Oil furnaces - need some education

[OceanBlue]

I have absolutely no experience with heating oil. What can one expect to pay? How much oil do you burn in an average year? (I know this can vary greatly)

Has anyone replaced their oil furnace with ?? Electric? Gas? What are the costs associate with that?

[Norm]

I had one and would never own another. The nozzle would clog up at least once a year and belch black soot into the house :frown: . The old metal tanks scale, even with a filter I had problems. I replaced it with a natural gas furnace and was very happy.

My old house was around 1000 sq ft, and I would use 350 -400 gals a year.

[Chromaflage]

It depends on the type of oil furnace, its age and how it has been maintained. There are some very efficient oil furnaces out there. Some of the older ones are not very efficient and/or are poorly maintained/adjusted and they create more soot that clogs fire boxes, chimneys and nozzles.

[negoc8]

We heat our place with a forced air oil furnace, 4 bed, 2 bath, old house, 1920's partially insulated aprx 2500 square feet. Prior to adding a wood stove we would burn about 400 gal per year. We added a wood stove three years ago and now burn no more than 200 gal per year. It was not a cost factor, just enjoy the whole wood cutting & burning thing. Replacement costs to convert to propane would be about $3500 + or-. The size and condition of the tip in the injector seems to have a lot to do with the efficiency and performance of the unit. I like the temperature of the air as it comes out of the vents, I dislike the smell of diesel during routine maintenance. The bigger problem around here is finding someone to work on the thing.

[Dullhook]

It depends on the type of oil furnace, its age and how it has been maintained.

Good advice. I have a Porter oil wall furnace and with proper maintenance it's been just about trouble free for over 20 years. One of the most important things you need to do is to make sure that the oil is well filtered before going into the pump and nozzle. I put in an adapter that accepts a hydraulic screw-on filter, like an auto engine oil filter, which removes even the most minute particles that could clog the nozzle. The most common problem causing oil furnace failure is a clogged orifice in the nozzle. Most nozzles are .50 in size.

Having an above ground outside oil tank it's a good idea to have a valve on the bottom to drain any water (once yearly) that might accumulate from condensation or filling. This has never been a big problem and rarely has there been more than a half ounce or so to drain out. I have some experience working on oil furnaces and if you have any questions feel free to send a pm.

[iwanttofish]

Is the tank above or below ground?
Have you bought the house yet, if so did you do a soil sample to check for contamination.
How old was the furnace?
Did you do a home inspection?

They can last a long time and put out a lot of heat.

Even if you burn 300 gal that is $900.00 then divide by 12 is not to bad to heat the house for a year.

Mike

[Hare's Ear]

The replacement costs in the previous post are on par with quotes we have gotten. I intend to replace our oil furnace some day. Not because I don't like it, but because of the possible environmental clean up in the ground under our deck (where the tank resides). We don't have any place to put an above ground tank that my wife would find acceptable.

I paid $2.50 per gallon for 460 gallons back in August. I paid $2.98 per gallon the previous year. We get a tune up every 2 or three years. Never had smoke on the house. The only thing I don't like, as previously mentioned, is the diesel smell in the basement after servicing.

The iron cover over the filler cap on the tank reads "Meier & Frank Oil Burner Department." Do you think Macy's would honor the warranty?