Share your energy saving ideas, hints and tips with other heating oil users or pick up a few ideas for yourself.
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206 Responses to “Your top tips for saving heating oil”
Very interesting reading through all the posts. We have an old, circa 1800 Lodge Cottage, two bedroomed with a conservatory, heated by an Oil fired Rayburn Nouvelle, 20yrs old. The Rayburn has two seperate burners, one for cooking and another for central heating. The central heating boiler failed to fire up when we decided it was time for central heating, back in early November so called in a local engineer to fix it. Unfortunately, even after returning 4 times he had to give up and I had to call the Official Rayburn Engineer as when it had last had a problem about 4 years earlier on the cooker side, the young lad who turned up said ‘ we don’t do the boiler side!’ so I hadn’t called them first. So while we we were waiting for the 2nd engineer to turn up a week ago, we used the Rayburn cooker burner, which runs 24/7 and supplemented this with the Multifuel stove in the lounge again running 24/7. The Rayburn and Stove are back to back and central in the house and with leaving all the doors open we were pleasantly surprised at how warm the house was. Even after the central heating boiler was repaired we have kept with the multfuel stove and cooker Rayburn.
Other things we have done recently, the loft fully insulated(this was FREE as I had just been made redundant and therefore qualified for this free insulation). The effect was immediate – the house was CONSIDERABLY warmer, also had double glazing over most windows, also lined all curtains with a heat insulating lining, replaced bathroom and larder window with modern double glazed units, draughtproofed all doors and replaced the draughty front door and frame. The Rayburn also heats the HW with an Immersion heater on a time clock just to top up.
I estimate we will save about 300/500 litres of oil over the year, we have had to fill up twice yearly previously, about 1800/2000 litres annually.
Even with the recent cold weather we have not had to turn on the central heating, my wife in fact has just complained that it’s too hot! We run the Multifuel stove on wood during the day and smokeless fuel overnight and it keeps in until the following midday.
The best way to keep down costs is INSULATION – the new roof insulation was a revelation, immediate effect, warm enough at night to go to the bathroom in your birthday suit! Remember you can often get this FREE if you are on certain benefits or elderly – check with insulation people and you’ll get all the info. If not entirely free you’ll get it at with a substantial grant (my ex had her roof done and it only cost £90 with the grant). Also if suitable, cavity wall insulation again with a grant. Double glazing is also well worth it as it reduces all those cold places under windows.
Top Tips? Well, I’ve tried to read thro some of the above and find a lot of it far too technical for the average user!
Mine are simple, but you still need to consider before doing any of them ‘what is the payback period’. i.e. how long will you stay in your property/how long will you live?
For example the government are currently offering a grant of £400 to replace an old boiler but a new one will cost far in excess of that so if your old one works and the slight benefits of the more efficient new one do not repay in say 5 years then perhaps you would be wise to stick with the one you have at least until it becomes troublesome!
First one: Put on an extra jumper and keep doors and windows closed! You won’t suffocate!
If you already have a chimney, consider fitting a multi-fuel burner. You will need this for only 6 or seven months of the year and it will normally heat the main living area (where you spend most of your time), and some heat will filter to the rest of the house. Hot air rises so if you live in a house the bedrooms will also benefit. I spend around £70 per month on coal in the coldest months, but the fire never goes out and is ’shut down’ all the time. In fact I clear out the ash only when I have to because this helps to keep the fire damped down. It provides a constant background warmth. Mine is lit in October and and stays ‘in’ until April! This is far cheaper than re-lighting it each day because starting it up uses more coal.
Obviously get the house well insulated. Cavity wall insulation costs around £150 and will pay back in one cold winter. Make sure your loft is deeply insulated (at least 18″) but keep an area clear around your water tank etc.
Fit an electric descaler: These cost very little but removal of scale – especially in the boiler and water tank will make the system more efficient.
Finally give serious consideration to a solar water heating system. Here you really do have to think about payback because they’re not cheap. I would say (depending on the number of family members) up to 10 years. Make sure you go to a reputable nationwide company. If you go to a small company and they’re some distance away frequent call-outs will quickly wipe out any savings you make because most will charge you time on the road PLUS travel expenses just to make some small adjustment or flush the system! However, once installed you will save a good deal on oil because for most of the summer months all your hot water will come from the sun and you can switch your oil fired boiler off altogether. Even in winter at least some of the water (which often comes into your house only just above freezing) will have been warmed a little. If you think that once the installation is in and settled, daylight costs nothing, while oil costs will enevitably increase year on year. So, if you are going to do it – do it now!
The last time I bought oil was in February 2009 and I’m hoping this year to fill the tank in the summer when oil prices are cheaper. Mine is a 1000 liter tank.
