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Posted by Bob on May 13, 2006, 4:05 pm
FrankO wrote:
> Hello all,
> First time post for this guy...
> I am in need of some advice.
> I live in the Northeast and am pondering the idea of re-tooling the
> mechanicals in the house. I now have an oil fired furnace for hot-water
> base board heat and domestic hot water. I go through roughly 1,200 gallons
> of heating oil in a 12 month period (2,600 sq ft home).
> I have done some research on the "point of use" HW heaters and am
> considering an electric type. I'd need to upgrade the electric service to
> 200 amp in order to do this ($1,500 - $2,000) plus the cost of the unit
> (approx. $650 for one sized to accommodate the whole house). Or should I
> switch to propane across the board? I have ample room for a couple of gas
> tanks/bottles in the back yard and it would be nice to cook with gas again.
> Does anyone have any experience with a switch from oil to propane? Am I
> headed in the wrong direction $$-wise? I've heard that some propane
> suppliers in the area will subsidize the cost of the equipment in order to
> get the gas sales - has anyone else heard of such a thing?
> Thank you all for any help you can give
> frank.orlando
>
> Add: @sbcglobal.net for my e-mail address
>
My house is all electric, so I can't help a lot. The only
way to compare costs is to find out how much it costs for
each type of fuel to heat the same volume of water 1 degree.
That will tell which one is the most expensive to use. Add
in conversion costs and replacement units from time to time
(i.e. electric water heaters every x years) and you will
have an idea of what you are going to be paying over the
long run. Most fuel costs follow oil sooner or later,
especially propane, so don't expect a miracle price anywhere.
If, by a "point of use" HW heater, you are referring to an
in-line type that heats the water as it is being drawn, I
have been told that they don't work all that well if the
incoming water temperature is below a certain temperature
(maybe 50-55 deg F.) which may be the case for you in the NE
(US, I presume) at least in the winter. I'm in Quebec and my
plumber said to stay away from them and I think that my
brother in Nova Scotia had one years ago and he took it out.
Things may have changed so ask lots of questions.
Bob
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