Solid range to oil range

Quiet Achiever

Hope someone can advise me here as my mother is recently bereaved and i don't like her having to light the solid fuel range every morning, coming down to a cold kitchen, cleaning ashes etc.

I want to put in a new oil burning range. Currently is a back boiler and a few rads and i would like to add a couple of rads.

My fear is that the house is old and cold, and if the oil range was left on for 10 hours a day would it cost an absolute fortune? And is gas any better in this regard? (no mains connection)

TheBoyConor

Oil range is a bonkers idea. Crazy expensive to buy and to run. I'm not even sure if such a thing can even be got these days.

Best option would be to get an SEAI warmer homes scheme / better energy home scheme grant to install a heat pump system. They are excellent. Very very quiet, trouble free and no fumes. Competitive to run and there is none of the hassle of fuel or oil deliveries.

If that is not feasible for some reason, install a high efficiency condensing oil boiler.

Stay away from LPG (Flogas), it is crazy expensive. Wouldn't make any sense for a elderly person's home unless they have loads of money.

Quiet Achiever

Thanks for the response.

The heat pump system would be fantastic in a perfect but completely impractical on an old farmhouse which would cost an absolute fortune to bring up to a required standard of insulation, and to retrofit the home with venting etc would cost more again. And i have seen them generate some fairly sizeable bills on new A rated homes.

I've just read online that a general rule for a 9kw oil burning range heating a few rads is a litre of kerosene an hour. If that's accurate then it's very doable. expensive yes, but so are our coal bills.

jimf

is it possible to fit an external oil boiler it would mean tapping into the existing pipework from the back boiler

and then maybe fit a small dry stove just as a space heater in the area where boiler is now

she could use this as a fire focal point which a lot of the older generation grew up with

by setting her central heating she could get up to a warm house without the urgency of setting and lighting her current range

monseiur

Quiet Achiever wrote: »

Thanks for the response.

The heat pump system would be fantastic in a perfect but completely impractical on an old farmhouse which would cost an absolute fortune to bring up to a required standard of insulation, and to retrofit the home with venting etc would cost more again. And i have seen them generate some fairly sizeable bills on new A rated homes.

I've just read online that a general rule for a 9kw oil burning range heating a few rads is a litre of kerosene an hour. If that's accurate then it's very doable. expensive yes, but so are our coal bills.

Chances are that your mother qualifies for the energy upgrades grant. I understand that it covers the total cost of attic insulation, new windows & doors, wall insulation, heating control upgrades etc. Contact SAEI for more information.
Being recently bereaved etc. I guess that pulling the house apart is the last thing she'll want or agree to but having a warm, cosy home for free is worth the hassle in the long run and the saving on oil will be considerable. The grant is specifically designed for old farmhouses like you describe.
I'm not a plumber, but regarding a suitable oil boiler I think Firebird and Grant do an indoor boiler that could be fitted in a back kitchen/ utility room or as suggested previously a similar boiler can be installed outside, I understand they come as a self contained unit so no need to build a boiler house etc.

TheBoyConor

I know that those indoor oil boilers are available, but I think they should be only installed where there some reason that a boiler could not be installed externally.

The reason for this is external boilers eliminate the risk of carbon monoxide in the house should some fault develop in the boiler. I know there is CO alarms etc, but then you are dependent upon that and the boiler being kept maintained and working 100% right all the time.
I believe it is better to eliminate the risk entirely rather than rely on safety devices and good maintenance. Lets face it, an extremely elderly and frail person is very unlikely to be able to keep on top of boiler servicing and testing and replacing alarms at the right intervals.

A packaged external boiler is probably the most straightforward reliable method.

On the grants, you should absolutely claim everything you are entitled to.