View Full Version : oil central heating
hi -- We are thinking of putting oil central heating in our house -- does anyone know who does this in wick ?? thx
Hi there heres a list on the org. with plumbers in the area.
Mind and try different companys to compare quotes
http://www.caithness-business.co.uk/category.php?cat=7
Hi, we put oil in 6 years ago past in December and haven't looked back. The plumbers that did the work were Sandy MacGregors who worked it all out on a computer programme i.e what size/type of radiator for the room and they were in and out in 3 days flat after having to lift floorboards etc. We have a 1200litre tank which does us 13/13.5 months and Simpsons Oils will set up a direct debit so you can pay monthly. We have a 2 bedroom house and it is never cold. Never had any bother with any thermosats etc. (touch wood)Cost was £3000 all inclusive but the electric heating we had previously was REALLY expensive. Reckon we have saved a tidy sum.
footie chick
25-Jan-07, 21:37
We have a 1200litre tank which does us 13/13.5 months and Simpsons Oils will set up a direct debit so you can pay monthly.
Thats the most expensive way to top up your tank. If you phone for a price and pay for it on delivery you usually save a couple of pence per litre at least. ;)
DarkAngel
25-Jan-07, 22:48
Thats what we do footie chick..pay for it after they fill up the tank! Our boiler is really getting to the last of its life now and we really needing a new one but they so blooming expensive especially after xmas and new year..We got out tank filled up with 1000 ltr and it lasted us 5 months if that..heating on whole time with this blooming boiler and also its a stone ! :~( Saving for a new boiler now!!
What do all you guys reccomend? Its a combi boiler that we are thinking of buying..any advice would be greatly appreciated!
The place I'm moving to in about 3 weeks time has oil heating as well (pretty new boiler apparently fortunately).
I've been told that there's probably only about a week's worth of oil left (which was a bit of a shock after everything else I'm having to shell out for all at once!).
Are there any places that you would specifically recommend or warn against for the oil ?
As this place has a 1200L tank I suspect that initially what with the expense of advance everything and moving costs and a load of other unwelcome surprises I might need to just get it half filled until I can save to get it properly filled. Do they do that ?
Any experience of how long a certain amount of oil usually lasts ? I just want to keep the place from being freezing. I don't mine wearing warm clothes indoors for a while. (It's a 2 bed place in a really exposed coastal location).
Thanks for any advice you can offer :)
DarkAngel
25-Jan-07, 23:10
I get my oil from simpsons..Got filled up with 1000ltr of oil in begining of January and it cost £348 I havnt used anyone else for oil as i feel simpsons are great, Maybe there will be other views on this that might help!
Thanks DarkAngel - will check them out - that doesn't sound too bad. I know I can't afford that at the moment but maybe they would deliver say 500L or so for a similar price per litre ? That I could probably run to - as long as I don't get any more nasty surprises! Think I'd rather pay up front if possible.
DarkAngel
26-Jan-07, 00:12
Yes they can fill up 500 ltr for you at the same price per litre.:D
footie chick
26-Jan-07, 10:56
Brogan Fuels last week were 31p/litre
Thanks DarkAngel & Footie_chick - will check them out as soon as I arrive. Doesn't sound too scary, at least it should tide me over until the weather gets a bit warmer.
went to see Sandy Macgregors this morning and they had a guy up after lunch measuring up -- so i could be all sorted and rid o my closed in fire in 4 weeks!!!
captain chaos
26-Jan-07, 18:42
Topped up yesterday with 900 litres from Scottish Fuels at 29.7p a litre.
The place I'm moving to in about 3 weeks time has oil heating as well (pretty new boiler apparently fortunately).
I've been told that there's probably only about a week's worth of oil left (which was a bit of a shock after everything else I'm having to shell out for all at once!).
If it had 1200 ltrs in it, you would have to stump up for the fuel in any case.
You would have to agree the inventory of the tank and the going rate, and pay the vendor prior to completion.
You didn't think you'd get it for nothing - did you??
If it had 1200 ltrs in it, you would have to stump up for the fuel in any case.
You would have to agree the inventory of the tank and the going rate, and pay the vendor prior to completion.
You didn't think you'd get it for nothing - did you??
Hi! I'm not buying, I'll be renting.
For sure I didn't expect to get a free ride, however nice that would be, but two or three weeks worth of fuel wouldn't have hurt.
I've been giving myself almost serious injury getting things packed and ready or disposed of ready for moving day (it's a major life decision) and I'll have quite a few things to deal with just with the moving house to be scouring around in a new place for heating suppliers the moment I move in.
