Choosing how to heat your home is a big decision that can have an impact on your lifestyle and your finances for many years to come. Homes are often heated via gas central heating or, in recent years, eco heat pumps, but for many rural homes in Ireland, these are not practical options. Home heating oil is often used by rural homeowners who cannot access piped gas, and multi-fuel stoves are another popular option for many people.
Home Heating Oil vs. Multi-Fuel Stoves: Which is Right for Your Irish Home?
Choosing how to heat your home is a big decision that can have an impact on your lifestyle and your finances for many years to come. Homes are often heated via gas central heating or, in recent years, eco heat pumps, but for many rural homes in Ireland, these are not practical options. Home heating oil is often used by rural homeowners who cannot access piped gas, and multi-fuel stoves are another popular option for many people.
Here, we’ll look into the benefits and challenges associated with home heating oil and multi-fuel stoves and consider the factors that might influence your decision. Of course, every home and every homeowner is unique, and your preferences will also play an important part in the decision-making process.
How should you heat your home?
Your heating system will need to keep your home warm and be affordable to use when you need it throughout the year, and there are also other considerations, such as energy efficiency and reliability.
Let’s take a look at these different elements in turn:
- Home heating oil is usually made from a kerosene blend that is safe to use in the home and provides a cost-efficient heating system. It is a great source of fuel for homes in areas where mains gas is unavailable, and it can provide consistent and reliable heat even in large homes. A system that runs on home heating oil will have a single boiler unit that heats the entire property via a system of radiators, as well as running your hot water system. A multi-fuel stove cannot usually heat your whole house, unless it is connected to a back-boiler system, but provides localised heat, which can be helpful in your main living area.
- Simply turning on your oil-fuelled boiler will provide you with warmth and hot water very quickly, and your system will be easy to programme using a timer so that you can set it to come on whenever you wish. Your heating system will need regular maintenance to keep your oil tank in good condition and ensure it is functioning optimally. A multi-fuel stove will also require regular maintenance, and your chimney should be swept routinely by a professional, who will check that it is safe. Your stove will also need cleaning after each use, and the ash will need to be removed and disposed of.
- Home heating oil is a popular choice in Ireland because there are so many rural areas that cannot be serviced by mains gas supplies. Oil-fuelled heating systems can provide an efficient heating solution where mains gas is unavailable, including in very remote areas. A multi-fuel stove gives you the option of burning a combination of different fuels and is not reliant on mains access or fuel deliveries, so you can make choices based on cost and availability.
- Lifestyle considerations. Home heating oil offers a solution that will work at the touch of a button, with a single boiler that heats radiators throughout the entire property, just like a mains gas system. This is easy and creates an immediate warm environment, but cannot compare with the comfort factor of a traditional fire offered by a multi-fuel stove. A multi-fuel stove, however, enables you to heat one main living room at a lower cost, without having to heat your entire home. However, heating your home with a multi-fuel stove can raise health concerns, since harmful particulates can be released into the atmosphere if you are burning coal or wet wood.
- If your home is heated with home heating oil, you will need to order this from your supplier in good time to ensure that you do not run out when you need it most. It is important to be aware that the price of oil will fluctuate throughout the year, depending on global markets and demand, and that you will save money by ordering in times of lower demand. If you opt for a multi-fuel stove, you will still need to plan and order your fuel to ensure you don’t run out, although it may be possible to source wood locally or even grow, coppice and store it yourself if your property is suited to this. You will require a dry storage area to store logs or turf if you are burning these in your multi-fuel stove, and these can take up a lot of space.
- Environmental impact. Many people worry about the environmental impact of using fossil fuels such as home heating oil in their homes, and it is worth noting that many more environmentally friendly options are being explored, including oil blends that contain a higher percentage of ‘green’ components. A multi-fuel stove can burn several different fuels, including the more environmentally friendly eco-briquettes, which are a lower-carbon option than home heating oil. You can source seasoned wood from sustainable sources, and this can be a good option to reduce the impact of your home heating system on the planet.
- It can be expensive to install and maintain oil tanks and oil-fuelled boilers, but these should last for a long time. Tanks and heating systems that run on oil must be maintained on a regular basis and inspected for leaks to protect the local environment as well as your property. A bonded tank is the safest option, and we recommend these to our customers. Multi-fuel stoves run on a variety of fuels, so you can research the costs and environmental impact of each when you are choosing the best options for your home.
Combination Heating
As we have explored above, there are pros and cons to both home heating oil and multi-fuel stoves. Many homes enjoy the best of both worlds by combining the two options, installing a central heating system fuelled by home heating oil and a multi-fuel stove to give greater flexibility and aesthetics.
Combining home heating oil and a multi-fuel stove can be a great decision because you can adapt your heating set-up to suit the weather and your situation. For instance, if you tend to use just one room in the evenings, it can work well to use your multi-fuel stove at this time and to use your radiators only when you want to heat your whole home. This can save you money and conserve your home heating oil for when you need it.
Relying on a combination of home heating oil and a multi-fuel stove to heat your home can give you peace of mind, because you always have a backup option if you run out of one type of fuel or if your oil delivery is delayed. Having more than one method of heating your home gives you the security you need, and you can vary your options to suit your preferences and the season.
What is the Best Heating System for Your Home?
Deciding on the best type of heating system for your home can feel stressful, but our guide can help you to narrow down the options and choose the best one (or two!) for your home and your lifestyle. If you want the convenience of a low-maintenance heating system that can provide heating for your whole house, a system that runs on home heating oil could be the best choice. However, if you are looking for a more flexible solution that gives you ambience as well as localised heat, a multi-fuel stove might be a better option for you.
If you are able to combine the two, in a hybrid system that incorporates a multi-fuel stove alongside a central heating system that runs on home heating oil, this will give you a versatile way to keep you and your family warm and cosy all year round, as well as creating a relaxing atmosphere. The key to success with either method of heating your home is to plan, order your fuel in advance and maintain your system correctly so that it can provide you with consistent and reliable heat whenever you need it.
Order Your Home Heating Oil in Ireland
At East Cork Oil, we are committed to delivering the best heating oil solutions for domestic and commercial customers across the Southern counties of Ireland. We source and deliver fuels to homes, workplaces and vehicles, including agricultural, marine and road diesel, and we can help you to find the best options for your property and your vehicles all year round.
We understand that life doesn’t always go to plan, and we can help you with emergency ‘out of oil’ delivery services for those last-minute emergencies. We offer flexible deliveries and payment plans so that you can budget for your fuel costs throughout the year. We supply a full range of oils, lubricants, replacement tanks and smart tank monitoring systems, and we can help you to keep your heating system in great shape. Just give us a call today to discuss your requirements.
