Oil fired central heating...anyone have it?

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Cg_Girl

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As title really,do any of you have oil heating, my village i've just moved to doesn't have gas, I phoned the local oil supplier who do village discounts, the minimum delivery is 500 litres @approx £300:eek::eek:, according to the suppliers the previous old couple used to get this amount every 2 or 3 months, now i know oil is costly but that makes it god damn scary..

Does anyone else have it and can give me an idea as to whats normal/average....It's not on much during the day when kids are at school and an engineer has said keeping it on constant but using the thermostat is more cost efficient than letting the house go totally cold and then firing up...

I think buying more jumpers may be an idea:lol:
 
We used about 1800 litres per annum. 3 bedroom bungalow. At work, during the day, so only on at night and turned off as soon as the wife has her back turned :lol:
Wooly jumpers are a solid investment :D
 
Buy as much as you can in the Summer Trace, it's cheaper and shop around, don't just try local as you'd be surprised how prices per litre can vary between suppliers.
 
You can get an add on doodad that let's you use reclaimed oil. Reduces running costs massively.

Also make sure tank is secure as oil theft is common.
 
Try Boilerjuice for the cheapest local quotes. I live out in the wilds of Somerset where piped gas isn't an option. Asking local suppliers if they can beat other quotes can get the price down a bit. My last top-up (at the start of October) was £309.05 for 500L, including VAT & delivery.
 
Do shop around and get at least 3 quotes. We had 600 litres delivered last week to top up a 1250 litre tank, at a cost of 55p per litre, plus Vat. It also pays to keep an eye on the fluctuation in the price of oil.

We are retired and live in a detached bungalow, which was built in 2001, so is properly insulated, although, I did add extra insulation to the roof-space in 2011. Our annual usage is about 1250 litres. I would also recommend getting the boiler serviced annually, it will make a difference to the oil consumption and its efficiency.

People who use gas often complain about the price they pay, but at least they don't have to fork out several hundreds of pounds upfront, unlike us oil burners.:(
 
I had oil at my old house from 1996-2010. When I sold up and moved one of my non-negotiable criteria for my new home was "must have mains gas".

People complain like fury about a 8% hike in gas prices and it makes the lead item on the 6pm news. I used to listen to all the complaining and think "only 8%, I wish!" The price is massively volatile but the trend has been hugely upwards in the last decade.

I had a 4 bed bungalow and was using a little over 1000 litres/year, however it was just one of me - when it was four of us that use doubled. I had properly insulated the loft though and the extension part was heated with night storage radiators, so oil was only heating effectively a 3 bed home. The problems with it include lead times on deliveries, which are always longest if you have run out in the depths of winter ;) It's not easy to check the level on the tank when you have to dip it and are never at home in daylight in the winter ...

If the tank fails and dumps its load in the garden the environment agency will charge you a huge amount for the clean up / pollution of the water course. Phoning around umpteen suppliers that don't put their prices online drains the will to live (the aggregation sites are not cheapest).

I recommend moving to a house with mains gas ;) I would never willingly live with oil fired heating again.
 
jon ryan said:
Try Boilerjuice for the cheapest local quotes. I live out in the wilds of Somerset where piped gas isn't an option. Asking local suppliers if they can beat other quotes can get the price down a bit. My last top-up (at the start of October) was £309.05 for 500L, including VAT & delivery.
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Thanks for that i shall certainly look at check out prices, the local one to me just quoted £298 for 500L so i can't see me getting it all that much cheaper, looking at what you paid....Do you just put money aside for it or do direct D?....that works out to close on £120 a month as they want to work on previous peoples usuage, that's alot!

CraigyBoy86 said:
What about a wood burning stove?
http://www.woodburningstoves.co.uk/...rning-stoves-over-other-types-of-heating.html
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Ideally yes but it's not an owned house...it's been marked as unsafe due to new legislations or something so maybe in the next year or so it's going to change to some strange new eco friendly burning wood chips or something..

killwilly said:
Do shop around and get at least 3 quotes. We had 600 litres delivered last week to top up a 1250 litre tank, at a cost of 55p per litre, plus Vat. It also pays to keep an eye on the fluctuation in the price of oil.

We are retired and live in a detached bungalow, which was built in 2001, so is properly insulated, although, I did add extra insulation to the roof-space in 2011. Our annual usage is about 1250 litres. I would also recommend getting the boiler serviced annually, it will make a difference to the oil consumption and its efficiency.

People who use gas often complain about the price they pay, but at least they don't have to fork out several hundreds of pounds upfront, unlike us oil burners.:(
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Yeah i agree, gas/elec is gettting expensive but this is just silly prices, plus the paying up front is a nightmare
 
Put some money aside for oil. That way you can choose your supplier and pick the cheapest quote. Remember that you will use far more in the colder months. Turn off radiators in rooms you don't use as much - that is, don't keep the bedrooms warm during the day time. Get into the habit of turning the radiators off and closing doors. The advantage of 'pay as you go' is that there is no standing charge, and the supplier doesn't get to hold a chunk of your money. We use around 1,500L PA for a decent sized 3 bedroom house built in the 1930s.
 
If you've rented somewhere without mains gas I'd move somewhere else! If the wood burning stove can't be used I'd be onto the agent to get the landlord to fix it. Plus make sure the oil boiler has been serviced and has proof of same.
 
We use around 1800 litres a year where we are and in Wales oil is even more expensive. We have a large house and underfloor heating as well.

Initially it is hard, but if you don't have the money up front, put a bit away each month and buy as much of your oil in the summer.

One advantage of running oil is we can take advantage of cheaper summer prices. Gas customers always get price hikes just before winter and have to pay winter prices.