If I were buying a place, to be honest I'd expect that the agreed sale price would specify that for the purposes of the house sale the tank should be expected to be empty and any oil remaining would effectively be a bonus, or some specific mention be made of it as ultimately a couple of hundred £'s even for a full tank is a drop in the ocean compared to a house purchase price. But then I've never been a house purchaser so I'm not up to speed on the finer details of what people charge for - I hear some people even charge for the door handles!
As I am renting, I would have felt that the simplest solution would have been for the tank to be full when I move in and I leave it full when I move out, although I'm hoping that won't be for a long time. Same as when like borrowing or hiring a vehicle.
P.S. - thanks Captain_Chaos - sounds like I'm going to need to shop around.
Hi! I'm not buying, I'll be renting.
.
Ah-hah! That wasn't mentioned in your post and I assumed that you were buying - oops!
Sorry footie chick what I should have said was that I always ask for a price when I phone and what we pay for by direct debit is always the price quoted. If there is any money overpaid at the end of the year the direct debit gets cut accordingly. We have been told by the plumbers and simpsons that we have a great sysmtem that costs us very little. Only one fill to the 1200 litre tank each 13 months or so sometimes 14 months it all depends on the weather.
Penelope Pitstop
28-Jan-07, 15:39
Sorry footie chick what I should have said was that I always ask for a price when I phone and what we pay for by direct debit is always the price quoted. If there is any money overpaid at the end of the year the direct debit gets cut accordingly. We have been told by the plumbers and simpsons that we have a great sysmtem that costs us very little. Only one fill to the 1200 litre tank each 13 months or so sometimes 14 months it all depends on the weather.
Wow ...I wish 1200 litres lasted me 13 months. You're lucky.:lol:
DarkAngel
28-Jan-07, 15:56
Sorry footie chick what I should have said was that I always ask for a price when I phone and what we pay for by direct debit is always the price quoted. If there is any money overpaid at the end of the year the direct debit gets cut accordingly. We have been told by the plumbers and simpsons that we have a great sysmtem that costs us very little. Only one fill to the 1200 litre tank each 13 months or so sometimes 14 months it all depends on the weather.
Me too I really wish it did me that long aswell..MY heating is on the whole time as i have a little one and this nights just now are so cold.:(
connieb19
28-Jan-07, 16:01
Wow ...I wish 1200 litres lasted me 13 months. You're lucky.:lol:
Me too I really wish it did me that long aswell..MY heating is on the whole time as i have a little one and this nights just now are so cold.:(
Bet you're glad youve not got to wear 3 jumpers and a balaclava to bed though.
cliffhbuber
28-Jan-07, 17:47
A fine day to all! A few coments on oil heating and energy resources. Some mentioned a 1200 litre oil tank for home heating. That is 50% larger than the average size in many parts of Canada. During an average winter, 1200 litres would last 2 months in the cold regions; perhaps, a month and a half during a cold winter. (the sun is out much in winter, and even on a -20C day, solar rays help heat a home)
Although Canada has oil aplenty, mainly with the surplus from the oil sands in Northern Alberta, we still pay world market prices which seem comparable to yours.
(In rural areas, many folks still use wood for heating, either totally or in part.)
Is there any significant use of peat in the Highlands for house heating or power? Only recently in Canada has serious study being taken to possibly use peat as a source of energy for electric power. (as opposed to coal or natural gas).
Canada has the largest deposits of peat world-wide; however, so little is used for energy, with most used for gardening purposes.
North Rhins
29-Jan-07, 19:18
We have oil fired central heating and find it quite economical. Just one word of advice if you haven’t already thought about it, take out the extended warranty, it’s worth its weight in gold. We had two days left on the original guarantee when it went bang, big time. It would have cost us over £600 to have it fixed! Best of luck.
Shop around for central heating quotes, by other plumbers, got central heating put in by a top quality plumber and shopped around he was only just under a grand labour only, cause i bought all the stuff myself, was done in a week or so.
Prices ranged from 1500 - under 1000 all labour only, plus if your putting in new boiler buy a condensing boiler, earn your money back within a couple of years. Bit expensive to start but worth it.
