ᐅ Oil Heating versus Electric Infrared Panels

Hello everyone,

I found a sublet option:
a single-family house that has been vacant for some time and is scheduled for a major renovation in 2023

with an oil heating system
(and an empty oil tank)

I mainly want to make ONE room comfortable and keep it at a pleasant temperature
(and occasionally use the kitchen/bathroom for a few hours)

Heating oil costs around 1.25 to 1.30 €/liter (about $1.40 to $1.45 per liter) in the area.
I believe 1 liter of oil produces about 8 kWh of heat?
That would be about 16 cents per kWh of heat...

The local electricity provider’s price list shows—besides a basic monthly fee of around 20 €/month (about $22/month)—a consumption-based electricity rate of 16 cents per kWh
(this is 2 km (1.2 miles) west of the border in a neighboring country)

At the hardware store, I see “infrared heating panels”—450 watts for 80 euros or 600 watts for 100 euros

Does anyone have experience with these?
Are they at least a practical alternative to the oil heating system during transitional seasons?
(which is probably quite inefficient if you only heat ONE room in the house when the outdoor temperature is around +10°C (50°F) or +5°C (41°F)?)

Due to the lack of a heat pump, I heated my newly built house with infrared panels at the beginning of winter. I had one 800-watt panel upstairs and a 400-watt panel downstairs. Additionally, I used a 2000-watt fan heater downstairs.

With this setup, I managed to keep the house at about 12–14°C (54–57°F) when the outside temperature was 5°C (41°F). At 0°C (32°F) outside, the indoor temperature was around 10–11°C (50–52°F).

Once, when the fan heater didn’t operate overnight due to some safety feature triggering, the temperature dropped to 8°C (46°F) inside (with outside temperatures just above freezing).

I couldn’t test how this would perform in a smaller room, but I suspect that depending on the insulation, 1000 watts might not be enough and you may need 2000 to 4000 watts in total. Be careful not to connect everything on the same circuit. A standard electrical line won’t handle that for very long, especially in older houses.

If the house still needs renovation, I would keep all rooms at 16°C (61°F). That way, it won’t cost much more if you raise one room to a comfortable 20°C (68°F). The heating will probably have to handle the hot water anyway.

Infrared heating is especially worthwhile in the bathroom to increase the temperature from 16°C (61°F) to 22°C (72°F) while showering. I would use oil heating for the base heating, especially if it’s only for one or two winters.

Be careful with an empty tank: after filling a previously empty tank, I would wait two days to allow any stirred-up sludge to settle.

Deliverer schrieb:
If the house still needs renovation, I would keep all rooms at 16°C (61°F). ...

Why?
What is the benefit?

As far as I know, the owner/landlord left the house empty and unheated last winter ...

Walls become damp if they are not kept warm. This causes them to deteriorate faster and increases the risk of mold.

However, this largely depends on the building materials used and the ventilation of the property, and I am not an expert. If I were you, I would at least research this topic.

I assume you have more factors to consider.

Once the heating system is operational (i.e., water is circulating in the pipes), you need to at least heat all rooms with frost protection. Based on experience, thermostats set to frost protection usually maintain a temperature of about 7-10°C (45-50°F). This can become costly during severe winters if you only need to use one room.

If the heating circuits are separate, you can reduce this further by lowering the flow rate. However, there is a risk of overdoing it, which can cause radiators or pipes to freeze and burst. (I have experienced this myself.)

If you drain the radiators, they will likely start to rust from the inside. If you plan to keep using the system, this is generally not a viable option.