suggest looking at a furnace
with a dual fuel burner (common on commercial units) so you have the
flexibility to switch between fuels as their relative costs shift.

Great idea, Pete.

Like I said, common in the commercial world. I've seen them in large
central heated apartment buildings as well, just a simple switch for the
building super to select whether they want to burn oil or NG. Not common
in residential, but with the destabilizing energy market it makes sense
to have that flex-fuel capability to be able to take advantage of the
best value at a particular time.
.

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