Very interesting reading through all the posts. We have an old, circa 1800 Lodge Cottage, two bedroomed with a conservatory, heated by an Oil fired Rayburn Nouvelle, 20yrs old. The Rayburn has two seperate burners, one for cooking and another for central heating. The central heating boiler failed to fire up when we decided it was time for central heating, back in early November so called in a local engineer to fix it. Unfortunately, even after returning 4 times he had to give up and I had to call the Official Rayburn Engineer as when it had last had a problem about 4 years earlier on the cooker side, the young lad who turned up said ‘ we don’t do the boiler side!’ so I hadn’t called them first. So while we we were waiting for the 2nd engineer to turn up a week ago, we used the Rayburn cooker burner, which runs 24/7 and supplemented this with the Multifuel stove in the lounge again running 24/7. The Rayburn and Stove are back to back and central in the house and with leaving all the doors open we were pleasantly surprised at how warm the house was. Even after the central heating boiler was repaired we have kept with the multfuel stove and cooker Rayburn.
Other things we have done recently, the loft fully insulated(this was FREE as I had just been made redundant and therefore qualified for this free insulation). The effect was immediate – the house was CONSIDERABLY warmer, also had double glazing over most windows, also lined all curtains with a heat insulating lining, replaced bathroom and larder window with modern double glazed units, draughtproofed all doors and replaced the draughty front door and frame. The Rayburn also heats the HW with an Immersion heater on a time clock just to top up.
I estimate we will save about 300/500 litres of oil over the year, we have had to fill up twice yearly previously, about 1800/2000 litres annually.
Even with the recent cold weather we have not had to turn on the central heating, my wife in fact has just complained that it’s too hot! We run the Multifuel stove on wood during the day and smokeless fuel overnight and it keeps in until the following midday.
The best way to keep down costs is INSULATION – the new roof insulation was a revelation, immediate effect, warm enough at night to go to the bathroom in your birthday suit! Remember you can often get this FREE if you are on certain benefits or elderly – check with insulation people and you’ll get all the info. If not entirely free you’ll get it at with a substantial grant (my ex had her roof done and it only cost £90 with the grant). Also if suitable, cavity wall insulation again with a grant. Double glazing is also well worth it as it reduces all those cold places under windows.
Reply
Top Tips? Well, I’ve tried to read thro some of the above and find a lot of it far too technical for the average user!
Mine are simple, but you still need to consider before doing any of them ‘what is the payback period’. i.e. how long will you stay in your property/how long will you live?
For example the government are currently offering a grant of £400 to replace an old boiler but a new one will cost far in excess of that so if your old one works and the slight benefits of the more efficient new one do not repay in say 5 years then perhaps you would be wise to stick with the one you have at least until it becomes troublesome!
First one: Put on an extra jumper and keep doors and windows closed! You won’t suffocate!
If you already have a chimney, consider fitting a multi-fuel burner. You will need this for only 6 or seven months of the year and it will normally heat the main living area (where you spend most of your time), and some heat will filter to the rest of the house. Hot air rises so if you live in a house the bedrooms will also benefit. I spend around £70 per month on coal in the coldest months, but the fire never goes out and is ’shut down’ all the time. In fact I clear out the ash only when I have to because this helps to keep the fire damped down. It provides a constant background warmth. Mine is lit in October and and stays ‘in’ until April! This is far cheaper than re-lighting it each day because starting it up uses more coal.
Obviously get the house well insulated. Cavity wall insulation costs around £150 and will pay back in one cold winter. Make sure your loft is deeply insulated (at least 18″) but keep an area clear around your water tank etc.
Fit an electric descaler: These cost very little but removal of scale – especially in the boiler and water tank will make the system more efficient.
Finally give serious consideration to a solar water heating system. Here you really do have to think about payback because they’re not cheap. I would say (depending on the number of family members) up to 10 years. Make sure you go to a reputable nationwide company. If you go to a small company and they’re some distance away frequent call-outs will quickly wipe out any savings you make because most will charge you time on the road PLUS travel expenses just to make some small adjustment or flush the system! However, once installed you will save a good deal on oil because for most of the summer months all your hot water will come from the sun and you can switch your oil fired boiler off altogether. Even in winter at least some of the water (which often comes into your house only just above freezing) will have been warmed a little. If you think that once the installation is in and settled, daylight costs nothing, while oil costs will enevitably increase year on year. So, if you are going to do it – do it now!
The last time I bought oil was in February 2009 and I’m hoping this year to fill the tank in the summer when oil prices are cheaper. Mine is a 1000 liter tank.
Reply