Alternative (electric) heating experience?

DJT2021

2 years ago

There have been a few discussions about heating systems so I’m sorry to raise another one…but it’s an ever developing topic! I wondered if anyone had experience to share on alternative electric heating solutions at all? We are removing 1970s-80s storage heaters (x6 for a 3 level Victorian) and researching replacement options. Our initial thought was to replace with gas central heating but the cost is high (c.£12k) and it seems a bit mad to spend that putting in a gas system given the direction of travel. The ASHP route is not a sensible solution for us given (low) levels of insulation here. We are looking at companies like: Climastar, Trusted Electric and Sunflow which offer thermostat controlled heating with various different ‘cores’ (soapstone, silicone etc). It all feels a bit “salespersony” at the moment, and I wondered if anyone had any experience or thoughts on an alternative to gas (that isn’t an ASHP) that they could share please? Feel free also to tell me that you still think gas, with some future proofing for whatever will replace it, is the way to go!! Thanks so much, as always.

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Comments (4)

Jen
2 years ago
I’m in a similar situation - needing to replace ancient night storage heaters in a victorian house. In my case ASHP is not an option because there is nowhere to site the unit, and there is no gas supply to the village, so I’d also love to hear of people’s experiences with alternative forms of electric heating.

What IS the difference between the different types of cores in terms of heat retention, comfort and efficiency? How about infra-red panels? It’s true that the sales talk often seems unhelpful: “100% efficiency” and so on is pretty meaningless, since by most definitions any electric system will be 100% efficient, but which type of heat feels most comfortable and creates least draughts?

I do have a biofuel stove to supplement the heating, which is reasonably economical and provides a lovely gentle warmth… great in the spring and autumn, but not a primary heat source in the depths of winter!
DJT2021
Original Author
2 years ago
Hi Jen - I’ll share if I learn anything as my research continues (or what we go with so that you can learn from my mistakes 🙂). Hoping others will be able to contribute too. There are so many buzz words out there…!
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I looked into air source heat pumps for a house that I didn’t buy in the end. I concluded that if a gas boiler is possible then it’s initially an easier and cheaper option but an ASHP is a better option long term because although there is a higher acquisition and installation cost the grants reimburse this and long term the running costs will be much less than oil. Grants pay out for 7 years- most people claim to have clawed back the set up costs after 5/6 years and then enjoying lower fuel bills are much better off. There are a couple of things to bare in mind- that the initial cost is high, that the grants reimburse people without gas better than those with gas, to get a grant you have to have a wet system which means radiators or wet under floor heating (so you can’t have a hot air system as they would have in lots of other cold countries). You would lose a bill for oil but gain a bigger electricity bill..... overall it will be cheaper by some margin. You might have to upgrade your electrical fuse board. People who have an ASHP complain that it doesn’t get radiators as hot as a conventional boiler which means that they have upgraded radiators too which is an extra cost although possibly one you would be considering if the whole system is old (it does seem that you can get new and smaller radiators that give out more heat than a big old one). You need to have somewhere for the ASHP outside (they are about the size of a fridge). And lastly it seemed to me that an ASHP provides hot water at a lower temperature than a conventional boiler which is why so many people also put panels on their roof in order to offset the cost of boosting the hot water- again this is an extra acquisition cost. My research is now a year old and possibly out of date so if you like the idea of an ASHP you need to find an engineer who specialising in this type of installation to talk you through how it would work for your house.
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Jonathan
2 years ago
It seems to me that you can either have a conventional boiler that heats water and pumps it around radiators, or a warm air system or some sort of electrical heat source in every room. (Assuming an ASHP is not practical and installing a wet underfloor heating system is too disruptive and oil is undesirable).

When I looked at this I concluded that if I were starting from scratch I would have chosen a warm air system which seems to be the heating of choice in colder countries like Canada and in Scandinavia. Warm air heating does seem to work faster than radiators and modern advances in filters mean it’s no longer associated with dust or allergens as it was in the 70s. You also free up wall space although the ducting will need consideration.

Whether or not you decide on radiators or hot air the thing to consider next is the fuel source. It seems to me that with gas price rises the gap between gas and the more expensive electricity is narrowing.

It does however seem that more powerful gas boilers are available than electric ones and the water flow rates are better so if you choose a combi then you can get a good flow rate for your morning shower. You might still conclude you prefer electric boilers (apparently they last longer and don’t need the regular servicing of a gas boiler). If you go the electric route then you might decide on more than one boiler, a tank of hot water rather than heating it on demand and thermostats in each room make it more efficient.

Whatever you decide- best of luck
Jonathan
2 years ago
One minor extra consideration…… there are currently grants for people to swap inefficient heating systems for modern technology like ASHPs…. But these grants are only available for wet systems (so radiators).

So if you choose a hot air system and a gas boiler, current policy suggests that you may be unable to claim any future grants to swap away from gas. Personally I don’t think these incentives will be available until we’ll after alternative heating system become mainstream

Alternative (electric) heating experience?

Comments (4)

Jen

DJT2021
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Alternative (electric) heating experience?

Comments (4)

Jen

DJT2021Original Author

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Jonathan

Jonathan

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CONNECT WITH US

DJT2021
Original Author