DarkAngel
29-Jan-07, 22:47
We were thinking of getting a Combi boiler is this the same as a condensing boiler? We have just moved into our new house recently and we had gas before, But now we have oilo, We have had 2 fills since we moved in October, The boiler is useless trying to find a decent one..:)
North Rhins
29-Jan-07, 23:22
Just one for you to consider before going for an oil fired system. The cottage next to ours has just been fully renovated. They have had an all electric system fitted. It is a traditional wet central heating system ie radiators and pipes. Before you faint at the thought of your lecky bill, the guy who fitted the system for them has one in is own house. They are supposed to be super efficient and relatively cheap to run. ‘What if we have a power cut,’ I hear you say, well if you have an oil fired system, you’re still screwed because the boiler won’t work without power. Check them out before deciding.
Penelope Pitstop
29-Jan-07, 23:42
Has anyone looked into getting one of those small wind turbines? Just wondered how the cost of installing it compared to what you could expect to get back in power.
j4bberw0ck
30-Jan-07, 00:25
There's a massive amount of information about them; try Googling "domestic wind turbine".
Beware, though, of some of the claims; >>>this one<<< (http://www.micropower.co.uk/about/turbines.html) for instance claims to save 3.2 MW p.a. or one third of a typical electricity bill by installing a 1KW generator. To be honest, if my house consumed 9.6 MW p.a. I'd be rather worried. Not to mention bankrupt. Maybe they mean 3.2 KW p.a. but then the payback time is geological ages rather than a year or seven.
The whole thing - as regards domestic generators - needs treating with a healthy degree of scepticism. You'd have thought they could get their website right, at least.
If you want to run your household on 12v DC, though, it's cheap and easy to set up a genny.
Naefearjustbeer
30-Jan-07, 12:04
Sorry footie chick what I should have said was that I always ask for a price when I phone and what we pay for by direct debit is always the price quoted. If there is any money overpaid at the end of the year the direct debit gets cut accordingly. We have been told by the plumbers and simpsons that we have a great sysmtem that costs us very little. Only one fill to the 1200 litre tank each 13 months or so sometimes 14 months it all depends on the weather.
Are you in a modern house we use way more oil than that in 6 months.
Naefearjustbeer
30-Jan-07, 12:07
Just one for you to consider before going for an oil fired system. The cottage next to ours has just been fully renovated. They have had an all electric system fitted. It is a traditional wet central heating system ie radiators and pipes. Before you faint at the thought of your lecky bill, the guy who fitted the system for them has one in is own house. They are supposed to be super efficient and relatively cheap to run. ‘What if we have a power cut,’ I hear you say, well if you have an oil fired system, you’re still screwed because the boiler won’t work without power. Check them out before deciding.
We have a small petrol generator in the garage that has enough power to keep the fridge, freezer, our central heating and some energy efficient lights running through any power cuts. There is no way that it could run an electric boiler.
DarkAngel
30-Jan-07, 12:29
well 1000 ltr oil lasted us from Mid October til Jan..We needed another fill beging of January. Ive just recently movedd to oil central heating and i thought i was using far too much and our biler is just so Not energy efficiant! :roll:
Naefearjustbeer
30-Jan-07, 17:23
During the winter we go through a lot of oil heating the house. We have to heat it during the day as the wife and bairns are at home most days. For folk that work they will save a bit by switching it off during the day. We have a 2500 litre tank and it gets filled a couple of times a year. Our boiler was only installed 5 years ago so is fairly modern but maybe not as efficient as a new one. The main problem I think is the fact that we are in a old house with no cavity wall insulation. The loft has about 8-10 inches of insulation in it so I dont think that is a problem.
What we do as regaurd to oil is put money away each month into our own bank then when we need oil phone around to get the best price. Sometimes there has been as much as 3p a litre difference between suppliers. Not much you maythink but when you are ordering 2000 litres it is worthwhile saving.
We were thinking of getting a Combi boiler is this the same as a condensing boiler? We have just moved into our new house recently and we had gas before, But now we have oilo, We have had 2 fills since we moved in October, The boiler is useless trying to find a decent one..:)
These are not the same, a combi boiler heats your cental heating and your hot water at the same time, it's good cause it save money by heating them at the same time, and the alternate is a system boiler which heats the hot water and radiators at seperate times, this is good just incase their is a problem on one cicuit i.e the radiator line you still have hot water and vice versa, but on a combi system if one goes they bith go.
condensing boiler is about the efficentcy of the boiler.
DarkAngel
30-Jan-07, 22:23
These are not the same, a combi boiler heats your cental heating and your hot water at the same time, it's good cause it save money by heating them at the same time, and the alternate is a system boiler which heats the hot water and radiators at seperate times, this is good just incase their is a problem on one cicuit i.e the radiator line you still have hot water and vice versa, but on a combi system if one goes they bith go.
condensing boiler is about the efficentcy of the boiler.
