# Heating options



## BigKiwiDave

Having not lived in NZ for 20 years, and with a move coming up later in the year, I'm after some advice on home heating. It'll be tough leaving the luxury of one of the best inventions in the world, 'gas-fired central heating'. 

We're putting in 2 heat pumps in a new house, in Christchurch, along with 'some' underfloor heating, but wondered if wall mounted electric heaters, as a top up, or oil-filled electric heaters are the way forward. 

Any opinions valued!


----------



## topcat83

BigKiwiDave said:


> Having not lived in NZ for 20 years, and with a move coming up later in the year, I'm after some advice on home heating. It'll be tough leaving the luxury of one of the best inventions in the world, 'gas-fired central heating'.
> 
> We're putting in 2 heat pumps in a new house, in Christchurch, along with 'some' underfloor heating, but wondered if wall mounted electric heaters, as a top up, or oil-filled electric heaters are the way forward.
> 
> Any opinions valued!


Hi there

We're in Auckland, but find that 2 heat pumps (one in the bedroom and one in the main living room) is fine for us. My son has an oil-filled radiator for emergencies in his room, but has never switched it on.


----------



## anski

BigKiwiDave said:


> Having not lived in NZ for 20 years, and with a move coming up later in the year, I'm after some advice on home heating. It'll be tough leaving the luxury of one of the best inventions in the world, 'gas-fired central heating'.
> 
> We're putting in 2 heat pumps in a new house, in Christchurch, along with 'some' underfloor heating, but wondered if wall mounted electric heaters, as a top up, or oil-filled electric heaters are the way forward.
> 
> Any opinions valued!


Is gas not available in CHCH?, when we moved to Auckland in 2001 we tried various methods for the first 2 winters

1)Oil filled column heater & LPG gas heater (with bottle at back)

2) Then had town gas connected so we could have gas cooking & continous supply hot water so at same time had 2 gas floor outlets installed which we connected 2 large unflued gas heaters. They were good & quick to heat but we found we were falling asleep watching tv every time we used them & put it down to being unflued.

Following year we bit the bullet & installed gas central heating with floor ducts in every room including bathrooms (which dried the towels) AND the central heating installation was NOT that expensive,

Conclusion we now had a warm house within 10 minutes of switching on. The running cost was cheaper than previous heating methods & the whole house was warm!
The year before we left NZ we had insulation installed below house & under roof & this improved efficiency of central heating yet again with thermostat taking longer to switch on.
So I would have no hesitation doing the same again.
By the way I found heat pumps noisy (sometimes when listening to TV or music the background noise irratated me & I found myself turning heat pump off. also they dont really make you feel warm on cold nights. I found this in Cyprus during winter the warm air would feel cold after a while.
Postion house faces is important as well as thermal cutains that extend above, below window door etc.
Lots of advice on energy websites too.


----------



## BigKiwiDave

Many thanks Top Cat, many thanks Anski. I know that gas is available for cooking in Christchurch. I hadn't heard of anyone having their home heated by gas so was under the impression that it may be extremely expensive. Really appreciate both of your comments.


----------



## anski

BigKiwiDave said:


> Many thanks Top Cat, many thanks Anski. I know that gas is available for cooking in Christchurch. I hadn't heard of anyone having their home heated by gas so was under the impression that it may be extremely expensive. Really appreciate both of your comments.


Cost depends how you look at it.
'Heat pumps do not last forever & there is nothing like having the whole house warm & dry.
Central heating will cost more re: installation but I think you will find running costs lower than other methods.
I kept a spreadsheet for power costs in NZ & Cyprus both over 12 month period. 

In NZ gas cooking, continuous hot water & gas central heating which was often on 18 hours a day for an extended part of year due to hubby's medical condition cost NZ$1,200 year.

In Cyprus had free hot water & pool heating for 9 months of year thanks to solar panels, during winter had oil central heating with heat pumps on heat because it was so cold - Cost €1,300 year.

