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the program is pretty amazing. might as well take advantage of it if it's there. i'm using a contractor called "Home Energy Matters" a bit further northwest of me. they have been good in the planning, but the work is yet to be done.
i won't save as much as you guys switching from oil, but it still makes sense to replace the older boiler with a 0% loan now. i imagine if i sell in 10 years, a 31 year old boiler will be a blemish, while a 10 year old one will be a selling point.
i'm really hoping the tankless doesn't disappoint me. i don't think it's necessarily worth the money, but it pushed me over the hump and got me an extra $1,000 rebate. so, spend $2800, get $1,000 back...and it's more efficient.
anyone wanna buy a used gas water tank?
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Bradykp,
Did you use The Kinnelon or Pequannock branch of "Home Energy Matters"? I plan on having something done this summer. I am glad the job and work was all successfully completed.
Bill
I have a oil fired hot water heater and would like to change it to natural gas,is the a good idea and is it worth it? My tank is only 5 to 7 yrs old?Also how would this be for my two family home and my four unit apt building? I was looking at the eternal 19.5 gallon per min hot water heaters for my apt buildings??
I am so confused on which way to go? Natural gas is going to be coming to my area this spring!!
Thank you for any suggestions.
The thread is a little old, but my parents did the conversion back just before the holidays. They went with Hutchinson in South Jersey (Cherry Hill area), but I believe Hutchinson has a pretty big service area in the state. They went with the state energy program and had their old oil furnace and tank removed and replaced with a new gas system. They also had the central AC replaced with a more efficient model and had some extensive insulation work done on the house. Overall, they ended up spending about $8,000 themselves after all the rebates and opted for the 10 year 0% interest financing. They are paying around $66 a month, but believe that they will save enough per year to cut the actual cost by about half. They also enjoy the fact that everything is warrantied and under a service contract that was all included.
NJGoat...
can you clarify the total costs...
Was that 8k out of pocket the financed cost, or was it 8k + financed?
I ask because I am getting estimates right now with a very similar scenario. First estimate came in and it was 21,000 (3k higher than what the sales guy talked to me about) and on top of that... the quoted system was a lower grade system than what he was pitching to me. (I just sent him an email to clarify the changes.)
I havent called hutchinson yet.. maybe I will based on this.
I ask because I am getting estimates right now with a very similar scenario. First estimate came in and it was 21,000 (3k higher than what the sales guy talked to me about) and on top of that... the quoted system was a lower grade system than what he was pitching to me. (I just sent him an email to clarify the changes.)
I havent called hutchinson yet.. maybe I will based on this.
I'm not sure what my parents total cost was, but they spent nothing out of their own pocket and financed the $8k. So it was...
$8k financed + value of rebates = total cost of conversion
I want to say that they got more than $5k in rebates though, I think they got around $6,500. That was also for more than just the cost of the conversion as it included insulation work as well. One thing that I should mention though is that their oil tank was not underground. Their's was located in their basement, so there were no issues with having to dig it up, test the soil, fill in the hole, etc. The tank was just drained and then literally carried out of the basement through the access doors they have and dropped on a truck.
I'm not sure what my parents total cost was, but they spent nothing out of their own pocket and financed the $8k. So it was...
$8k financed + value of rebates = total cost of conversion
I want to say that they got more than $5k in rebates though, I think they got around $6,500. That was also for more than just the cost of the conversion as it included insulation work as well. One thing that I should mention though is that their oil tank was not underground. Their's was located in their basement, so there were no issues with having to dig it up, test the soil, fill in the hole, etc. The tank was just drained and then literally carried out of the basement through the access doors they have and dropped on a truck.
We have an above ground tank in the basement also.. in fact its only about 4 years old, so should be a piece of cake to remove with no leak risks
We are also being pitched on the "Air sealing" insulation, which when I read the online docs, seems it is a must for qualifying for the program.
Our quote also includes new hot water heater (currently electric and want to switch to high eff gas of course).
So, similar to buying a car there are a wide variety of system levels.... but it sounds like the system they bought was 10k less than what I was just quoted. Our house is not large. Probably under 1,600 sq ft. Small split level.
We're also a conversion from oil.... so not sure if adding the check valve and hot water heater adds 10k to the cost.
Plus they want another 1,400 on top of it all to split the upstairs hallway return into 3 lines from each bedroom.
