Oil versus electric

Battle of home-heating systems a stone-cold KO

By Mandy Cook

The Independent



When St. John’s homeowner Sarah Minty was feeling the crunch of home-heating fuel costs last fall, she had her oil furnace removed and switched to an electric one.

“Our oil bill was about $500-$600 per month,” says Minty. “Our oil bills were so huge, and we didn’t expect them to go down any time soon, so we thought an electric furnace was the way to go.”

As of press time, home-heating fuel was pegged at $123.98 per litre, a rise of 1.35 cents per litre as of June 19.

A quick consultation with several local electricians will tell you that “every house is different,” but that a furnace overhaul will cost about $3,000 for the furnace and installation, plus any additional upgrades, which can run you an average of another three grand.

If you were a new homeowner looking to install an oil furnace, it would cost about $8,000. But in this era of rising fuel prices, experts say that heating option is becoming obsolete.

Dieter Staubitzer of New Victorian Homes says he can’t remember the last time he installed an oil furnace in any of the houses he’s built over the years.



the trend is electric

“We’ve probably built 800-1,000 homes in my career and installed maybe 70 or 80 oil furnaces in Newfoundland out of all those homes,” says Staubitzer, also chairman of the builder’s committee for the provincial Home Builders’ Association. “The trend is electric heat.”

North Atlantic Petroleum spokeswoman Gloria Warren-Slade confirms that in the last year or so there has been a “noticeable” drop in demand for oil furnace installations, but adds that some customers are opting for a wood burning/oil combination furnace.

Newfoundland Power spokeswoman Michelle Coughlan says of the company’s 230,000 customer accounts, approximately 60 per cent are electric heat. She says the company is unable to account for how many customers have recently switched to electric heat because private contractors do the work. A spike in use of kilowatts per hour on a customer’s bill would indicate a change in heating systems, she adds.

Staubitzer says an indication that his customers are seeking home-heating alternatives is an increased interest in air-to-air heat pumps.

Installed outside the home, a mechanical unit recovers heat from outside and transfers it inside. At $15,000, the system is more expensive to install than electric or oil, but overall, says Staubitzer, it is cheaper to operate than electric, and is gaining popularity.

“Up until this year we had only installed three or four units. This year alone we’ve put in six or seven. Everybody is asking for them. Something is changing.”

Since Minty’s winter heat bills averaged about $280-$380 per month, she’s happy she made the change. After an initial $5,000 electrical upgrade when she moved into the house, she was content to pay the $3,000 installation fee and monthly financing payment of $120 — brokered through Newfoundland Power — rather than burning oil.

Staubitzer says, as a the home-heating fuel, oil has gone up in smoke.

“We’re not getting any requests for oil furnaces. None. Zero.”



mandy.cook@theindependent.ca

 

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1	Public Notice (7/21/2008)
2	‘Musical miracle’ (7/19/2008)
3	‘When the Rondo’s rockin’, don’t bother knockin’ (7/19/2008)
4	What are Newfoundlanders smoking? (7/19/2008)
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