I just received some interesting news today

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lsayre
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Post by lsayre » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 3:31 pm

I received a call from a utility which is planning to run a natural gas line down our street, and intends to have it fully in and operational sometime between September and December of this year. And I was just about to order our coal for the year. Now I don't quite know which way to turn.


 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 3:43 pm

Neither would I Larry??????????????????? Not much help I know!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 
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Post by tsb » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 3:50 pm

Do both. Always good to have options.

 
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Post by nepacoal » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 4:06 pm

Coal doesn't go bad... Order it and if you do get the gas boiler up and running for this winter you'll have coal for backup...

 
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Richard S.
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Post by Richard S. » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 6:30 pm

But Larry, you can't weigh gas and do all these calculations. You'll be lost soul.

I'd find out how much they are charging to put the line in, I know around here they will install the line for free but you need to use it for X length of time. I'm not sure if there amount of gas you need to consume. Put in a gas stove. :D

 
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lsayre
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Post by lsayre » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 6:36 pm

Richard S. wrote:
Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 6:30 pm
But Larry, you can't weigh gas and do all these calculations. You'll be lost soul.

I'd find out how much they are charging to put the line in, I know around here they will install the line for free but you need to use it for X length of time. I'm not sure if there amount of gas you need to consume. Put in a gas stove. :D

They are a cooperative, and we would become members of the co-op. The line will actually go in at no charge to anyone on the street. I couldn't believe it. My only charge (and ditto for all of those on my street) will be to run a NG line from the house to their line at the street, and to install a NG boiler/HWT. They have already worked out a preliminary estimated annual NG cost for me which comes in at about $200 less than I'm spending now for coal.

Their claim is that NG is so cheap right now around here that they can up-charge the current co-op rate to where for the first X number of years I will only save an estimated $200 annually over coal, and then after their line install charge is finally paid off over a period of years (via the streets cumulative up-charges) the cost of NG to me will actually progressively fall, as the initial up-charge is then to be progressively removed until it is gone and only the co-op rate remains. More specific details were promised to follow.

I will be a lost soul. No doubt there. But I'm not getting younger... And the house is actually too big for just my wife and I, so we need to consider resale value and resale potential.

 
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Richard S.
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Post by Richard S. » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 7:04 pm

lsayre wrote:
Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 6:36 pm
My only charge (and ditto for all of those on my street) will be to run a NG line from the house to their line at the street,
That can be quite expensive Larry, the gas company here will eat that expense as long as you are going to use it. The gas is relatively cheap and should remain cheap but unlike coal it does not have that historical price point that has always been relatively stable.
I will be a lost soul. No doubt there. But I'm not getting younger... And the house is actually too big for just my wife and I, so we need to consider resale value and resale potential.
Have to do what is best for you. I know when I was delivering coal the two most common ways I lost customers was they got too old or died. If you put in a gas boiler put in a nice coal fired cooking stove. They have them with side gas burners. :D


 
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lsayre
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Post by lsayre » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 7:11 pm

Richard S. wrote:
Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 7:04 pm
If you put in a gas boiler put in a nice coal fired cooking stove. They have them with side gas burners. :D
I seriously like this idea.

 
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Post by Richard S. » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 8:08 pm

You can burn pea in it too. Could always set the a new boiler up as dual system and keep the AHS for emergencies or if the price of gas gets jacked through the roof. If you have the stove you also have a reason to have the pea on hand.

If you wife is looking over your shoulder she probably wants to strangle me. LOL

 
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Post by Freddy » Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 9:09 pm

Options are good.... Coal takes some work. If for some unforeseen reason you can not do the work of coal.....be it for two weeks, or two years..... it sure would be handy to have the gas to fall back on.

 
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Post by Rob R. » Fri. Jun. 21, 2019 6:22 am

lsayre wrote:
Thu. Jun. 20, 2019 3:31 pm
I received a call from a utility which is planning to run a natural gas line down our street, and intends to have it fully in and operational sometime between September and December of this year. And I was just about to order our coal for the year. Now I don't quite know which way to turn.
Talk to the Co-op folks and explain that you normally pre-buy your "fuel" for the season, and don't want to get caught with nothing pre-bought, and no NG. If it were me, I would go ahead and order the coal. If NG happens to come down the street in the fall, sign up at that time and defer the equipment installation until next summer.

I don't really see much point in keeping the coal boiler around for a backup. You already have a coal stove, and the boiler requires electricity to operate. Do you still have your electric boiler? That would make a nice backup system for the rare event that the NG grid does down, or there is another polar vortex and the the NG pressure drops too low.

 
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lsayre
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Post by lsayre » Fri. Jun. 21, 2019 7:05 am

I still have the electric boiler. Everyone is offering good advice, and I thank all of you!!! I'm not sure if it would be easy to sell a coal boiler in N/E Ohio.

 
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Richard S.
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Post by Richard S. » Fri. Jun. 21, 2019 7:43 am

Rob R. wrote:
Fri. Jun. 21, 2019 6:22 am
I don't really see much point in keeping the coal boiler around for a backup.
Since it's already there it's not difficult to keep it. If anything I'd keep it as safeguard against price spikes in the gas. That is unlikely due to the abundance but you never know.

As I already noted if I knew I was going to be living in my Grandmother's house permanently I would of kept the coal boiler. As it is now it's a pretty big hassle to reinstall it.... I'll see how it goes, perhaps a small hot air stoker in my future. I wish I had the room, I'd put in a coal/gas range myself.

 
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Post by Richard S. » Fri. Jun. 21, 2019 7:45 am

lsayre wrote:
Fri. Jun. 21, 2019 7:05 am
I still have the electric boiler. Everyone is offering good advice, and I thank all of you!!! I'm not sure if it would be easy to sell a coal boiler in N/E Ohio.
Might be surprised, the Van Wert is going to a bar in New York somewhere. I don't have the details yet but hopefully I'll get some pictures of the restoration. Perhaps if it's close Rob can go caress it for me. :D

 
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Post by McGiever » Fri. Jun. 21, 2019 9:46 am

Not exactly on point, but standby/backup generators can be run on NG very nicely...


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