New Gas Connection over 40 meters

[jonawal]

Hi all - i'm about to move into a new house that currently has oil central heating - however, it needs a new oil tank and boiler - before I spend c.£5k I wanted to consider installing gas as an alternative.

Gas is in the road outside the house but the house is 70 meters up a private road -Fulcrum and others have quoted £5k to install gas at the house if i dig the trench,£10k if they do it.

National Grid want £500 just to quote as its over 40m on private land. As an alternative they've quoted £750 to put a boundary meter 40m up the drive - my gse would then have to run the last 30m - however, he is worried about loss of pressure - do you think this is a feasable route and if so what meter should i ask for and what piping should my gse be running ?

The house is 1950s,5 bed, 3,000 sqft and the gas would be running a new boiler and cooker.

Or should I be paying the £500 for a National Grid quotation to run the gas the whole way to the house.

If the cost is c.£5k is this worth it over staying with oil - if I have to put in new boilers for both options and a new oil 2,500 litre oil tank say £2k then effectively the gas pipe would only be costing me an additional £3k.

Advice much appreciated

 

[Jimbob]

Yes I can see why your engineer would be worried about pressure drop. That would be quite a run. The only way you might be able to do it is if you had a medium pressure meter installed midway, but you would require an extra regulator and maybe meter outside the house which would all incur extra cost. If its only an extra £500, I'd go for that option

 

[Jimbob]

Sorry I misread. £500 gets you the quotation. If its only £750 to get half way up your drive, then I would assume the cost of going to the house would be alot more reasonable than £5000? I wouldn't pay that. I would just use that extra money and have a heat pump or biomass fitted.

 

[Ermintrude]

Sorry I misread. £500 gets you the quotation. If its only £750 to get half way up your drive, then I would assume the cost of going to the house would be alot more reasonable than £5000? I wouldn't pay that. I would just use that extra money and have a heat pump or biomass fitted.

If your off gas stay off! Get solar, ground pumps, even a thermal well. Anerobic digester, bio mass. The list is endless. Try and use as much as the free fuel stuff as possible. (Gas is always on the up along with oil.) sun always been free along with ground and air. you will have to use electricity but if you have a good pv system to boot you could be sitting pretty. cooker can go on propane.

Expect to pay 10-15k in short term.... Be off grid as much as possible!

 

[Reg Man]

The cost of connecting up to mains gas will probably not be worth the payback. As the others have touched on, have a look at air source heat pumps, ground source heat pumps. If you can get biomass solid fuel that might also be an option or supplement to heat pumps.

 

[SimonJohns]

I'd go gas

Have the meter on the boundary for £750

Don't get a domestic engineer. Get a commercial. Have a 2" or 3" mdpe pipe rub from the meter to the house and it will more than suffice IMO

Gas is far cheaper than anything else. And it works.


I don't like renewables or green energy. It can be riddled with issues and with gas it will always be there and cheaper to repair if it goes wrong

Where in the world are you.

BTW you will still have to dig the trench to your house for the gas pipe. Just wont cost you 5k to get it put it.

 

[Jimbob]

The issues are only really from young products in our market and mis informed untrained installers in my experience. It will soon be the norm when all installers/specifier/suppliers are used to it all like in other country's.

I would usually say go with natural gas as £/kw it is the cheapest (currently) and the systems are simple, but if connection costs are that high, that would definitely steer me towards heat pumps or maybe biomass

Anyway to the OP, were not trying to sell, just listing alternative that we would consider if we were in the same situation.

 

[SimonG]

I'd stay with oil, but then I'm biased

Simon John's idea is well worth a look I would say.

 

[jtsplumbing]

Think I would go for the gas option, ask what they would charge for connection, if you dug the trench ! (You may even be able to supply the pipe) then think about a couple of solar panels to help with hot water

 

[Reg Man]

Simon John. That is quite a good idea.