anyone changed from open fire to a stove

the optimist

So we're out of oil again after spending the guts of 2000 euro so far this winter.
I refuse to fill it again. Thats not to mention the open fire which is lit most days. We are thinkin of changin over from the open fire to a stove with back boiler before next winter. We have 11 radiators in the house to heat but I dont mind even heating 8 or 9. Can I just turn off some rads to heat the main ones. Hot press with immersion is not too far ( about two metres from open fire) Has anyone recently changed over to a stove. Were you happy with the results and how much did it cost. I am not expecting an accurate amount even a ball park just to give us an idea.
I know 2000 is a lot to pay for oil since last september but it is a large 5 bed dormer so hard to heat. Anyone any advice???

Outkast_IRE

best advice i can give is to upgrade your insulation , your money would be better spent this way.

the optimist

The house is only 5 years old and we got the attic insulated last year. In saying that its not much of an attic because its a dormer. Its like we sleep in the attic if you know what I mean. We could only insulate both sides of attic. I cant see how we can insulate the house anymore than this. The windows are all double glazed.

crosstownk

€2000 of oil seems quite a lot. My house is 50 years old with what I'd consider 'standard' insulation but nothing spectacular. I'd use about €1200 of gas in a year (4 bed semi, 10 rads) and I also use gas for cooking (hob only).

I think Outkast_IRE's advice is worth considering.

the optimist

i would love to have gas heating but its not an option outside dublin. I do agree almost 2000 is very excessive. A lot of my neighbours have the stove but with less rads plus their boilers were in when they moved in. They spend a lot less on oil because they dont need to use it so much. They light the stove and it heats the house. Even the following morning when the stove is not in use their house is roasting. I think the stove is the way to go but I would love to hear from someone who had one installed. As soon as I switch off the oil my house is freezing except for the room where the fire is lit. We have already put heavy lined curtains on every room in the house including the front door.

crosstownk

the optimist wrote: »

As soon as I switch off the oil my house is freezing except for the room where the fire is lit.

That really does sound like inadequate insulation. Have you asked your neighbours about how their house is insulated. Even half decent insulation should ensure that your house retains heat for some time.

Remember that heat rises and effective insulation will prevent this. You say that your limited attic space is insulated but are the spaces between your upstairs rooms and the roof insulated? If they aren't then you could be loosing lots of heat there.

Outkast_IRE

wouldnt dry lining be a option on the dormer style , i would spend my money on hiring a expert in field and discussing your best option of increasing insulation , honestly if your house is freezing shortly after the heating goes off then you must tackle the issue of where that heat is escaping so easily.

I have installed a few stoves lately and i do like them , and would consider one in my own house , but in your case it sounds like your setting aside the real issue .

crosstownk

Outkast_IRE wrote: »

but in your case it sounds like your setting aside the real issue .

I agree - it's simply curing the symptom rather than the disease.

MicktheMan

Outkast_IRE wrote: »

best advice i can give is to upgrade your insulation , your money would be better spent this way.

You are correct insulation is important but Insulation on its own, in my experience, is only half the story when it comes to heatloss from a house. Air tightness is key, especially when a dormer is involved. Not well understood, nevertheless it is key to a comfortable home.

the optimist

All of my neighbours houses are built by different builders at different times.I live in a rural area and its a detached house. I dont know if the space between the ceiling of the bedrooms and the roof are insulated because we can not access them. We have velux windows as well as the normal windows in the bedrooms so I dont think there is much space between them. Most people here have the stove and I think it would be ideal. We are lighting a fire everyday anyway. We use turf mostly. If this was the only fuel we had to buy and it heated all the rads would it make sense.

crosstownk

No matter what you use to heat the house (oil, gas, solid fuel), it will make no difference if that heat escapes too quickly. I think it would be safe to assume that the other houses have different levels of insulation to yours and it simply appears that those houses are hotter because 'they use a stove' but it would probably be the same no matter what fuel they use.

