Heating oil is the primary source the heat For around 5% of households in the UK, that equates to around 1.5 to 1.7 million homes.
Given the recent news and the war in the Middle East, the cost of heating oil has skyrocketed, leaving many homeowners in a financial bind and wondering what the alternatives are (besides sitting at home without heat or hot water).
From temporary measures to long-term fixes, heating and energy expert David Hilton explains how to avoid feeling pinched by your oil bill.
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1. Manage heat output with motorized valves
Before taking any dramatic options like throwing out the oil boiler the first thing you can do is manage the heat.
Turning down Thermostatic radiator valve (TRV) will help some, but not all of them are certain. For more precise control of temperature, it is worth considering motorized TRV for radiators.
Systems such as the Honeywell EVO, Tado or Drayton Wiser have electronic TRVs that can be set to keep the room at a specific temperature, and schedules can be set so that the room temperature varies throughout the day.
You can also set an away mode, so the temperature can be set 2 or 3 degrees cooler when you’re not at home, saving you both energy and oil. And, it is easy to install too. Motorized valves simply replace manual TRVs. You don’t need to Separate the radiators Or drain them, but you need to check what type of TRV you already have to make sure the new motor is compatible.
It is also worth noting that systems are better than others at creating their own communication networks. This can affect you if your home has thick walls or foil wrapped insulation and plasterboard. Do your research to make sure the system you get is compatible with your home and meets your expectations.
Shop for a motorized TRV
Honeywell Home
Honeywell Home EvoHome White Smart Thermostatic Radiator Head Kit
Manage your radiator output with this smart valve that also includes an auto-window function to close the valve while ventilating the room.
tado
Tado° Smart Radiator Thermostat X – Trio Pack
Upgrade the three radiators and download the tado app to gain extra control over your oil consumption
Drayton
Drayton Visor Anthracite Smart Thermostatic Radiator Head
If your radiators have a modern finish, these anthracite colored valves may be more compatible with your interiors.
2. Consider switching to a heat pump
Taking out the oil boiler and replacing it with a Heat pump A very common option is, and with Boiler Upgradation Scheme Still offering a £7500 incentive, it could be a very attractive solution.
A central heating system and your home will need to be surveyed to ensure this Insulation The levels correspond to the low and slow temperatures associated with a heat pump system, and whether you install one Air source heat pump or ground source heat pump A bus grant is like an incentive.
A Cost of ground source heat pumps more than Air source heat pump To install, but slightly more efficient. A ground source heat pump requires a land area outside the home that is approximately 2 to 3 times larger than the floor area of the home, which may be an option given the rural nature of many homes that heat oil.
3. Or, consider a hybrid heating system
But what if your home just isn’t suitable for a heat pump system? The house may be a little too big, the insulation may not be good enough, the radiators may be a little undersized or even the central heating pipework may be a little on the small side.
The good news is, this might just be the kind of scenario that suits a Hybrid heat pump system. Often referred to as a bi-valent system, a hybrid heating system is one where a heat pump and Boiler Plumb in the same house.
It is interesting to consider because a hybrid system can also be set up in a variety of ways. This includes:
Use your existing boiler for ‘top-up’ heating
In this scenario, a typical hybrid system adds an oil boiler (usually a boiler already present in the home) and a heat pump to the heating system. The home’s heat load will usually be greater than the output of the heat pump, so the boiler is left in the situation to either top up heat from the heat pump, or draw from the heat pump during cooler hours or days.
Split your heating and hot water
Another version of the hybrid system is that the heat pump covers the heating of the house and the oil boiler delivers the domestic hot water. Or, alternatively, a heat pump delivers the hot water and a boiler powers the central heating.
This option would require a smaller heat pump and not its type Air source heat pump We are used to looking outside the house. Instead, this is one that is built into a water cylinder and is also known as a micro heat pump or one Exhaust air heat pump.
The micro heat pump adds about 400mm to the height of the unit, and two air ducts are attached to the top of the cylinder, one acting as an extractor fan that brings air from bathrooms, kitchens and en-suites into the heat pump to extract heat from it, before exhausting stale air outside the home. The price of an exhaust air heat pump cylinder starts at approx £2000.
4. Use an immersion heater for hot water
You can also install a simple domestic direct hot water cylinder Immersion heater To avoid having to use your oil boiler when heating oil prices are unaffordable.
If you are on an electric vehicle or Off-Peak Electric TariffThen set the heater to heat the water during the down time. These types of cylinders start from around £300 And can be plumbed into an existing heating system as long as you have room for a water cylinder in the right position.
Adding an immersion heater can also be considered a hybrid system.
5. Use plug-in electric heat sources until prices come down
Continuing on the simple heating system theme, the lowest capital cost heating systems are direct electric systems. Do you want to use a simple electric panel heater, Fan convectors or oil filled radiators The principle of direct electric heating is based on the concept of ‘total cost of ownership’ – lower capital costs but higher running costs.
This principle works if annual energy consumption is fairly low, but not much energy is used. If you assume that the average electricity price will be around 22p per kWh Then given the average efficiency of a condensing oil boiler of 90%, the price of oil would need to be £1.80 per liter before oil becomes more expensive than direct electricity.
Older, less efficient boilers will reduce these costs in comparison. If the boiler was only 70% efficient, the oil would only cost around £1.40 so it would be more expensive than the peak electricity tariff.
If you have an off-peak electric tariff, like I do, ie Electric vehicle tariff used with my heat pump, Then electric heaters can be used in a cheaper time. This is mainly a temporary solution to increase the amount of time the oil stays in your tank before you need to refill it.
If you invest in a heat pump, the capital cost, even with a bus grant, can be around £5000+, and it buys a lot of electricity. Therefore, energy consumption should be slightly higher, and a permanent long-term solution is needed.
Shop for electric heating products
Daewoo
Daewoo Branded Convector Heater 2000w – White
This simply designed convector heater has three temperature settings and can be easily moved around your home to provide heat where needed.
Dunelm
2000w 9 fin oil filled radiator
This oil-filled radiator is perfect for medium-sized rooms and can help raise your room temperature so you can use less heating oil.
6. Install infra-red heating panels
Infra-red radiant panels can also be a direct electric heating solution – but with a difference. Infra-red heating Does not heat the air because the radiant nature of the heat means it travels straight through it. Instead it heats things up.
This means you have to target the heating to heat people instead of the whole house, but you use much less energy. It’s still direct electricity, and the cost per kWh is high, but the amount you use is less.
However, infra-red heat feels different, and the system needs to be designed properly so that you have the right emitters in the right place. Many prefer it, although many also prefer it as complimentary heating where it is combined with the existing background heating. My recommendation would always be to try and experience it before committing to purchase.
And last, but certainly not least, in my personal opinion, supplemental heat doesn’t get much better than that Log burnerUnless you burn dry wood. It’s a great feature in the home and if you have a resource of wood, even an odd shape, you have free fuel. When a log burner is used, the oil boiler will work less, reducing your annual oil consumption.
If any of these Oil boiler options Do not appeal for any reason, then you can of course also turn off the heating-oil boiler, as this oil will last longer.
