LPG vs. Oil in modern times.

[jlaw]

Hi everyone,

First off I've had a search but all the topics on this seem fairly old.

I'm currently debating LPG vs Oil, both of which will be combi boilers.

Not intrested in ground source heat pumps or biomass before someone suggests it.

I know that traditionally LPG has been more expensive, but currently I can get it for 40p per litre, and oil is 55p.

I recently bought a 3 bed bungalow (105 sqm) and at the moment I have LPG installed (its an old system with a hot water cylinder etc.), but have also picked up an oil tank and Firebird Enviromax 26kw boiler for peanuts at the weekend.

Is it worth the switch to oil? I also have a woodburner in the house that will be used for heating. . . .

Either way I would want to go onto a combi system.

 

[Richardthe3rd]

Historically LPG was double the cost of running an oil system.

LPG is a product of an oil refinery & Kero is just cheaper to produce.

 

[Diyisfun]

With LPG you rent the tank (& pay for it), oil you have more suppliers I think.
I have LPG it isn't cheap, but it is convenient & clean.
It was in when I moved in, so I didn't chose it.

 

[simond]

A litre of water is cheaper still - but you won't get a boiler to run off it.

The pence per litre is only half the story; the other is the calorific heat value of a litre of fuel.

 

[simond]

Worth adding that LPG is cheaper to produce than Kerosene because it is a by product of the oil distillation process. It has to be made whether they can sell it or not.

The flame you see on a fractional distillation column is a relative of LPG being burnt off.

 

[simond]

So using the calorific values and your pricing, and ignoring boiler efficiency losses which will be similar;

100Kw of oil heating costs £5.50
100Kw of LPG heating costs £6.06

For people on loose LPG cylinders the price per litre is more than 40p; a lot more.

Did a boiler (warm air) quote recently for an older chap where two LPG contractors had used the 'price per litre' of LPG to frighten him off oil - and he, due to the sloping garden and access could only have loose LPG cylinders.

Taking the price per litre at face value it looked good to the layman.

He already had an oil tank, siting requirements for which are less onerous.

Using the correct metrics I calculated LPG in cylinders would have cost him another £800 a year to run. And this was a small domestic. I had to explain the workings to him - but out of ignorance or lies these installers would have shafted him.

You've got to be careful out there.

 

[jlaw]

So using the calorific values and your pricing, and ignoring boiler efficiency losses which will be similar;

100Kw of oil heating costs £5.50
100Kw of LPG heating costs £6.06
quote]

So Oil is basically 10% cheaper based on those prices.

Are there any downsides to going over to oil?, obviously I can't cook on it but that doesnt bother me, plus I can put the tank somewhere better than in the middle of my front garden like the LPG one!

I've heard oil combis can be crap - or is that a myth these days?

 

[simond]

Oil combis can be crap, in the same way that gas ones can.

It depends on whether they are installed on a properly prepared system (all sludge and debris removed) by an installer with appropriate skill, experience and qualifications.

The last three things are equally important. Anyone lacking one or two of these will mess it up. That is often forgotten by quote chasers.

 

[Agile]

An oil boiler is less tolerant of not being serviced regularly.

If you are free to choose a gas supplier you should get a better price.

With oil you can always choose your supplier and get the best price during the summer if you can store a year's supply.

I am not at all sure the LPG sold here is only obtained as a byproduct of oil refining. Much of the world's energy is now directly from extracted gas as LNG. Russia just cut it off to Europe ( was 15% of consumption! ) so watch the price carefully.

In many ways if you have the space keep both oil and LPG because future price differentials can vary widely at short notice. Looks like Iraq's oil may stop now and that was 12% of the OPEC production.

Tony

 

[Agile]

As an aside, I have a brand new and full 47 Kg cylinder of gas which I have to get rid of.

How many litres is a Kg equivalent to?

Or how much is it worth!

Tony

 

[Agile]

As another aside, how well does a diesel car type engine run on heating oil?

I am not thinking of evading duty in vehicles but for generating electricity and recovering the otherwise wasted heat.

Tony

 

[Burnerman]

On an old type diesel Tony - i.e the indirect injection type with no common rail, solenoid injectors or turbo, the engine will run quite well!
Recovering waste heat will be a problem though.
John

 

[coopersim]

I've just been through this very dilemma, in the end replacing an oil combi with an external (due to the smell) oil system boiler and hot water tank with an immersion heater to ensure that if we should be ever run out of fuel we have an alternative source of hot water - something you might want to consider?

If you need to replace your tank I'd consider looking at the oil tanks from fuelproof as they make much more secure than plastic counterparts.

 

[Richardthe3rd]

In the overall scheme of things; oil combi boilers are fairly cr.p.
By their very nature an oil boiler needs to run for 20minutes plus to run at their optimum fuel consumption wise. But most oil Combis at best, have only a small heat bank for hot water & tend to cycle quite a lot.

While Kero will always be cheaper to run than LPG, I'd tend to fit a large buffer tank & feed any primary water from that. Of course your property may not lend itself to a system of that nature - with space being at a premium.

LPG has always been marketed on it's convenience not it's economy.

 

[Richardthe3rd]

A few years ago the regulations changed as regards bulk LPG tanks; due to monopoly rules, LPG suppliers must now share their bulk tanks with other suppliers. So in essence you can use any company's Gas in any bulk tank.