Boilers

Archive for July, 2009

Does it take more gas to reheat my house or keep it at a constant temp all the time.

There’s a pretty good article on this here:
http://www.grist.org/advice/ask/2008/12/03/index.html

Bottom line is that it isn’t simple at all.

Make sure to read the comments, too. There’s good discussion on boilers there.

Depends where you get your electric from.
electricity is a primium/secondary energy source, mostly produced from burning gas or other fossil fuel.

so it is a much less efficient & much more costly to use electric to produce heat than burning gas.

Unless… you use a heat pump, especially ground source or water systems. These are currently quite expensive to install.

You could buy cheaper "off-peak" from the base load nuclear generating capacity, but then you need a heat store to keep it thorugh the day ie night storage radiators.

Can I add a wood burning stove as a supplemental (not replacement) boiler to an oil fired (sealed) central heating system. I would get a professional to do the work; it’s not a DIY project!
Can I add a wood burning stove as a supplemental (not replacement) boiler to an oil fired (sealed) central heating system. I would get a professional to do the work; it’s not a DIY project! – Neutralizer will not work on a sealed central heating system.(Dunsley’s website). Fuel oil costs about 20€per day in winter, and we tend to use the whole house rather than just one room; the furnace cannot be "swapped out" without major works so a supplemental burner is ideal. We have out own forest, so wood is there for teh cost of cutting.

Yes of course it can be done, however I suggest that you don’t do it .
When a boiler is added to any fire, it saps the heat out of it, and the benefits are lost, A cheerful fire delivering heat directly at you is very comforting.
When I was plumbing in the eighties, I got a call from a person who had water pouring out of her hearth on to the floor , I told her to put out the fire, as her back boiler had failed. On examination I discovered that the pipework was lead , I disconnected the fittings at the hot cylinder and drilled a small hole in the back boiler so that the water could drain . I said that she could light a fire immediately, as the boiler was now full of air, and would pose no danger.
I received a call several weeks later , and she said……..I don’t understand what you did to my fire, but whatever it was I wish you had done it 30 years earlier, as the fire has never been so hot, and I now have a good warm room.
I posted this as an analogy to indicate trhat you should never add a boiler to a fire.
FOOTNOTE
It’s a very expensive option joining up an extra boiler to an existing system.