Modular Home Costs (Franklin: real estate, condo, buyers)

[wileynj]

Originally Posted by JamesBoyer

Oh, unless the home is not marketed right he would get paid a good percentage of the geothermal in selling price. Like I said, people are willing to pay for green. If you can show people the benefit, you can sell them on it. Right now, with energy costs the way they are, it is so easy to sell them on efficiency, because it just makes sence.

Going/living green is for the wealthy! We don't get too many of those out this way. Most shoppers looking to come to warren county are looking for alot of house for a little money and most could care less about whether or not it's a "green" house. I don't think he'll get a return on his investment out in the areas he's looking to build in. Just my 2 cents : )

[Jerseyt719]

I agree. Warren County is where to look for more for less, not for green. I actually saw a neat furnace, it was outside and run by feeding it wood. Then the heat comes into the house. Not a bad idea especially when everything up there seems to be oil and I know I don't want that.

[wileynj]

Originally Posted by Jerseyt719

I agree. Warren County is where to look for more for less, not for green. I actually saw a neat furnace, it was outside and run by feeding it wood. Then the heat comes into the house. Not a bad idea especially when everything up there seems to be oil and I know I don't want that.

Central Boiler . You have to check with your twp. though - see if they allow them. Some issues with them lately. Pals of mine have one and they spent $0.00 on oil last year! I'm trying to market boilers and furnaces that burn on corn kernels... wood pellets.. multiple bio fuels can be used. Not having much luck though as alot of people don't want the hassle of making sure the corn bin stays full. I like the idea that the boiler/furnace goes inside the house vs. having to trek out in the snow to reload the central boilers. And now with the price of oil dropping...it's been an even tougher sell!

[Jerseyt719]

Wiley,
Don't you think the price of oil is going to kind of keep going up over the long run? I don't know, never used it, but have family in Hunterdon county that just switched to natural gas after really exorbitant costs over the past couple of years heating their home.
What kind of issues are people having with the central boilers? I don't mind the trek so much. I have to go out with the dog anyway EVERY DAY! The ones I've seen even heat the water in your hot water tank so it saves on that too.

[wileynj]

Originally Posted by Jerseyt719

Wiley,
Don't you think the price of oil is going to kind of keep going up over the long run? I don't know, never used it, but have family in Hunterdon county that just switched to natural gas after really exorbitant costs over the past couple of years heating their home.
What kind of issues are people having with the central boilers? I don't mind the trek so much. I have to go out with the dog anyway EVERY DAY! The ones I've seen even heat the water in your hot water tank so it saves on that too.

My theory..and I have tons of them . I believe Oil will become or is becoming an obsolete choice for fueling your home / cars, etc. I also think that's why it's so expensive right now - milking the people and grabbing as much money as they can now before the next new fuel source comes out on the market. But that's just my crazy theory : )
The central boiler... emmissions issues but I believe they have corrected the issue with the new units. There's a place on 57 that sells them. You should pop in and chat with them... I'm sure they will know what twps. do and don't permit them. I looked at one for my house and then found the other units..the corn burners : ) They too heat your water and what's nice..they can be retrofitted into your existing duct work or boiler piping depending on what you have. Gives you the option of having two units - alternating fuel sources. Check them out and let me know what you think... www.cornheat.com

[Jerseyt719]

Ok, just checked it out. Something to consider, but as with anything, change is really scary.

It says 6 bushels is good for about 10 days, not sure what climate they are talking about (or I missed it). At a guesstimate of $4.00 a bushel, it would cost about $875-$900 for a year and that would be filling it every ten days with 6 bushels of corn, (would we need that much or more?). It also didn't tell me if that would include heating the home AND the water (or I missed that too). Anyway, that's a great savings over what we are paying now. I wouldn't mind having one of these added on to a wood burning central boiler, just to have an option.

What is a little leary about corn is crop production. That would be the reason I would want the wood burner too. Just can't count on mother nature to cooperate every year.

[wileynj]

Originally Posted by Jerseyt719

Ok, just checked it out. Something to consider, but as with anything, change is really scary.

It says 6 bushels is good for about 10 days, not sure what climate they are talking about (or I missed it). At a guesstimate of $4.00 a bushel, it would cost about $875-$900 for a year and that would be filling it every ten days with 6 bushels of corn, (would we need that much or more?). It also didn't tell me if that would include heating the home AND the water (or I missed that too). Anyway, that's a great savings over what we are paying now. I wouldn't mind having one of these added on to a wood burning central boiler, just to have an option.

What is a little leary about corn is crop production. That would be the reason I would want the wood burner too. Just can't count on mother nature to cooperate every year.

There's an optional attachment for the furnace for hot water. I calculated 1.4 bushels per day for my house. I have 2500 SF. So $6.00/day vs. approx. 5 to 10 gals./day for oil @ $2.50/gallon plus minus..
The nice thing about this unit... you can burn wood pellets as well. Even Cherry Pits but that's alot of cherries you have to eat first..lol : ) There's also an optional add on to the bin for the kernels or pellets... gives you another 7 bushels? I believe the feds are close to signing a biomass tax rebate of up to $2000 for this kind of unit. The units are a bit pricey... about double the cost of a conventional furnace or boiler but with the savings and if they pass the new tax deduction... should pay for itself in 1 to 2 yrs.

[Jerseyt719]

Originally Posted by wileynj

There's an optional attachment for the furnace for hot water. I calculated 1.4 bushels per day for my house. I have 2500 SF. So $6.00/day vs. approx. 5 to 10 gals./day for oil @ $2.50/gallon plus minus..
The nice thing about this unit... you can burn wood pellets as well. Even Cherry Pits but that's alot of cherries you have to eat first..lol : ) There's also an optional add on to the bin for the kernels or pellets... gives you another 7 bushels? I believe the feds are close to signing a biomass tax rebate of up to $2000 for this kind of unit. The units are a bit pricey... about double the cost of a conventional furnace or boiler but with the savings and if they pass the new tax deduction... should pay for itself in 1 to 2 yrs.

I would seriously consider this.
Now, how about another theory or option for me. I hate to cook on an electric stove. I'm sure I would still need propane or something hooked up to cook with, right. Looking for another theory - it's great that you have many of them.

[wileynj]

Originally Posted by Jerseyt719

I would seriously consider this.
Now, how about another theory or option for me. I hate to cook on an electric stove. I'm sure I would still need propane or something hooked up to cook with, right. Looking for another theory - it's great that you have many of them.

I have propane for everything and I must say..It's not bad! My budget is 311/month for 10 months out of the year and I typically have a credit at the end of the budget yr. That includes the tank for the pool as well. If you get propane ONLY for your oven... it'll be very expensive! You may want to consider propane over oil for your furnace. This way, you can use gas for cooking, heating and hot water! (as a backup to the corn burner of course).

[Jerseyt719]

$311 a month for propane?? I never thought it was that much. What are you running on it, everything (heat, hot water, cooking gas)?
I would get it as a backup to the central boiler and just use it for the stove. I really like the central boiler idea, I don't know why, but I just do. We looked at a house in Franklin Twsp that has one and I just thought it was the neatest thing. The owner says he runs it through May to get a little extra hot water time before running the propane to heat the water.
What about the tank for the pool?? Splain...