i'm looking to buy a house. what is the best heat source? gas, oil, electric, radiators/steam heat or another?

Question

as in "best" i mean cheapest. :)

Answer 1

buy in a hot country! like england it`s well hot!

Answer 2

I have to agree with the geothermal be the cheapest in the long run. I have had electric, gas, oil, and even wood in previous houses I have lived in and I can say that the most expensive was electric but it has it's benefits such as how clean it is compared to the other sources of heat I stated besides geothermal. Doubt if you will find a house with geothermal heating already built in though, that would be the only big problem. Cost of having it installed.
Natural gas prices along with heating oil take rises in prices almost every 4 months where I live at now and this is the way I heat my home(natural gas). To keep my home somewhat comfortable at about 70*F I spend roughly $350 a month, not a good price and it goes up 30% more in another month, ugh.
I actually liked burning wood but it can cause problems with people who have allergies and also is very dirty, you need to constantly clean the walls and ceiling(Natural gas and oil can be dirty as well). Gave me that rustic back to Mother Earth feeling when burning wood. Would love to have a fireplace now that way I can occasionally burn wood again, especially during the holidays to really get me into the spirit of things better.
Least expensive to most expensive:
Wood(least expensive if you know someone that will let you cut the wood yourself/have your own property to do so or can buy it really cheap but also the dirtiest)
Natural gas
Heating oil
Electric(most expensive but cleanest as well)

Answer 3

"Best", isn't always the cheapest, and vice versa! As you can read from the answers so far, there are too many variables that go into choosing a heating source, to tell you with certainty what the cheapest and best is in your pursuit of a new home's heating system. My personal experience is natural gas. Reports on the rising cost of home heating oil this year because of the rise in overall oil per barrel prices indicate that natural gas Will be less expensive than oil. If you have the money to install one of the "cutting edge" and "greener" sources mentioned like Geo-thermal or solar, etc. you will leave less of a carbon footprint. I've seen shows on HGTV where the homeowners have installed ambient heating in the floors and ceilings (water tubes with hot water run through the flooring and ceilings), and this seems to be very economical and efficient over the long run. Ultimately, I think it's cost in the long term that will determine cheapest. My less convoluted answer would be NATURAL GAS.

Answer 4

In general fuel oil has been less expensive than natural gas for 17 of the past 20 years. However, it's those 3 years where it's been more expensive that homeowners look at when making decisions. There are exceptions to this such as areas where NG is produced form municipal wells, etc. LP prices vary greatly depending on location, amount of use, etc. Only about half the states have any fuel oil availibility. In the other states NG, LP and heat pumps are common.

Answer 5

If you want cheapest then technically you'd have to go with firewood, renewable energy source and in some cases it won't cost you a thing unless you need people to cut the trees down or whatever.

I know wood isn't a feasible idea for your whole house but to be honest I'd have to go with electrical with propane in a close second. With electrical you can not only get zone heating as others have said but you can also organize your bills better by just having that one electrical bill and not one for say electrical AND heating oil. Propane is actually a good fuel source but again rather expensive and it takes millions upon millions of years to replace.

Answer 6

you can put your natural gas and your electric bills on a budget billing plan. my gas is $93.00's now but that is ok all of the extra credit will be used when it gets really cold outside. my electric is also on the budget plan $52.00 . they will balance out so you can catch up if you need to in the summer. i use gas to heat my home. temp. is at 68*F. you can buy a heated mattress pad for the bed. you can also buy electric blankets. thermals , sweats slippers, and flannel shirts are good to. I do not like electric heaters. I had a new one shoot out sparks from it while in use. snuggling up is also a good way to get warm. also get a thermometer for you to check the temperature. last year when the furnace had trouble I looked at the thermometer and saw that the temp was low. i checked again in a half hour and it got lower and still did not hear the heat come on. found out the ignition switch went. then about a week later the circuit board went. thank god the gas company came out both times to check it. it cost us a lot of money to get it fixed. I hope this year every thing is ok.

Answer 7

I've been in the Hvac Industry for 30 years so let me give you some good advice that others may not be aware of. The current refrigerant used in to days heat pumps is going to be phased out. The newer refrigerant is not compatible in older systems. So instead of replacing that outdoor condensing unit like you did in the past entire systems will have to be replaced. I would stay away from heat pumps at least for now and hopefully some of these new laws will be changed. At least give the industry time to live with some of these new and unavoidable problems for awhile so they can be worked out. Gas forced air is your best bet with a good humidifier, cheaper to run can be set back and recovers quickly. Hot water baseboard probably the most comfortable but if set back does not recover as fast. Stay away from oil if possible, Electric way to expensive to run but usually the cheapest to install.

Answer 8

Depends on the fuel pricing in your area...forced air natural gas is usually the cheapest and most efficient but gas-fired hot water/radiant is a good choice too especially for people with breathing/asthma problems as it does not blow around dust particles like forced air systems. More piping requirements and radiators but no duct work to install. Electric is much higher than any other method. Oil heat pricing can fluctuate a lot especially when diesel fuel demand is high...they are basically the same fuel. Many people with oil heat fill up their tanks when prices are low to offset a fluctuating market.

Answer 9

Heat pumps (electric) are easy to use and maintain they are also safest. They aren't as expensive to run as old baseboard electrical heating. Gas is ok, but can be a pain, costs about as much as electric now, and frankly makes me nervous. I'd stay far away from oil. I have had heat pumps in this house since we built it in 96. Other then the first one croaking in 2003. They have been great. We are looking at new houses also. I only consider ones with heat pumps. If it is a large house, make sure there is dual heat pumps.

Answer 10

It would depend on what part of the country you're in. In CA, gas was always cheaper and most homes here are heated with gas. Electric was always the most expensive. BUT, who really know now with the energy prices climbing sky high. Of course Solar is the best with the energy companies paying you back for a Solar energy home.

Answer 11

Natural gas is by far the most economical with out daily maintenance. Natural gas also runs your water heater ,stove and dryer much cheaper No one has mentioned that natural gas (forced air) has duct work and a blowwer installed allready which are also needed for air conditioning ,humidifiers and air filters. Radiant and steam heat dont and you'll pay extra for them if you install air conditioning . Heat pumps in northern climates have proven themselves problematic and have a tendancy to ice over and stop functioning in extreme cold. Wood burners are the cheapest if you dont mind the continual daily maintenance of going outside ,getting logs, cleaning ashes or waking up to very cold house.