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Hi Everyone,
Just looking for some comparisons. My latest oil bill was - gasp $856!!! That's a small mortgage in and of itself.
I own an older home with four bedrooms, an unfinished basement and vinyl siding. Can I get some general comparisons for what people with gas heat are paying right now a month? I'm seriously considering biting the bullet and converting, knowing that next year will be a tough one for us financially.
Any other insite is also appreciated. I already know gas heat is cleaner in general; at this point it's all about my monthly bills....
it might be cheaper to convert to gas. if your current oil burner is old and not efficient, a new one would save you in the long run. If you are going to replace the oil burner, you might want to consider gas for the simple reason is you never run out. you will pay a few thousand dollars to convert depending on how much the plumber needs to change.
There are sooo many variables here that can come in to play. When you say "older house" was it built before the energy conservation code?(No insulation or very little). Is your oil burner efficient? Have you had it maintained & clean every year? Are you using a set back temperature at night time? Those couple of degrees can save a bundle.
I would look into these couple of things before changing a system!!
I have a 3BR house that isn't insulated that great (the windows seem cheap), and my husband CRANKS the heat (drives me nuts). Our highest bill ever was $275. w/ balanced billing we pay $125/mo for the entire year, so a yearly cost of $1500
yeah I use about 900 Gallons of oil every year...5 bedroom ranch-vinyl siding-couple of bow & bay windows & a fireplace that just sucks the heat right out of it. Dont know if i would convert to gas. I feel that the gas companys will just follow suit in the year to come & start charging a bit more. Try insulating & give that burner a good tuneup.Lower the therostat down when your not home & at night. Good Luck
You will be hit with surcharges with gas heat (just like electric). This can (and will) increase from month to month depending on the price of crude oil (just like gasoline). At least with oil you price will not go up until you finish what is left in your tank. Last year winter my monthly gas heating bill was around $400 a month. I went on the budget system and had it spread out over the summer and fall months.
If your oil tank is buried underground and its old, it can be an issue. I don't think LI lets u put new buried tanks. The new thing is put it in the side of your house or IN you house. That could be a contributing factor from switching from oil to gas.
Just something to think about.
I currently have oil & analyzed this many times. There are drawbacks of either gas or oil heating. The giant bill of oil at once seems like a shocker but its not as bad in the grand scheme of things compared to gas.
If your oil tank is buried underground and its old, it can be an issue. I don't think LI lets u put new buried tanks. The new thing is put it in the side of your house or IN you house. That could be a contributing factor from switching from oil to gas.
Just something to think about.
I currently have oil & analyzed this many times. There are drawbacks of either gas or oil heating. The giant bill of oil at once seems like a shocker but its not as bad in the grand scheme of things compared to gas.
One year we got an oil contract where they agreed to freeze the price for one full year if we took out a service contract with them. That worked out very well since that winter the prices went through the roof and we got our shipments at the old spring prices.
The most you will get from the gas company is that they will give you a new, free burner if you convert from oil to gas. Now, if you needed a new burner, at all, its a good deal, since at the very least a new burner will be more efficient. However, that will not stop your bills from going up every month with the "increased costs associated with doing business", which is their new PC term for SURCHARGES.
Spoke with Keyspan today about getting gas service. If you live within 100ft of an existing gas line...then they will extend that to your home at no cost. Anything over 100ft is $65 a foot!!! Yikes. Being 1800 ft away from the nearest line I do not think I'll be converting any time soon!!!
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We've had both oil and gas
