Tips for a first-time oil heat user?

[felicitev21]

Phew, oil for heat and hot water. Say hello to a second mortgage. I had that in my condo for two years, one of the best days of my life was when they converted it to natural gas. I relied on electric heaters, lots of blankets, and I wouldn't turn the heat on unless it was like 30 degrees out or less. Having drafty doors or windows can be a big problem, so I'd make sure that they are insulated properly.

[AndrewCarnegie]

Is your heat distributed via hot air or radiators or baseboard? One of our houses had radiators and another baseboard and both had to be bled every year or more to get the air out of the lines otherwise the heat does not circulate. One of our apartments had the cast iron radiators and they were always cold despite cranking up the heat. I had no idea that the radiators had to be bled and spent the coldest winter of my life there.

[PrincessoftheCape]

Originally Posted by Morris Wanchuk

Buy a wood stove

This. No, really. Wood stoves can be extremely efficient, especially if combined with fans to circulate the heat. My parents in Maine have oil, but they use their wood stove almost exclusively to heat a 2,000+ square foot house. A couple of cords will get them through an entire winter. My guess is the stove would pay for itself in a couple of years.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by AndrewCarnegie

Is your heat distributed via hot air or radiators or baseboard? One of our houses had radiators and another baseboard and both had to be bled every year or more to get the air out of the lines otherwise the heat does not circulate. One of our apartments had the cast iron radiators and they were always cold despite cranking up the heat. I had no idea that the radiators had to be bled and spent the coldest winter of my life there.

Interesting. I've never heard of that before for hot water baseboards. I recently saw a house where all the water in the radiator system had been replaced with anti-freeze. It causes less corrosion in the metal components of the system and should your heat fail it will freeze at a much lower temperature so less likely to cause a burst pipe.

[Newdaawn]

If your furnace/boiler/burner is over 20 years old, you might look into replacing it for a more efficient system. By all means have it cleaned and checked once a year. Try to get used to setting your thermostat at 68 as you will burn less fuel and be healthier.