As NZ winters can be unpleasant not by European standards but after being used to comfort it's hard to adjust.

We have spent the last 2 winters in Europe in locations that were not supposed to get cold but poor construction, no insulation & little or no heating have made them unpleasant nights.
Cannot wait to return back to the comforts of our house


----------



## topcat83

anski said:


> ....By the way I found heat pumps noisy (sometimes when listening to TV or music the background noise irratated me & I found myself turning heat pump off. ......


It depends on the manufacturer. We have a Mitsubishi and a Panasonic. The Mitzi is definitely quieter (so it's a shame we have the Panasonic in the bedroom  )


----------



## misterp21

Of course there are such things as gas fires, but here, they are EXPENSIVE! Most people go for either log burners/pellet fires, heat pumps or HRV/DVS (though they aren't heating per se, but they dry your house out so that you can heat it more efficiently). There are 'clean-heat' versions of log burners now too since the Christchurch City Council changed the rules on emissions. We live in CHCH and have a pellet fire in one area that is less used, and a heat pump for the larger part of the house. Our power bill in Winter is usually around $300pm. All I can say is winter sucks, but what helps is to budget for it and maybe even pay extra over summer to off-set the cost...?


----------



## BigKiwiDave

No way!!?? That's HUGE! Thanks for the heads-up. Hoping to harness some, or alot of the 'south-facing' winter sun for the heat , to offset that, assuming that the $300pm bill is largely down to the heat pump, and is the electric bill? Still, good to know. Thanks so much.


----------



## anski

We had combined gas & electric from Mercury got 10% for using them for both & further 10% discount for prompt payment. Ran gas central heating for 9 months of year some days for 18 hours. Had continuous supply gas hot water & gas cooking. House was always warm & dry.
Did not have a clothes dryer!
In summer bill could be around $100 in winter 2008 $350 I think was the highest , husband was recovering from major heart surgery so essential to keep him comfortable.
Over the year we spent $1,200 on power.
Gas central heating if I remember cost $6,000 to install with floor vents in every room. I would have no hesitation opting for this system again. It is clean & efficient. Other methods usually only heat partial home or are expensive to buy wood etc.


----------



## topcat83

We're investigating options for our new house at the moment, and are investigating installing solar panels and an inverter. This will allow us to sell any excess electricity we generate back to the power company. We've worked it out that we should be electricity power 'neutral' over the year. It costs a few thou to install, but on a new house it's looking economic.


----------



## anski

I have been researching different energy options if we decide we build in NZ rather than buy an existing house that may have inefficient methods of heating. These are some of the options I have seen.

This one was a good read for ideas

Solar Energy House, Auckland - Showhome of with unbiased advice.

Energy Efficient Homes | Healthy Homes | Right House

http://www.righthouse.co.nz/yk-files/3167fc6559a5a367deb66d93df7eb328/Central Heating.pdf

Underfloor Heating | Hydronic Floor Heating


----------



## Geordielass

Do you not have radiators in NZ? May be a stupid question but I had to ask as they are so common in the UK.


----------



## topcat83

Geordielass said:


> Do you not have radiators in NZ? May be a stupid question but I had to ask as they are so common in the UK.


They're not so common (but becoming more so). We find heat pumps more practical as you can use them for heat in the winter and cool in the summer.


----------



## Song_Si

anski said:


> I have been researching different energy options if we decide we build in NZ rather than buy an existing house that may have inefficient methods of heating.


Hi; it is not just that they may have inefficient methods of heating, in my exp it's their overall construction that makes them difficult to heat efficiently. And can be so costly to rectify. 

I once had a very stylish looking 1934 house in New Plymouth, purchased from the son of the people who had built it - effectively it had ben a one-owner house with not much modification. High plaster ceilings, not enough windows for natural light, built with nil consideration for where the sun might me at different times of day, heating had been by back-to-back fireplaces in main bedroom and lounge. N underfloor, wall or ceiling insulation. Lovely to look at but a classic in terms of what people say about some NZ homes being cold, damp, draughty and difficult to heat.

