Ok here is the short short version. Longer version and Meet will happen sometime this summer.

Buying a house and renovating it well THE WHOLE THING basically.

It right now has a furnace with baseboard heating running off oil heat. 81% efficient base off last checkup who knows how long ago. I am wondering anybody switched over to Propane with the super high efficiency heaters because it will save money?

I know it's super efficient but gallon for gallon propane heats less but it's so much more advanced and you don't have to spend the $200 a year to have it serviced!

I am going to put in a smaller tank now so I can pipe out to the dryer and stove. Later I will probably put in a fire place(propane) and possibly the furnace. I will pipe with large enough line to service it all and insert in T joints so I can do those things later.

Thoughts on if you would switch over from OIL to Propane? I can't get Natural Gas as it's not on the street or I would be doing it in a heart beat.

 

Jim I think, (and I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong ) that heating with propane is more expensive than oil or gas, but likely less expensive than using electricity.

IF you are a heating customer, you'll get a better price on the propane than if you just use it for cooking and a clothes dryer (we used to do that), but I still think it's kind of pricey.

Ask for some data before you make the switch!

 

Jim, look into the dual fuel furnaces that burn wood and oil. When you are home, you can load up with wood. When you are gone, the oil kicks in.

That said, I'd carefully compare the cost of the new system to the savings and figure out how long it will take for the upgrade to pay for itself.

 

wish i did before i purchased the new burner.. although they are a little more $$$ than what i paid for oil my burner and less efficient

with wood - you have to understand that it's a lot more work than just turning the dial - plus the cost of cord wood is still crazy if you don't process it yourself (still around $300.00 a cord cut split and delivered

 

Is it Hot water or forced air with that oil system? I also like Bills idea of dual fuel as where I used to live in the hills of CT it was the best option because we could just cut down 2-3 trees a year in our own yard and heat the house in the winter.

Yeah spoiled with Natural Gas right now as well.

 

you must have huge trees in CT

 

If you figure it out the unit cost per BTU for oil and gas you will find that they track each other fairly well.

The upside to having a propane service is you can have a gas stove and as you mentioned the dryer which is much more efficient than electric.

Oil has a much higher BTU output when burning so can deliver a lot more heat quickly.

 

The problem is that oil price is constant no matter how much you buy. LPG can change drastically in price depending on the size of the tank and how much you go through. In my condo, we have 2 large LPG tanks, which are piped and metered to each of the 16 units. We're not a huge user, but the price I pay per gallon is about HALF of what my parents pay per gallon for their 5' tall bottle of LPG. (They're 3 towns over, so they're not in a different market, either)

So there's a bit of a catch 22 with propane - the price/gallon can change depending on how big of a user you are.

I'd say keep the oil furnace until you need a significant repair. Then scrap it for propane. But I'd call for prices and do a lot of math first.