Is an Oil Fired Boiler Less Friendly to the Environment?

Is an Oil Fired Boiler Less Friendly to the Environment?

Heating the home can be costly but these costs can be decreased. The impact that oil fired boilers have on the environment is something everyone wants to know now that the focus is on going green and reducing pollution. The modern oil boilers are highly efficient and acceptable as an alternative environmentally-sound system for heating. These are good for homes that do not have a gas main connected to the house. In order to keep the boilers running more efficiently and cleanly though the proper maintenance has to be performed on them annually.

Oil boilers are similar to gas boilers but the rate of emissions is higher but iIn recent years they have been made to burn cleaner. Oil fired boilers are often more efficient with regards to heating water and the home. This means they do not work as hard as some gas boilers and as a result they are slightly better for the environment. The easier it is for the boiler to work the less energy it uses and this means fewer carbon emissions are released into the environment.

The oil fired boiler is popular in areas where natural gas is hard to get. The opportunity to use renewable fuel is also present with an oil boiler. Bio diesel is being added to oil by a number of the large companies now to decrease the dependence that the UK has on foreign oil. These blends do not produce as much pollution as pure heating oil. The drawback, however, is that a retrofit kit is needed for most older boilers and the price of this should be weighed against the cost of replacing the boiler.

Below are a few ways in which you can reduce the impact your heating system has on the environment:

• Vent dampers are the most common addition now being made to older boilers. These keep the chimney from letting the heat out and cold air in by closing the boiler vents when it is not in use. With older models of oil boilers it is probably better to go with a flame retention boiler.
• If the boiler is out of date you may want to replace it with a newer, smaller more efficient boiler. You could consider changing your oil fired boiler for a combination oil boiler.
• You could convert to using Premium kerosene (blue Paraffin) as it is the cleanest burning of the kerosene oils.
• Oil fired burners can be just as, if not more, environmentally friendly than gas boilers due to the ability to use recycled or waste oil in them. When recycled oil is utilised it keeps it from ending up in the landfill from those that pay little attention to what they are doing. Waste oils keep the dependency of foreign oil down the same way oils mixed with bio diesel do. The lack of dependency on foreign oil decreases the risk of oil spills.

When deciding on an oil boiler to replace an existing boiler the size, cost and energy efficiency rating should all be looked at in addition to the impact it has on the environment. A little bit of research will go a long way to helping you get the most environmentally friendly boiler possible.