[john1970]

Dear AC Members,

I am thinking of having my boiler converted from oil to gas heat and am curious if anyone in this forum has had it performed.  I know it will not be an inexpensive project because the gas company needs to extend the gas line ~225 ft down the street.  I am thinking of having it done for the following reasons:

1) Natural gas boilers are much quieter than an oil broiler.
2) Natural gas boilers are more reliable; I have had four failures over 8 years using an oil boiler that was new when I purchased the home
3) I will gain additional garage space with the 275 gallon oil tank removed.

Any advice will be appreciated.


Best,

John

[Scott F.]

Going to a NG boiler will be a good move. Just as you mentioned, it will be much quieter but the biggest improvement you'll see is efficiency (assuming you make that investment).

If it were my choice (and money), I wouldn't hesitate buying the Lochinvar Knight series of boilers. These have a tiny footprint. they are a condensing style boiler which means you have a sealed air intake and exhaust. Best part is, these have efficiency ratings up to 96% depending on the firing rate.

I've installed quite a number of these since they've hit the market (about 5-7 years ago). They are bullet proof. You may spend a bit more for this particular boiler but it's worth it IMO.

http://www.lochinvar.com/products/default.aspx?lineid=11&type=productline
http://www.knightheatingboiler.com/knight/default.htm

[pumpkinman]

Dear AC Members,

I am thinking of having my boiler converted from oil to gas heat and am curious if anyone in this forum has had it performed.  I know it will not be an inexpensive project because the gas company needs to extend the gas line ~225 ft down the street.  I am thinking of having it done for the following reasons:

1) Natural gas boilers are much quieter than an oil broiler.
2) Natural gas boilers are more reliable; I have had four failures over 8 years using an oil boiler that was new when I purchased the home
3) I will gain additional garage space with the 275 gallon oil tank removed.

Any advice will be appreciated.


Best,

John

I did the change over from oil to gas this fall. I passed on the super high eff. boiler only because while all the local supply houses would sell me the boiler none were going to carry many of the replacement parts. So if I need the curcuit board the many of these units have I would have to order it. When talking to my oil co. (I am friendly with the woman who runs it) she told that gas would be about 30% cheaper and was expected to to drop another 5% this winter. What is not in the pic. in a 40 gallon indirect hot water heater. I made all new runs to the baseboards and radiators with 1/2 pex tubing. So that hot water goes to each at the same time which means no continous loop or mono-flo is now used.

[django11]

I don't know if this will interest you but you did say "any" advice .

http://www.springwise.com/homes_housing/ecorad/

[Ericus Rex]

225 ft run - Yikes!  I looked into the conversion and was told that running the gas line alone to my house (no furnace or installation - just the line to my mailbox) would cost $3,500.  End the end, I decided not to fund the gas co.'s infrastructure.  Hope it's cheaper for you.

[sts9fan]

I thought the gas company would subsidize the line to the house. 

[thunderbrick]

Either way, I'd do it.  The annual savings will really grow over time as energy cost go higher.  And it'll add value to the home for the next buyer.

Like solar, a lot of people worry about today's dollars.  If you can get control over your heating costs now, you'll be really glad you did in the years to come.

[john1970]

Thank you to everyone that replied.  There are five houses at the end of the street that I live on that could also benefit from extending the gas line.  Over the next couple of months I will see if any of the other neighbors might also contribute to the cost of extending the gas line. 

[Ericus Rex]

That's a great idea John.  Best of luck with that.

[john1970]

I had an installer recommened by National Grid come by the house and look things over.  It looks like he is going to quote the installation of the following equipment:

http://www.usboiler.net/products/boilers/alpine/
http://www.rheem.com/product/condensing-tankless-tankless-h95-direct-vent-indoor

Anyone here have experience with the Burnham Alpine boiler or Rheem tankless water heaters?  I mentioned that Buderus might be better, but he mentioned that their parts are more difficult to find.  Is this true?

Frankly, I would like to find a burner without all of the electronics so there is less to fail.

Cheers,

John 

Best,

John

[ctviggen]

We have a Buderus oil furnace (with 40 gallon water tank).  Relative to what we had, it's incredibly efficient, even with the water tank (the other oil furnace was an on-demand type).  Think going from four tanks of oil per year to two.  It was expensive,though. We had the Buderus installed by my wife's brother (a plumber).  I don't think he would install this if the parts were hard to find.  But that may also depend on where you live.

[john1970]

We have a Buderus oil furnace (with 40 gallon water tank).  Relative to what we had, it's incredibly efficient, even with the water tank (the other oil furnace was an on-demand type).  Think going from four tanks of oil per year to two.  It was expensive,though. We had the Buderus installed by my wife's brother (a plumber).  I don't think he would install this if the parts were hard to find.  But that may also depend on where you live.

I live in Boston metro area and honestly I think you can find parts for any boiler from some supply house.  I am starting to get quotes in the $7K to $11K price range. 

Best,

John

[putz]

You didn't mention how much efficiency you'd be gaining in the switch. The reason I bring this up is some states are subsidizing energy improvements based on how much energy you would save. New Jersey has a Clean Energy program that we took advantage of when we replaced our 40+ year old gas boiler with a new one. You should check to see what your state has to offer.

[Andrew JC]

We have http://www.masssave.com/ here.

[john1970]

I finally decided to go with the following combination:

1) Buderus GA124 cast iron direct vent boiler
2) Rinnai RL94i tankless water heater.

John

[john1970]

As of May 24, 2013 the gas main is finally installed and the boiler and indirect water tank will be installed mid-September.  I cannot believe it will have taken almost 2 years to finally have my home on natural gas for heat and hot water, but I know that in the end it will be worth it.  Someday, I might write a book (or at least a couple of chapters) on why it look so long....

Cheers,

John