Keep the boiler maintained to keep oil consumption in check.

Have a look at boilerjuice for your area, but we found them massively expensive with long lead times and almost 12p/ litre more for emergency deliveries.

We've always got the best price locally, delivery is normally within a day or two and the invoice us so what we order only has to be paid a month later.
 
We use around 800 Litres per year (5 bedroom semi detached cottage) - that's when you include the log fire and the constant task of cutting new trees down every year to stock up for the following years ahead :D
If you would like cheaper than Boilerjuice, get in touch with WPHeating, they're fantastic, quick and cheap, not sure what their delivery area is but generally they cover most of the UK. It really does depend on how you use your heating, don't be fooled by the cleaner high spec oils, they just have slow burning additives that make no difference in the long run. And just keep the house warm, as long as the walls absorb enough heat that will radiate back into the house, our cottage is 317 years old this year so we have next to no insulation - apart from the cob walls being 3 foot thick it doesn't make too much of a difference! We've just gone over the windows with new draft excluder but I'm seriously contemplating the idea of secondary glazing (house is listed so we can't go double glazed)
Don't forget to ask about a heating budget plan aswell, top up £50 a month until you're in credit and they'll deliver when required etc :)
 
I must admit i've only been here a couple of weeks and the cost has scared me in making sure doors get closed, thermostat is low etc...

I don't really want to do a heating plan as yet because they want to base it on previous peoples usage and that works out to £120 a month...i have a little bit of oil in there so hopefully i can work out roughly what i'm using when that runs out and how long my own delivery lasts.... checking isn't so bad i have a clear stick thingy on the outside..

@Flightphoto your usage is quite low compared to some and the size and age of your cottage!
 
You mustn't let the oil run out completely! Get 500 litres ordered now from wherever is cheapest and then work out what you are using if you are going to stay there. Oil prices rocket at this time of year so if you wait too long to 'save money' you'll find it could easily cost you another £50 for the same 500 litres. Just order the 500 and see how long 80% of it lasts and work from there.

The £120 a month options seems reasonable. It's best to over pay and not use the oil than find you run out in the middle of winter and you don't have the money for the minimum 500 litres. You will probably spend that over the winter to be honest.
 
As above...don't run out otherwise you'll airlock the oil line (and maybe pull dirt/sludge/grit) into it and when the tank is refilled the line will need to be bled through the oil pump on the boiler...and...my call out charges are VERY expensive :lol:
 
We have it. Gone from an old Oil Fired stove thing that only heated that room and the hot water to a new combi boiler that does everything and that costs about 50% to run versus the old stove. There's too many variable to say whether or not it'll be worth it for you, insulation in the house, lagged pipes and distance of runs, how hot you actually want the house to be....
 
srichards said:
You mustn't let the oil run out completely! Get 500 litres ordered now from wherever is cheapest and then work out what you are using if you are going to stay there. Oil prices rocket at this time of year so if you wait too long to 'save money' you'll find it could easily cost you another £50 for the same 500 litres. Just order the 500 and see how long 80% of it lasts and work from there.

The £120 a month options seems reasonable. It's best to over pay and not use the oil than find you run out in the middle of winter and you don't have the money for the minimum 500 litres. You will probably spend that over the winter to be honest.
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Ok i do get what you are saying, my problem is i didn't know it was an oil property and i don't have £300 to buy any, the oil guy reckons there was/is about 400L in there and has given me a rough guide as to when to fill.... if it gives me just a few weeks, i know in relation to prices then going up is pants but i really don't have much choice...

Martyn D said:
As above...don't run out otherwise you'll airlock the oil line (and maybe pull dirt/sludge/grit) into it and when the tank is refilled the line will need to be bled through the oil pump on the boiler...and...my call out charges are VERY expensive :lol:
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:lol::lol: oi mates rates!!.. what do you do?
 
How did you find out about the property? Did it not say anywhere it was oil fired heating? If it didn't and you agreed to moving in without knowing this then I'd try and negotiate a discount on the rent over winter to cover the difference. Had you known it was oil I'm assuming you would have never agreed to move in?

There should also be an EPC for the property which should show you the likely running costs of heating it.

Heating plan is still your best plan for now. It's expensive but £120 is much less than £300!
 
@srichards i guess i'm not making sense and i didn't really want to go into to much detail on here.... i didn't have a choice as is it's a council/housing property, my youngest son's father when we split agreed to be my guarantor on private rented property, but he has since got a mortgage with his gf and refused, my landlady didn't want me there without a guarantor so issued me a section 21 to vacate. to be honest she had been pushing rent up and not getting things fixed since i took over the property...to cut along story shot we was a few weeks away from being homeless, as i said though the village is lovely i just wasn't expecting the oil so it's been a shock, once i have settled and got a routine i'm sure i'll be ok, it's just the initial start up that's thrown me
 
I'd ask the council/housing association for help with the costs and see what free insulation etc offers they have at the moment too. There are usually loans and other one off payments available so I'd definitely see what you can get. Failing that a good sob story in the local paper might help ;)
 
srichards said:
I'd ask the council/housing association for help with the costs and see what free insulation etc offers they have at the moment too. There are usually loans and other one off payments available so I'd definitely see what you can get. Failing that a good sob story in the local paper might help ;)
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Oh god no i couldn't do that lol. i'll manage i just need to work out a plan, if i had been told at least i could have been prepared for the shock at prices
 
In reply to what do I do......
Fix boilers... but you're safe as being a tenant the landlord is liable ;) they are also liable to service you boiler yearly, make sure you have a service record, if serviced and set up correctly and a burner nozzle changed approx every two years the boiler will work at its most efficient and save you a few quid :)
 
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