cutting winter fuel bills

Stoves & Snow In January

Posted on by Eamonn Healy

Snowy LandscapeThe post Christmas blues can get to all of us in January. Here in Ireland we experienced a very mild month of December, in stark contrast to what some weather forecasters predicted. January is already shaping up to be much cooler, and the first widespread snow of the year turned the country into a winter wonderland.

The kids are absolutely loving it, as always, and the child in me loves waking up to a blanket of white snow covering the hills and trees. Unfortunately, the grown-up in me is less than ecstatic, the grown-up has to worry about getting to work on time, and keeping the house warm. Well, to be honest, with a Boru Stove, keeping the house warm is one less thing this grown-up has to worry about. I can remember the winter of 2009-10 when the temperatures were dipping to around -7 and -8 some nights. During this time the price of oil was climbing too, it was a cold and expensive winter that year.Traffic stuck in snow

I did learn a lesson though. I decided that I wouldn’t be so dependent upon oil, and I had to find a better way to heat my home, than my existing open fire and oil fueled radiators. The cost of fuel and the endless trips out into the freezing night air to refill the coal bucket was not sustainable. This is when I began to find out about stoves and the huge benefits that they have over open fires. At first, I really couldn’t believe that I had not heard more about the benefit of a stove sooner.

Eventually I decided to buy a multi-fuel boiler stove that could heat my living room, provide hot water and also heat radiators throughout the house. The great thing about this was, the fact that I could use the stove in combination with my existing oil fired boiler. The savings available to me quickly became apparent after speaking with my plumber. If I was lighting my stove to settle in for a cosy night beside the fire, I would not have to use my oil fired boiler, the fuel I was burning in my stove would heat the room, the hot water and the radiators throughout the rest of the house. If I was not going to light my stove, or if I was just in from work and didn’t have time to wait for the stove to heat up, I could use my oil fired boiler to get some quick heat into the house.

4kw Boru StoveIt made me a little sick to think of all the money I had been wasting on fuel in my open fire. All that heat had been going up the chimney, when it could have been heating the rest of the house!

If you want to know more about using a multi-fuel stove in combination with your existing oil fired boiler, you should contact your local plumber. Later in the year we will provide a more detailed explanation on this blog of combining pressurised heating systems with open vented systems. The savings to be made on annual fuel costs is tremendous.

If you want to beat the January blues by cutting your fuel bills and keeping nice and warm for the rest of the winter, contact your local Boru Stoves retailer. There are some great bargains to be picked up at this time of year, whether you are new to stoves or just want to upgrade your existing stove, Boru Stoves and our experienced retailer network will be happy to assist.

Cutting Winter Fuel Bills & Stove Efficiency

Posted on by Eamonn Healy

Money BurningIn these turbulent economic times household budgets can be stretched to breaking point. We are constantly hearing news reports in which the average man or woman on the street is having to choose between eating or heating. In this blog piece, Cutting Winter Fuel Bills & Stove Efficiency, we hope to be able to highlight the savings that can be made.

One of the most effective ways that people have found to boost their budget has been to fit a stove. A huge majority of customers that I speak to have been so surprised at the difference that a stove makes to heating their home and the huge impact it has on their fuel bills.

A normal open fire without a back boiler is usually around 20 – 30% efficient. This means that for every €10 you burn in fuel, €7 – €8 is flying straight up and out your chimney! If we take a back boiler into account an open fire might reach efficiencies of around 40 -50%, but that is still losing €5 – €6 in every €10 straight up the chimney, it’s like burning money.

If we look at one of our stoves, for instance the Croi Beag which is a stove without a boiler, it has an efficiency rating of over 83%. So instead of burning €10 worth of fuel and losing €8 up the chimney, you are getting the €8 as heat into your home and less than €2 is lost.

How do Boru Boiler Stoves Match up to Oil Fired Boilers?

The average efficiency of an oil fired boiler is around 67%, the average efficiency of a Boru stove with a boiler is around 76%, the Carraig Mor 20kw being our most efficient boiler stove with an efficiency rating of 77%.

More modern boilers are condensing boilers which are much more efficient than traditional oil fired boilers and are typically around 91% efficient. This seems to be an ideal solution until we take into account the cost of fuel.

Fuel Costs:

Sustainable Energy Authority of IrelandIt can be very difficult to asses fuel costs because supplies of fuel can vary very dramatically in cost and quality. If we work from the latest figures provided by Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland we can see the delivered energy cost of wood briquettes is 8.02 cent per kWh. The delivered energy cost of oil is 9.49 cent per kWh. If we say that the average home in a mild climate takes on average 17,500 kWh to heat annually. Then you might spend around €1,660 a year on oil, compared to €1,403 spent on wood. That’s a saving of €257 a year on heating bills.

Even if we take into account the extra efficiency of the condensing boiler it still works out at a saving of around €60 a year using wood over oil.

Additional Benefits of Wood Burning:

Along with cutting winter fuel bills, by making the switch to wood there are a host of other benefits to be had:

Reduction of carbon footprint, wood harvested from sustainable sources has much less impact upon the environment. The CO2 that is released when burning wood is much less than fossil fuels such as oil and coal and is considered carbon neutral. The CO2 released from wood is part of a natural carbon cycle that is sustainable, provided that the trees are harvested properly and replaced.

Reduction of over-dependence on fuel imports, because wood is an indigenous resource, by switching to wood we are reducing our need to import fuel from abroad. Ireland currently imports 86% of its fuels, making us the most import dependent country in the EU.

Secure energy supply, as an indigenous and self-sufficient source of energy, there is no risk of cut off in supply.

Improve the local economy and create jobs, sustainable sources of fuel such as wood provide a valuable source of employment, especially in remote rural areas.

Rebuilding & Sustaining natural habitats, a forest is home to countless species of plants and animals. Supporting sustainable forests ensures that these habitats and the plants and animals that make their home there are protected for future generations. These habitats also give us natural protection from erosion and flooding.

A forest in winter

There is more than just a financial saving to be had by switching to a wood burning stove, cutting winter fuel bills could have a greater impact than just putting more money in your pocket. All Boru Stoves are available in multi-fuel or wood burning options, all our stoves are 100% made in Ireland and all our stoves come with an extended 5 or 6 year warranty. Contact a local Boru Stove retailer for more information and start cutting your bills and saving the planet today!