Heating oil is the primary source of heating for around 5% of homes in the UK, which equates to roughly 1.5 to 1.7 million homes.
Given the recent news and the war in the middle east, the cost of heating oil has exponentially increased, leaving many homeowners in financial turmoil and many wondering what the alternatives are (aside from sitting at home with no heating or hot water).
From temporary measures through to longer-term fixes, heating and energy expert, David Hilton explains how to avoid feeling the pinch from your oil bills.
Article continues below1. Manage the heat output with motorised valves
The first thing you can do, before taking any dramatic options like throwing out the oil boiler, is to manage the heat.
Turning down thermostatic radiator valves (TRV) a bit will help, but they are not all that accurate. For more precise temperature control, it is worth considering motorised TRVs for the radiators.
Systems like Honeywell EVO, Tado or Drayton Wiser have electronic TRVs that can be set to keep rooms at specific temperatures, and schedules can be set so that the room temperatures are different throughout the day.
You can also set an away mode, so that temperatures can be set to 2 or 3 degrees cooler when you are not home, saving you both energy and oil. And, it's also easy to install one. The motorised valves simply replace the manual TRVs. You do not need to isolate the radiators or drain them, but you do need to check what type of TRV you already have to be sure that the new motorised ones are compatible.
It's also worth noting that systems are better than others at creating their own communication network. This may impact you if your home has thick walls or foil wrapped insulation and plasterboard. Do your research to be sure the system you get is compatible with your home, and meets your expectations.
Shop for motorised TRVs
Manage your radiator output with this smart valve that even includes an auto-window function to close the valve when ventilating a room
Upgrade three radiators and download the tado app to gain extra control over your oil consumption
If your radiators have a modern finish, these anthracite coloured valves may be more in-keeping with your interiors
2. Consider switching to a heat pump
Taking out the oil boiler and replacing it with a heat pump is a very common option, and with the Boiler Upgrade Scheme still offering a £7500 incentive, it can be a very attractive solution.
Your home would need to be surveyed to make sure that the central heating system and insulation levels are compatible with the low and slow temperatures associated with heat pump system, and whether you install an air source heat pump or a ground source heat pump the BUS grant incentive is the same.
A ground source heat pump costs more than an air source heat pump to install, but is slightly more efficient. The ground source heat pump also needs an area of land outside the home that is around 2 to 3 times bigger than the floor area of the home, which may be an option considering the rural nature of many homes heated by heating oil.
3. Or, consider a hybrid heating system
But what if your home isn't suitable for just a heat pump system? The house may be a little too large, the insulation may not be quite good enough, the radiators may be a little bit under sized, or the central heating pipework may also be a little on the small side.
The good news is, this may be just the type of scenario that is suited to a hybrid heat pump system. Often also referred to as a bi-valent system, a hybrid heating system is where there is a heat pump and a boiler plumbed into the same home.
It's an interesting one to consider as a hybrid system can also be set up in a number of different ways. These include:
Use your existing boiler to 'top-up' heat
In this scenario, a common hybrid system would include the oil boiler (usually the boiler already existing in the home) and a heat pump being added in to the heating system. As the heat load of the home will usually be higher than the output of the heat pump, the boiler is left in-situ so that it can either top up the heat pump heat, or take over from the heat pump on the colder hours, or days.
Splitting your heating and hot water
Another version of a hybrid system is to let the heat pump cover the home heating and the oil boiler deliver the domestic hot water. Or, alternatively, a heat pump delivers the hot water and the boiler powers the central heating.
This option would need a small heat pump and not the type of air source heat pump we are used to seeing outside the home. Instead, this is one that is built into the water cylinder and also known as a micro heat pump, or an exhaust air heat pump.
The micro heat pump adds around 400mm to the height of the unit, and there are two air ducts connected to the top of the cylinder, one acting as an extractor fan bringing air into the heat pump from the bathroom, kitchen and en-suite in order to extract the heat from it, before exhausting the stale air to the outside of the home. Exhaust air heat pump cylinder costs start at around £2000.
4. Use an immersion heater for hot water
You can install a simple domestic direct hot water cylinder with an immersion heater to avoid needing to use your oil boiler when heating oil prices are unaffordable.
If you are on an electric vehicle or off-peak electric tariff, then set the heater to heat the water during the cheap time. These types of cylinders start at around £300 and can be plumbed into an existing heating system as long as you have space for a water cylinder in an appropriate position.
Adding an immersion heater can also be considered a hybrid system.
5. Use plug-in electric heat sources until prices come down
Continuing on the simple heating system theme, the lowest capital cost heating systems are direct electric systems. Whether you are looking to use simple electric panel heaters, fan convectors or oil filled radiators the principle of direct electric heating is based on the concept of ‘total cost of ownership' – lower capital costs but higher running costs.
If the annual energy use is fairly low then this principle works, but higher energy use does not. If you assume the average electricity cost to be around 22p per kWh then given the average efficiency of a condensing oil boiler of 90% then the cost of oil would need to be over £1.80 a litre before oil is more expensive than direct electricity.
Older, lower efficiency boilers would bring this cost comparison down. If the boiler was only around 70% efficient, then the cost of oil would only need to be around £1.40 to be more expensive than a peak electricity tariff.
If you have an off-peak electric tariff, like I do, such as an electric vehicle tariff used with my heat pump, then the electric heaters can be used during the cheaper times. This is primarily a temporary solution to extend the time that the oil in your tank will last before you need to fill it again.
If you invest in a heat pump then the capital cost, even with the BUS grant, could be around £5000+, and that buys a lot of electricity. So, the energy use needs to be a bit higher, and a permanent long-term solution.
Shop for electric heating products
This simply designed convector heater has three temperature settings and can easily be moved around your home to provide heat where needed
This oil filled radiator is suitable for medium sized rooms and can help boost your room temperature so you can use less heating oil
6. Install infra-red heating panels
Infra-red radiant panels may also be a direct electric heating solution – but with a difference. Infra-red heating does not heat up air because the radiant nature of the heat means that it travels straight through it. Instead it heats up objects.
This means you have to target the heating to heat up the people, rather than the whole house, but you use a lot less energy. It is still direct electricity, and the cost per kWh is high, but the amount you use is less.
Infra-red heat feels different however, and the system needs to be designed properly so that you have the right emitters in the right place. Many people love it, although many also prefer it as complimentary heat where it is combined with an existing background heat. My recommendation would always be to try and experience it first before you commit to purchasing.
And last, but certainly not least, in my personal opinion, complementary heating does not get any better than a log burner, as long as you burn dry wood. It is a great feature in the home and if you have a resource of wood, even odd shapes, then you have free fuel. When the log burner is being used then the oil boiler will work less, and lower your annual consumption of oil.
If any of these oil boiler alternatives don’t appeal for any reason, then you can of course also turn down the heating-oil boiler, as this will make the oil last longer.