I would suggest that the other houses are warmer because they have superior insulation to yours and not because they use a different heat source.

the optimist

crosstownk wrote: »

That really does sound like inadequate insulation. Have you asked your neighbours about how their house is insulated. Even half decent insulation should ensure that your house retains heat for some time.

Remember that heat rises and effective insulation will prevent this. You say that your limited attic space is insulated but are the spaces between your upstairs rooms and the roof insulated? If they aren't then you could be loosing lots of heat there.

Is it possible to insulate the space between the roof and bedroom ceilings. would that be a big job, how would they access it

crosstownk

the optimist wrote: »

Is it possible to insulate the space between the roof and bedroom ceilings. would that be a big job, how would they access it

Yes it is very possible. There are various products that will provide decent insulation. I'm not well informed on the various products but I do know that they are available. I'll leave product suggestions for others to suggest as there are other boardsies here who are much more knowledgeable than me in this area.

Maybe start a new thread as the title of this one is somewhat misleading if you have decided to explore the insulation route. You should get a better response with an insulation directed question.

Best of luck and I hope you solve the problem.

cucbuc

the optimist wrote: »

So we're out of oil again after spending the guts of 2000 euro so far this winter.
I refuse to fill it again. Thats not to mention the open fire which is lit most days. We are thinkin of changin over from the open fire to a stove with back boiler before next winter. We have 11 radiators in the house to heat but I dont mind even heating 8 or 9. Can I just turn off some rads to heat the main ones. Hot press with immersion is not too far ( about two metres from open fire) Has anyone recently changed over to a stove. Were you happy with the results and how much did it cost. I am not expecting an accurate amount even a ball park just to give us an idea.
I know 2000 is a lot to pay for oil since last september but it is a large 5 bed dormer so hard to heat. Anyone any advice???

Hi. We were in very same position as you and changed to a stove last summer, after talking about it for 2 or 3 years. We are very happy with the result and though I loved the open fire, Id never go back. We were spending a fortune on oil.
Your house sounds about the same size and with same number of rads to heat. We got a Stanley Erin and its brilliant. The heating is split so can heat different sections of the house, or all at once. (Saves turning rads on and off). The cost was about 1600 incl plumbing. (We also had to change our fireplace as it was wooden, so that was extra, and put in a bigger hearth as you need a big stove to heat that many rads.) We burn coal, wood, briquettes etc in it and find it heats the rads well, and while rads often not as hot as with the oil, the house stays warm for longer. We usually have to turn off the rads in the room the stove is in as it throws out a lot of heat too.
We are only sorry we didnt change sooner. I was worried it would look crap compared to the open fire but it looks great, I think. I looked at what friends had first as there are so many options available. The black matt finish is nice with black hearth and cream fireplace. Feel free to ask or to pm me if you have any queries.
(We also got that cavity insulation as parts of the house were very hard to heat. It has made an unbelievable difference. You can get a grant to help pay for it with SEAI.)

paddy147

the optimist wrote: »

Is it possible to insulate the space between the roof and bedroom ceilings. would that be a big job, how would they access it

Well if its a dormer bungalow amd velux windows to boot,then its either a ceiling down job or else a roof tile and felt off job to install insulation like Xtratherm or Rockwool slab and then insulated plasterboard for the ceilings.

Because I dont know how you would be able to insulate without doing either or both the above???

I had Xtratherm board installed iin the roof joists and then 38mm insulated plasterboard for the ceilings,and the heat retention in my house is the mutts nutts.Brilliant.
I also had my walls internally insulated too.

the optimist

Thanks for the replies. I will look into insulating instead

john paul mc

Ive got under floor heating and rads upstairs and im burning 500 ltrs of oil a month durning the winter and thats with it only on 3 to 5hrs a day the house is well insulated and good airtightness. Im ripping out the open fire and putting in a boru inset boiler stove its bound to make a difference im skint buying oil. Ive a friend with the same sort of house as you, he has a stove heating the hole house he only burns ecobrite in it he bought a ton of it last nov for around 600 odd euro and reckons it will see him out until march you couldnt beat dat. I dont think il get away as good as that because underfloor seems to be a animal on oil compared to rads.:(