What oil heater should I buy?
February 10, 2009 7:23 AM Subscribe
Help! I need to replace my oil heater ASAP and I don't know where to start. (I know that's not a question - I don't even know enough to formulate an intelligent question)
Yesterday, our oil heater was making an awful smell. We called for service and the guy who came out said that the last guy who serviced the heater had put the wrong nozzle on - causing excessive carbon buildup and that the heater might be ruined. Had another contractor come out to look at the boiler thingy today and he said "This boiler is completely unsafe - you need to get it out of here as soon as you can - like tomorrow". Boiler is 30 years old and we knew it would need to be replaced soon. But, we thought we would have time for some research on cost and efficiency and stuff. Now, that's not an option. Contractor recommended a Peerless heater, but my googling did not reveal the handy Peerless vs. other models comparison page that I had hoped for.
So, I turn to the Mefi masses - please help me figure out what kind of oil heater I should buy.
Yesterday, our oil heater was making an awful smell. We called for service and the guy who came out said that the last guy who serviced the heater had put the wrong nozzle on - causing excessive carbon buildup and that the heater might be ruined. Had another contractor come out to look at the boiler thingy today and he said "This boiler is completely unsafe - you need to get it out of here as soon as you can - like tomorrow". Boiler is 30 years old and we knew it would need to be replaced soon. But, we thought we would have time for some research on cost and efficiency and stuff. Now, that's not an option. Contractor recommended a Peerless heater, but my googling did not reveal the handy Peerless vs. other models comparison page that I had hoped for.
So, I turn to the Mefi masses - please help me figure out what kind of oil heater I should buy.
Google reveals: FurnaceCompare.com!
Knock yourselves out. You'll find a rather extensive list of brands, and if you get model numbers from manufacturer pages you can plug them into that website for a quick comparison.
You can also use that site to find a local heating contractor who can install your desired brand.
posted by valkyryn at 7:47 AM on February 10, 2009
Knock yourselves out. You'll find a rather extensive list of brands, and if you get model numbers from manufacturer pages you can plug them into that website for a quick comparison.
You can also use that site to find a local heating contractor who can install your desired brand.
posted by valkyryn at 7:47 AM on February 10, 2009
When our 70-year-old(yikes) converted coal cast-iron behemoth was finally ready for boiler heaven about 4 years ago, our oil provider recommended a Buderus - I think we have one from this line, and we've been very happy with it.
I didn't pay a ton of attention to how much the oil company salesperson raved about how great it was; of course HE'D be excited by the product he was pushing, but every contractor since then who's had a reason to go into our basement stops and admires the boiler while telling us how great they are, so it seems like we did OK - the price seemed more or less in line with other brands we checked out (somewhere around $4,500 installed), and I'm told that ours is a bit simpler to convert than some others to burn bio-diesel if we ever go that route. Plus it's blue.
posted by jalexei at 7:51 AM on February 10, 2009
I didn't pay a ton of attention to how much the oil company salesperson raved about how great it was; of course HE'D be excited by the product he was pushing, but every contractor since then who's had a reason to go into our basement stops and admires the boiler while telling us how great they are, so it seems like we did OK - the price seemed more or less in line with other brands we checked out (somewhere around $4,500 installed), and I'm told that ours is a bit simpler to convert than some others to burn bio-diesel if we ever go that route. Plus it's blue.
posted by jalexei at 7:51 AM on February 10, 2009
If you really don't know where to *start*, you can call the company that delivers the oil. They'll probably either be able to take a look or know who can. Also, get an electric space heater so that you can stay comfortable until the problem is fixed.
posted by originalname37 at 8:04 AM on February 10, 2009
posted by originalname37 at 8:04 AM on February 10, 2009
I'll second a Buderus, they're very efficient and reliable. The down side is that, like most things, efficiency and reliability costs more.
posted by kuujjuarapik at 9:25 AM on February 10, 2009
posted by kuujjuarapik at 9:25 AM on February 10, 2009
If you have a hot water/steam system, you might want to consider switching to natural gas, if it's available. Cleaner, usually cheaper and no need to have a mini Valdez if your tank springs a leak. If you've got forced air ducts, look into a heat pump or natural gas furnace. Now's definitely the time to think about switching.
posted by electroboy at 10:47 AM on February 10, 2009
posted by electroboy at 10:47 AM on February 10, 2009
Yes, and gas companies will subsidize the cost of a furnace or boiler. Prices start at $499 plus installation (up to $3,000).You still have to find a contractor, but they have lists of people in your area.
Also Angie's list
posted by Gungho at 12:28 PM on February 10, 2009
Also Angie's list
posted by Gungho at 12:28 PM on February 10, 2009
On the conversion to gas, definitely check it out, but I'd make sure you were aware of ALL the potential costs. We looked into it when the 70-year-old boiler mentioned above was on its way out. At the time the gas company was offering free equipment (we'd pay the installation) and we already had a gas line coming in (for the hot water heater and cooking) so I figured it would be a compelling alternative -
The gas rep came to visit and noted that we'd need to have the chimey inspected, and it might need to be relined, and if they couldn't hook to that they'd need to run a duct across to the wall and go out through the foundation. Either scenario pushed the price to where we were more comfortable sticking with oil.
posted by jalexei at 3:47 PM on February 10, 2009
The gas rep came to visit and noted that we'd need to have the chimey inspected, and it might need to be relined, and if they couldn't hook to that they'd need to run a duct across to the wall and go out through the foundation. Either scenario pushed the price to where we were more comfortable sticking with oil.
posted by jalexei at 3:47 PM on February 10, 2009
This thread is closed to new comments.
We had a 25-year-old oil furnace that had similar symptoms. Repair guy said it was pretty bad, could die any time, but fixed it and it ran for several more years. At that time, another repair guy said it could go any minute. So we had their sales guy come out and he was talking $5,000 to put in a new furnace. He said we wouldn't want our heater to go out in the middle of the night and we should put in a new one right away. We asked what, in reality, "would" happen if the furnace died in the middle of the night? He said, just call us and we'll be there in an hour with a portable furnace while they installed a new one. That sounded like a fine option so we did nothing. Furnace ran for another year while we put the house up for sale. New buyers came in, inspected the furnace, said everything looked fine and bought the house.
We never did replace the damn thing despite several doom and gloom predictions.
The moral of our story? They may, may, be overstating the problem to sell you a new heating system. You might want to get it checked out by someone who doesn't sell new heating systems, someone like a certified home inspector.
posted by lpsguy at 7:43 AM on February 10, 2009