Thanx for that info gpwicks, We are seriously thinking about getting a New boiler soon as we aint really getting hot water..Infact we get one bath full of water per day thats it at the moment..I never had this when we were on Gas central heating..All this oil is new to me...Have to switch Hot water on and Heating on at same time just to get the boiler to work..Think i might get someone til come and look at it. Does anyone know who to call?
Naefearjustbeer
30-Jan-07, 22:24
I may be wrong but I thought a combi boiler was one that ony heated your water when you needed it so you do not have a hot water storage tank. Ie you turn the hot tap on and the boiler starts up and heats the water as it runs turn the tap off and the boiler stops heating. I still think you still have a separate timer/thermostat for your radiators. A condensing boiler works differently in the fact that it uses some of the waste heat that would normally go out the flue to make it more efficient. These boilers do cost more to purchase but are cheaper in the running costs.
As for only getting one tank of hot water a day that will depend on how your central heating contoller works and how it has been set up. With ours we have the timer set up to heat the water in the morning and again in the evening so we have hot water for the bath. We can set up different times each day if we wish. or we can switch it on full time or select a 1 hour boost whenever we want. The radiators have the same options and we have that set differently to our hot water demands.
Nope, thats a system boiler your thinking of.
the best oil boilers going are a grant vortex and a boulter boulderus and gas is worceter bosch.
Spoke to the guys in William Wilson in thurso and got all the info before i got my house done.
Naefearjustbeer
30-Jan-07, 22:46
I didnt trust my memory as it has been 5 years since I did my research so Idid a quick google search. I was correct a combi boiler does away with your hot water storage tank.
Quote
Combination boilers or "Combis" are a particularly attractive form of heating because they dispense with the need for the hot water cylinder in the airing cupboard, and also the large cold water cistern ("tank") plus small header cistern in the loft which are otherwise needed in conventional vented heating systems. All the major components are housed in one unit which makes them very convenient to the installer. They are especially suitable for smaller households with undemanding lifestyles. They are less suited to larger households although the very latest models seem more capable than their recent predecessors
end Quote
copied from this page
http://www.diyfaq.org.uk/plumbing/combi.html
Lots of really handy info on that site well worth a look I have been browsing through a few of the sections.
The best thing to do is get rid of the combi and fit a system boiler and a pressurised hot water cylinder like a premier plus/megalfo just cause it gets rid of the small header tank and cold water storage in the loft(making more space) also the copper cylinder in the cupboard.
bit more work but better i think
Naefearjustbeer
30-Jan-07, 23:58
Have to switch Hot water on and Heating on at same time just to get the boiler to work..
I think my parents boiler is like that If the heating is on then the hot water must be on too. However they are able to have hot water only selected. I think it is a potterton boiler and controls. I was not impressed with controller on it considering in was only installed a few months ago. Seems to be a backwards step compared to what we have. They asked me to have a look as they were struggling to get it set up. The best thing to do is get a plimber to come round and have a look at what you have and explain what you want. If you get a good plumber they should keep you right. We were happy with the one we used. It was Jim Sangster from Halkirk.
DarkAngel
31-Jan-07, 09:12
Thanc for all the info..We are going to get a plumber to come and have a look at it sometime as its getting on our nerves now lol.
Thanx again for all yer help!:)
I may be wrong but I thought a combi boiler was one that ony heated your water when you needed it so you do not have a hot water storage tank. Ie you turn the hot tap on and the boiler starts up and heats the water as it runs turn the tap off and the boiler stops heating. I still think you still have a separate timer/thermostat for your radiators. A condensing boiler works differently in the fact that it uses some of the waste heat that would normally go out the flue to make it more efficient. These boilers do cost more to purchase but are cheaper in the running costs.
As for only getting one tank of hot water a day that will depend on how your central heating contoller works and how it has been set up. With ours we have the timer set up to heat the water in the morning and again in the evening so we have hot water for the bath. We can set up different times each day if we wish. or we can switch it on full time or select a 1 hour boost whenever we want. The radiators have the same options and we have that set differently to our hot water demands.
You are right with what you have said. A combi boiler provides instaneous hot water and gets you rid of the dirty hot water tank. A condensing boiler recovers parts of the waste heat that would go out of the flue otherwise. A nice condensing combi boiler might very well be the answer to your heating needs. Check this out: http://www.boilers.org.uk/
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.