[happyinCT]

We're looking to buy a home that has oil heat and an electric stove. I prefer cooking with natural gas, but we've never been through the conversion process. The area the home is in cannot be converted to natural gas heat, but maybe we can get the stove converted over. Anyone been through this?

[Mike 75]

Really depends on the layout. We thought about doing it, and we were told to wait until we remodel the kitchen, as running the gas line to the range would require us to rip up the floor.

[willow wind]

You can't convert the stove- you have to go out and buy a new gas stove. Then you call your local propane dealer, have them come over, look at your house, the location of the stove, where they can put the propane tank and then they'll give you a quote for the cost. They do the connections .

They will also lease/ rent you a propane tank and take care of filling it. It is sized for what you're using it for. It's not going to be a little BBQ grill size tank that you take and fill up on your own. It's a tall, cylindrical tank.

This is not a do-it yourself project or do it yourself maintenance. But it's also no big deal. Plenty of people do this.

[Stylo]

If you can't get natural gas for heat, you can't get it for your stove either.

You need a whole new stove that's made for propane.

Then you'd get a liquid propane tank installed at your house, which would store your fuel.

It's not a small job.

[andthentherewere3]

We did it 4-5 years ago. You'll need a propane gas stove, and a plumber. The plumber ran the lines for us under the basement and connected to the gas stove in the kitchen. He came up under the stove or through the wall behind it, so the floor didn't have to be ripped out. It was around $1000 plus the cost of the stove. It could be more depending on the layout of your kitchen, ours was a really simple job. The first plumber wanted to use all copper piping, for an astronomical price, but you don't need copper.

For the propane tank, I bought a gently used one from a local propane company. It was less than $300 with installation, and looked brand new. We don't pay any leasing fees for it, and the propane company comes out twice a year and refills it, which costs us around $50 each time. I called two propane companies, one was much more expensive than the other, so research your options. You will also need to get a permit from the town for the work, they will want to come out and be sure it's done properly, the tank outside is far enough away from windows etc.

[Meglion]

Thanks for this thread. My spouse and I are looking at a house on a street that does not have a gas line, and neither of us is crazy about oil. Is it feasible to use propane for not only the stove, but the heat and hot water as well? Is it much more expensive than natural gas? Are there any other down-sides or concerns we should consider?

[Mike 75]

Originally Posted by Meglion

Thanks for this thread. My spouse and I are looking at a house on a street that does not have a gas line, and neither of us is crazy about oil. Is it feasible to use propane for not only the stove, but the heat and hot water as well? Is it much more expensive than natural gas? Are there any other down-sides or concerns we should consider?

Yes. It can be a little complicated. You need to decide what size tank to get, whether you want it above ground or buried, where to put it, and whether you want to buy it or rent it. You will also need various approvals from the town, such as zoning, building permits, wetlands etc. There are also safety restrictions on where you can place the tank (needs to be so many feet from an igniton source, windows, etc.) And you need to run the line to the house. So there may only be certain areas of your property that are suitable for the tank.

Of course, there are safety concerns with propane like with nat gas.

For heating, you will want a 500 or 1000 gallon tank. If you want to bury it, you will typically buy the tank. If you go above ground, you can chose to buy or rent.

We put a generator in and looked into a 500 gallon buried tank and the all in price for the tank and the digging was about $4k. We went the above ground route and rented 3 100 gallon tanks for $225/year. When we replace our oil furnance, we will probably replace it with a propane one and at that time install a buried 1000 gallon tank.

[patsy0701]

I am interested in switching from cooking with propane to electric .How much would it cost to change over and how involved is it.

[NewJeffCT]

Originally Posted by patsy0701

I am interested in switching from cooking with propane to electric .How much would it cost to change over and how involved is it.

Probably much easier than the reverse. You'd just need to replace the propane oven/stove with an electric one. You might want to check on the voltage requirements for the stove, but I think that's more of a concern with an electric washer & dryer than a stove.

[westwing]

you need to bury a propane tank to use propane if you are not in the natural gas zone. Gonna be expensive, dig a hole alone will cost around $3500 from what I heard.

by the way, what's the good about the gas stove compare to electric/induction? because I wanna do reverse conversion , not mentioning propane jumped from $3 something to $5 in a year.