Heat pump or stick with oil??? at the crossroads

RIBuckethead

Hi all,



I'm in the middle of a power plant move to free up 1 of two chimney's for a wood stove. I am moving the oil boiler and at the same time I need to replace the superStor indirect since it is now leaking slightly (installed in 1993!!!). My problem is trying to decide between just replacing the old superstor with a new one, and keep burning oil all summer for hot water, or to do away with it and get a hybrid electric 80 gal to handle the domestic HW. The unit would be in my unfinished basement which needs a dehumidifier all summer long so I thought it would be a great choice since it pulls heat from warm humid air. Downside is it's a pretty expensive unit and I can't find many people who can vouch for them. A buddy of mine installed one (60 gal State) and says it's been working great. I figure with the 80 gal tank and low flow head on the 1 shower we have (might add more in the future) it would do a fine job with our 5 person family. Any thoughts on this matter would be greatly appreciated seeing as I need to make the decision yesterday.



thanks!

STEVEusaPA

my 2 cents.

What kind of heat do you currently have? Baseboard/Radiant? I personally would stick with the boiler and the new indirect storage tank.  I think it's the way to go for a few reasons.

1.  You're really not burning that much oil in the summer, if piped and controlled properly.

2.  I love my baseboard/and radiant heat way more then the forced air system, for many reasons--comfort, less drafty, less dust, etc.

3.  Depending on where you live, and what kind of heat pump, AND the cost of electricity, when/if the heat pump has to go to emergency (back up) heat, the meter will start spinning.

However, if you're going to switch, you do have the opportunity to take advantage of much of the new (yes expensive) green technology available to you (geo thermal heat pump, solar hot water heating, etc.).

I guess you always have to balance comfort vs. price, and what will everything cost you now, as opposed to the life long costs.

RIBuckethead

baseboard

Heat is baseboard. I'm starting to wonder if the setup is improperly dialed because from mid april to now we used almost a full tank of oil. Old tank and the aquastat on it might be toast? I hear it kick on all the time.

STEVEusaPA

hard to tell....

without looking at it, and without all the info.  But if you said your storage tank is leaking (same goes with hot water faucets), and cold water is constantly entering the tank, then the water temp is dropping and causing more frequent calls for DHW production