Thank you in advance for your advice and suggestions!
I live in a Tudor built in 1929 based in Northern New Jersey. I have an oil steam boiler and radiators for heat (see below "Cooling and Heating Stats" and "Cooling and Heating Diagram" for more details). Last year I used 1,100 gallons of oil while keep the house VERY frigid and my wife wants to move:
My goal is to spend less than $5,000 a year on oil/gas, hopefully, a lot less, and have a warm house where and when I want it to be. Adding 100K BTU natural gas-forced air furnaces to my two central air zones may be the most cost effective way to achieve this goal. Based on my calculations, If I ran zone 1 and 2 for the same number of hours as I ran the steam system last year, I would lower operating costs/fuel by 80%+ per year or $4K (see below Savings Oil Steam vs Forced Air table). Further, I could keep the upstairs warmer when sleeping than downstairs and vice versa during the day, driving more savings. Here are my questions for you:
SAVINGS OIL STEAM VS FORCED AIR:
COOLING AND HEATING STATS:
Steam Heating System
Cooling System
COOLING AND HEATING DIAGRAM:
I live in a Tudor built in 1929 based in Northern New Jersey. I have an oil steam boiler and radiators for heat (see below "Cooling and Heating Stats" and "Cooling and Heating Diagram" for more details). Last year I used 1,100 gallons of oil while keep the house VERY frigid and my wife wants to move:
- The first floor was 63/64, if we were home, during the day and 56 at night (we used space heaters in the bedrooms).
- We put up a blanket in our family room archway and put a space heater in there on weekends and at night. We kept the heat in the high 50s or 60 when doing this.
- When we set the thermostat to 68 the first floor is 4-6 degrees warmer than the second floor (68 tmp 1st floor, 62 tmp 2nd floor).
- We still used $5,000 worth of oil to “heat” our house last year. If my wife controlled the thermostat, we would have used $15K; the first floor would be 73 degrees, and the second floor would be 67.
My goal is to spend less than $5,000 a year on oil/gas, hopefully, a lot less, and have a warm house where and when I want it to be. Adding 100K BTU natural gas-forced air furnaces to my two central air zones may be the most cost effective way to achieve this goal. Based on my calculations, If I ran zone 1 and 2 for the same number of hours as I ran the steam system last year, I would lower operating costs/fuel by 80%+ per year or $4K (see below Savings Oil Steam vs Forced Air table). Further, I could keep the upstairs warmer when sleeping than downstairs and vice versa during the day, driving more savings. Here are my questions for you:
- What can I do to make the steam system operating cost (fuel) comparable to a forced air system (oversized furnace, switch to a natural gas furnace, etc.)? (see below "Cooling and Heating Diagram")
- Assuming #1 is possible, how can I fix the temperature differential and radiators that never turn on? A plumber quoted me $1,000s for rebalancing, is this my only option and it will it actually do anything?
- Will it cost less than the mid-teens to achieve #1 and #2?
- Do you think the two zone natural gas-forced air route is a good alternative? Do you agree with my calculations in the Savings Oil Steam vs Forced Air table below?
SAVINGS OIL STEAM VS FORCED AIR:
COOLING AND HEATING STATS:
Steam Heating System
- Heating
- Brand: Weil-Mclain
- Model #: 80 Series 1, #380
- Steam Output: 867 Sq. Ft
- Install Year: 2015
- Fuel: Oil (2.4 Gallons Per Hours)
- Type: Single Pipe
- Flue Type: The flue pipe is metal that enters a masonry flue
- Oil tank location: 275 gallons in basement and above ground; installed 2015
Cooling System
- Zone 1: covers basement and 1st floor with floor registers
- Zone 2: second floor only wit celling registers
COOLING AND HEATING DIAGRAM:
source https://hvac-talk.com/vbb/threads/2244186-HELP-ADVICE-Spending-A-Small-Fortune-on-Oil-for-Steam-Heat?goto=newpost
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