With domestic fuel bills on the rise, finding energy-efficient ways to heat your home is a top priority for many households in the UK. So, what fuels are there to consider? And, what factors should be taken into account when making a decision about which fuel to use for your home heating?
Heating fuel Shropshire are experienced with delivering and supplying homes with high quality heating oil used to efficiently heat their customers homes.
What fuels are available for home heating?
The fuels that are commonly available for household heating include:
- Electricity
- Gas
- Oil
- LPG
- Coal-based solid fuels
- Biomass (wood)
- Hot water mains (district heating)
These different fuels vary in many ways, including their cost – the cost of installing equipment to use them, convenience, availability and their CO2 emissions.
What domestic fuel is most commonly used in the UK?
Natural gas is the most widely-used heating fuel in the UK, it’s also a good option available to consumers; however, not all homes are on the gas network.
The house isn’t on the gas network, instead it has an oil tank, is this the most economical option?
There are an estimated 1.5 million homes in the UK which rely on domestic heating oil. When it comes to heating oil prices, oil fired central heating is generally a little bit more expensive than gas for heating, but is often the cheapest available option in rural areas where there is no access to the mains gas supply network.
Oil is mainly used in boilers, but it can also be used for fires and cookers as fuel. There are two main types of domestic heating oil; kerosene and gas oil. Kerosene is more commonly used and represents better value as it is more cost efficient; this is also reflected in the prices.
Moving to a house that has oil central heating rather than gas, will there still be a constant fuel supply?
Unlike ‘mains’ fuels – electricity and gas – which are effectively ‘on tap’, oil is delivered in bulk and stored in a tank. It will be your responsibility to monitor your usage and ensure that you place an order for delivery prior to your supply of oil running out.
In this respect, oil isn’t as convenient as gas or electricity. It can also be problematic in terms of budgeting, as you may have to pay for the oil on delivery – although some suppliers offer the option of spreading payments over a number of months to eliminate this issue. If you keep a watchful eye on your oil level and usage, and order in good time, then you should have a constant supply of fuel to heat your home.
Like gas, oil is quite easily controllable and can deliver heat when required. Also, it has about twice the carbon content and emissions compared to gas per unit of heat delivered, but only about two thirds that of coal.
How can you get lower heating oil prices?
The easiest and most effective way to secure relatively cheap domestic oil Shropshire prices is to keep up-to-date with wholesale prices. Due to the nature of the market it is worth keeping an eye on it when it’s time to order your fuel.