Oil change
It may cost a lot up front, but as prices rise, more are considering switching to gas heat
(Robert E. Klein Photo for The Boston Globe)
Steve McLeish of Norwood is converting from oil to gas heat. The average winter gas heating bill in Massachusetts is $1,593. The average winter oil tank heating bill is $2,345.
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Oil to gas?
There's no easy answer to the conversion conundrum, according to a top state energy official, but with heating oil at historically high prices, an increasing number of Massachusetts homeowners with oil tanks in their basements are pondering the switch.
"The issue of getting your home converted from oil to natural gas is kind of complicated right now," said Philip Giudice, commissioner of the state's Department of Energy Resources.
But there is less uncertainty about the prices of natural gas and oil this coming winter - they are going to remain high, according to the latest predictions from the Energy Information Administration, a statistical arm of the federal Department of Energy. Heating oil is expected to average $4.34 a gallon compared with $3.31 last season; natural gas prices will average $15.58 per thousand cubic feet, up from $12.72.
Giudice does not endorse one fuel over the other, but for now, he said, gas appears to be the "better economic choice." According to his office, Massachusetts residents who heat with oil spent about $2,345 last winter, while natural gas users paid about $1,593.
Giudice said homeowners must weigh the up-front costs of converting - which range from $5,000 to upward of $10,000 - against how many years it would take to recoup the money through lower heating bills. Consumers also need to compare that number with the cost of other improvements they could make, such as adding insulation, upgrading appliances, installing weather stripping, or replacing windows.
As costs go up, spokeswomen for utility companies
Meanwhile, since the beginning of the year, NStar has received about 1,200 customer inquiries about converting, up from about 200 in the same period in 2007. Company estimates show that this year NStar expects to complete more than 800 conversions to natural gas heat - more than six times the number in 2007.
"We've been really busy," NStar spokeswoman Caroline Allen said, adding that her company thinks this could become a record year for conversions. "The lines are already long, and if you are looking to switch over for this winter it's time to get started."
Still, the conversion numbers are small when measured against census data from 2006 showing that of the 2.7 million households in Massachusetts, almost 900,000 heated with oil and more than 1.1 million relied on "utility gas."
Even so, Kevin Brennan, whose family has operated Brennan Plumbing and Heating in Arlington through three generations, says oil-to-gas conversions are dominating his business.
"Most of our work right now is conversions," said Brennan, whose company typically handles one or two conversions a summer. So far this season it has already completed about 20, he said.
Westwood homeowner Lee Anne Klemyk recently made the switch, through another company.
Already in the middle of a major renovation, Klemyk decided to convert after figuring she had already spent $2,300 this year to heat her 1,500-square-foot, three-bedroom home. When she moved in 2 1/2 years ago, Klemyk said, the annual heating oil bill was about $1,400.
"If the prices were not increasing so dramatically and if there were some end in sight to the increases, I probably wouldn't have thought so seriously about changing so many components of my home," Klemyk said. The work cost her about $10,000 for a new furnace, duct work, and air conditioning component.
Local installers say an oil-to-gas conversion can take anywhere from a day to several days, depending on the home. Workers generally need to measure a home to determine its heating requirements. The oil burner must be removed and disposed of, and any necessary duct work and chimney liners need to be installed to accommodate the new gas burner.
Rebates and discounts are available for customers who opt for an energy efficient heating system, whether oil or gas. For example, GasNetworks, a collaborative of natural gas companies in New England, offers some customers a rebate of up to $1,000. Other deals also are available for oil heat users looking to upgrade their systems.
Some state officials and oil company executives cautioned consumers to do some research before shelling out thousands of dollars for a gas conversion - especially since data show that heating oil has historically been a better deal than natural gas, based on price and power output.
Despite high prices, Michael Ferrante, president of the Massachusetts Oilheat Council, a trade association, said he believes oil could regain the economic advantage it once had over gas. He encourages oil heat users to consider upgrading their old heating systems rather than converting to natural gas. "There is no question" that a new oil heating system is as efficient as a gas system, Ferrante said.
"The payback is the wildcard," he added. "Not knowing the [winter fuel] rates right now, it's really hard to assess whether that conversion will pay you back over a certain amount of time."
Larry Chretien, executive director of the nonprofit Massachusetts Energy Consumers Alliance, recommends homeowners get an energy audit, as well as a minimum of three bids for any work they decide to have done.
"It sounds like a cliche, but it's sort of like having a doctor give health advice over the phone without seeing the patient. The reality is that every house has a different kind of envelope, which is the roof and the walls and the basement, and where people are in there and [what they are doing while] trying to meet their comfort needs," Chretien said.
He said upgrading an old heating system - whether gas or oil - or making other home improvements might be a better bet than converting.
"Whatever you've got, make it as efficient as you can," said Chretien. "By being efficient you can cut a third of your cost off, regardless of your heating fuel."
Erin Ailworth can be reached at eailworth@globe.com.