Well sounds like its worth it for me to check out Hutchinson.
(I already have a few lined up.. whats one more. hah)
We have an above ground tank in the basement also.. in fact its only about 4 years old, so should be a piece of cake to remove with no leak risks
We are also being pitched on the "Air sealing" insulation, which when I read the online docs, seems it is a must for qualifying for the program.
Our quote also includes new hot water heater (currently electric and want to switch to high eff gas of course).
So, similar to buying a car there are a wide variety of system levels.... but it sounds like the system they bought was 10k less than what I was just quoted. Our house is not large. Probably under 1,600 sq ft. Small split level.
We're also a conversion from oil.... so not sure if adding the check valve and hot water heater adds 10k to the cost.
Plus they want another 1,400 on top of it all to split the upstairs hallway return into 3 lines from each bedroom.
Well sounds like its worth it for me to check out Hutchinson.
(I already have a few lined up.. whats one more. hah)
Thanks!
Mark
No problem Mark. My parents had the air sealing done as well and feel that made a major difference in their house. It seems one major difference may have been that my parents already had an existing gas hot water heater with existing gas service. Their existing gas service was sufficient and the furnace and hot water heater are only about 6 feet away from each other. Basically, they didn't have to run any gas lines for their conversion, other than a single section of pipe inside the house. If your quote is including adding gas service, it could easily be several thousand higher. I wish I could say what kind of system they had installed, but it wasn't one of the major brands.
Personally, I am having the energy audit done after this winter. I don't have any conversions to do, but my system is a 20 year old Trane XE 1000 AC with a Trane XE 90 furnace. It was decent stuff in 1993, but is starting to show it's age. The system is also a little undersized for our house as we have what was the largest floorplan and the original owner opted for the extended size, plus the optional addition. It makes our house about 15% bigger than any other in the development. Problem is, they just used the standard size of the "high efficiency" units that they were putting in at the time.
I'm hoping we can get it done for a good price with rebates, get the financing to have a low payment and avoid having to deal with a major failure down the line which would end in a large cash outlay. Let me know how your experience goes and who you ultimately end up using.
Being that I was the one that started this thread, I thought it would be appropiate to comment on the success of my oil to gas conversion. In a word, GREAT! My only regret is that I waited years to long to make the change over. My advice is not to wait years to convert, just have it done. No more odor in the house, and no more $700 to $800 a month fill up costs. We love it.
Being that I was the one that started this thread, I thought it would be appropiate to comment on the success of my oil to gas conversion. In a word, GREAT! ... We love it.
Awesome! Congratulations!
I commented here too.. asking about details and pricing
So here is my update.
We are signed, sealed... and waiting on "deliver"
Approved for the 10k 0% loan
Picked a heating system, and a contractor.
All is go with South Jersey Gas to run new gas line. But this is probably the biggest delay as the frigid weather is impacting their schedule.
In total had FIVE contractors come out... two hitting over $20,000
We ended up going with an Amana system.
their top of the line Air/Heat pump 17.5 seer
their top of the line gas furnace 96%
Air Sealing (which is a required component)
Keeping existing 4yr old water heater (electric!). Oddly the state rates it higher than gas, based on efficiency, so keeping this ensures we are at the max rebate level. I can always swap out later.... or maybe we add solar. :-)
The "Dual Fuel/Hybrid" approach seems great for North East...
Its all heat pump warming the house above 35-40 degrees out when its most economical, and then the gas kicks on when colder. Its a VERY economical way of heating in the northeast.
The Amana systems have gotten beaten up in the internet... but seems that those problems are past them. full 10yr parts and labor warranty to cover the risks.
So the awesome news.. is that the whole package is about $14,800, and THEN apply the $5,000 rebate and it puts us under the $10,000 we were approved for.
So we get a new, state of the art system... for nothing down.
An added HUGE kicker, is a neighbor 3 doors down had the same system installed 18-24 mos ago, same contractor.. and when I spoke to the neighbor he RAVED about everything, including his very small utility bill.
I dont think the install will happen until early March, just as the frigid cold is winding down, but I'll add a post-install post.
BTW.. if you are searching in here because you are considering taking advantage of this program, you need to do it now as i am told the program has not been extended past the next few months. but check the NJ Clean Energy site of course.
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