Many homes in New Hampshire and other parts of the Northeast still rely on an oil furnace or an oil burner for heat in the winter. Oil heating isn’t necessarily a bad solution, as it should still ensure you can always keep your house as warm as you want. Nonetheless, converting from oil to a gas furnace or boiler is definitely something you should consider. While an oil-to-gas conversion requires a fairly substantial investment, the benefits it provides can make it more than worth the cost and will usually result in significant savings over time.
Convenience
One reason more homeowners are moving away from oil heating is simply that natural gas is much more convenient. With oil heating, you will need to have a delivery company periodically refill your oil tank. There’s also always the risk of running out of oil and not being able to run your heating system until you can get more oil delivered. Natural gas is piped directly to the house, ensuring a steady, limitless supply of fuel for your furnace or boiler. Converting to gas heating also allows you to ditch the bulky oil tank, freeing up space that you can use for storage or whatever else.
Energy Efficiency and Heating Costs
Energy efficiency and overall heating costs are where gas heating really stands out compared to oil. Some gas heating systems are only 80% to 85% efficient. However, most people opt to install a high-efficiency condensing furnace or boiler, and these units range anywhere from 90% to almost 99% efficient. A few manufacturers produce higher-efficiency oil heating units, but the majority of units are only 85% efficient at the most.
Simply comparing the energy efficiency of gas and oil heating doesn’t tell the whole story when considering heating costs. Natural gas is usually quite a bit less expensive than heating oil, both in terms of rates and how much you pay for the amount of heat the system produces. Natural gas rates are also steadier, whereas the cost of heating oil is more volatile and much more prone to spikes during cold winters when the demand is much higher. With heating oil, you also have to factor in the delivery fees, which often come out to anywhere from $200 to $500 per year.
Although the exact prices can vary from region to region, oil heating costs are often at least 50%-60% higher than natural gas. By converting to gas, you’ll usually save at least a few hundred dollars a year on your heating costs. When you factor in the savings over time, an oil-to-gas conversion will pretty much always pay for itself in time.
Maintenance Requirements
Any type of heating system should be maintained and inspected by a certified professional at least once a year, ideally in the late summer/early fall, before you need to turn your heating on. Nonetheless, oil furnaces and boilers have increased maintenance requirements compared to gas units. With oil heating, you need to change the oil filter and nozzle and clean the unit to remove all of the soot that forms. Cleaning everything is especially important for ensuring that the system operates efficiently and produces as much heat as it should. In colder climates, you sometimes need to clean an oil heating system twice a winter due to how much work it has to do.
Environmental Impact
Another major benefit of converting from oil heating to gas is that it is less harmful to the environment. Both heating oil and natural gas systems produce carbon emissions, but natural gas burns much cleaner and contributes to less carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere. When natural gas fully combusts, the only byproducts are carbon dioxide and water vapor. Burning heating oil produces additional byproducts, including nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, soot and ash. If an oil heating system isn’t properly maintained and not burning cleanly, it can release large amounts of soot and ash that contribute to smog and can create respiratory issues for everyone in the area. This issue is especially problematic when a large number of homes in the area have oil heating systems.
The Process of Converting From Oil to Gas Heating
Many homes with oil heating were built before there was an existing natural gas infrastructure and don’t have a natural gas line piped to the house. In this case, the first step, when converting to gas heating, is to sign up with a local utility company and have them run a gas line to your property and install a meter. You’ll then need to have an HVAC or plumbing company run a gas line from the meter to wherever your heating system is located. Running a new gas line is one of the main reasons why an oil-to-gas conversion can be fairly expensive. If your home already has a gas supply for a water heater or other appliance, the project will take less time and be less expensive. In this case, all the technician may need to do is tie into the existing line and run a new pipe to the heating system. However, the existing interior lines may still need to be replaced, as they may not be large enough to supply a furnace or boiler.
Once the gas supply is in place, the next step is removing the old heating system and draining and hauling away the oil tank. The technicians will then mount and install the new furnace or boiler. In most cases, it’s also necessary to alter or completely replace the exhaust flue. Once everything is connected, the last step is to calibrate the system and then test it to make sure everything works according to the manufacturer’s specifications. In most cases, it only takes one to two days to remove the old system and install the new one.
Average Cost of Oil-to-Gas Heating Conversion
If you’re considering ditching your oil heating system for a new gas system, you will likely want to know how much the project will cost. Evaluating the home is essential before an accurate estimate can be provided, as every installation is different. Less complex installations in homes with an existing natural gas supply often cost somewhere between $6,000 and $8,500. Larger systems and more complex installations can cost anywhere from $10,000 to over $20,000. The type of gas furnace or boiler you install and how efficient it is can be a major contributing factor in the cost. If you opt for a more advanced option like a variable-speed condensing furnace, the equipment alone could cost $8,000 to more than $12,000. While the cost of converting to gas puts some people off, the fact is that it will eventually save you money by lowering your heating costs quite a bit.
For 30+ years, Joyce Cooling & Heating Inc. has been helping Nashua, NH, homeowners with all of their heating needs. We offer expert heating installation services and can assist if you’re planning an oil-to-gas conversion or just looking to upgrade to a more efficient system. We install furnaces and boilers from industry-leading brands like Lennox and Weil-McLain and will ensure you get the right unit for your home. To schedule a consultation and learn if converting to gas heating is a good option for your house, contact us today.