In contrast my house from 2001 had featured in a magazine - unfortunately not online - called Healthy Homes it had been built by an English couple using what were at that time the best available design and materials for cosy living. Built on a hillside for sun, natural wool insulation in all walls and ceiling spaces, DVS internal air filtration/ventilation system etc, only thing i didn't like was the electric underfloor heating which wasn't so economical due to high electricity costs.

One thing I remember - we bought it in June - a horrible cold Wellington winter and viewing a house at that time of year was a good opportunity to see it when the weather was at its worst.


----------



## anski

Song_Si said:


> Hi; it is not just that they may have inefficient methods of heating, in my exp it's their overall construction that makes them difficult to heat efficiently. And can be so costly to rectify.
> 
> I once had a very stylish looking 1934 house in New Plymouth, purchased from the son of the people who had built it - effectively it had ben a one-owner house with not much modification. High plaster ceilings, not enough windows for natural light, built with nil consideration for where the sun might me at different times of day, heating had been by back-to-back fireplaces in main bedroom and lounge. N underfloor, wall or ceiling insulation. Lovely to look at but a classic in terms of what people say about some NZ homes being cold, damp, draughty and difficult to heat.
> 
> In contrast my house from 2001 had featured in a magazine - unfortunately not online - called Healthy Homes it had been built by an English couple using what were at that time the best available design and materials for cosy living. Built on a hillside for sun, natural wool insulation in all walls and ceiling spaces, DVS internal air filtration/ventilation system etc, only thing i didn't like was the electric underfloor heating which wasn't so economical due to high electricity costs.
> 
> One thing I remember - we bought it in June - a horrible cold Wellington winter and viewing a house at that time of year was a good opportunity to see it when the weather was at its worst.


Yes I agree, I bought a house in Auckland in a very wet May, & it was the only dry house I viewed. It was built in 1931 stucco & once we fixed the draughts, installed gas central heating & insulation, it was a very comfortable house which gets all day sun thanks to North/East orientation.
However the house is in Auckland & we want to live in Hawkes Bay so will leave our tenants in place enjoying the comfort of our home whilst we hopefully build or buy another one.


----------



## Song_Si

anski said:


> Yes I agree, I bought a house in Auckland in a very wet May, & it was the only dry house I viewed. It was built in 1931 stucco & once we fixed the draughts, installed gas central heating & insulation, it was a very comfortable house which gets all day sun thanks to North/East orientation.


Saw some houses that same winter that I knew were a 'no' withing minutes of going to the property.
I had what they called 'adult-onset' asthma for years and I blame the housing; every 2-3 years I'd end up in hospital for a few days it had such an impact on my life; when we moved to the almost new place in Wgtn after 20+ years of daily preventive inhalers I was able to cut back to Ventolin 'as required; I'd visit friends' houses where they had dehumidifiers running for hours every day and often this would set off breathing problems for me.


----------



## wammers

BigKiwiDave said:


> Having not lived in NZ for 20 years, and with a move coming up later in the year, I'm after some advice on home heating. It'll be tough leaving the luxury of one of the best inventions in the world, 'gas-fired central heating'.
> 
> We're putting in 2 heat pumps in a new house, in Christchurch, along with 'some' underfloor heating, but wondered if wall mounted electric heaters, as a top up, or oil-filled electric heaters are the way forward.
> 
> Any opinions valued!


Hi
My hubby is a central heating engineer and works for a company in Rangiora who supply and fit Gas or Oil fired central heating in the Christchurch area. I know I cant advertise on here but if you want to private message me I'm sure he will have a chat with you regards your best options.
You're absolutely right though-central heating is definitely the best and most controllable for of heating by far!
Hope that helps

Mandy & Tony


----------

