How to heat a wooden house economically. Methods for economical heating of a private house without gas

A dwelling in the winter is associated with a cozy warm house, where it is pleasant for every member of the family to be.

Solution of the problem

If you are faced with the question of how to heat a country house without gas, then you should consider the most common methods of heating. Today it is electricity.

The inability to connect to the central gas supply line makes the owners of country and private houses think about how to economically heat a house without gas. There are a great many options for units and systems for heating today, but most of them are able to convert the energy of fuel combustion into heat by distributing heated air indoors through gas.

If you are thinking about how to heat a house of 200 sq. without gas, then you need to consider other ways to solve this issue. Many owners of private houses have recently been trying to switch to autonomous systems that are of higher quality, more profitable and more efficient. If you are a resident of a low-rise private house or have a summer cottage, then you can heat these buildings using steam heating, stove heating using different types of fuel, stone, and autonomous electric.

How to heat a house without gas and electricity, you can find out below.

Heating without communications

You can install heating without communications and pipes, while the system will consist only of heating devices. When choosing a scheme with radiators and difficult highways, living will become comfortable not only in one room, but throughout the house.

Use a variety of types of fuel - electronic, liquid, solid. It is worth remembering that its traditional types can not in all cases be called the cheapest and most convenient.

Basic home heating methods

If you are thinking about how best to heat a house without gas, then we recommend resorting to electricity, which acts as the easiest way to organize heating.

If we talk about profitability, then electricity is at the very last place in the rating. As a fuel for such devices, you can use diesel, which is also quite expensive. Thus, 1 Gcal of heat will cost 3,500 rubles. In this case, you will have to deal with an unpleasant odor that will form near the heating unit. Despite the shortcomings, diesel fuel is becoming an alternative affordable type of fuel for many consumers.

You can also heat your home with coal, which is a cheap form of fuel. With it, heating will cost four times cheaper compared to the above method. Thus, one thousand rubles will have to be paid for 1 Gcal of heat.

If you are faced with the question of how to heat without gas, then you can use peat, which comes in the form of briquettes. It will cost about one and a half times more than coal.

The most common option for heating a house is to use firewood, which costs little, but it is not always convenient to use them, but they will burn out much faster than coal.

For appliances that are installed in the house, you can use pellets, they are granules created on the basis of wood waste. You can get 1 Gcal of heat by paying 1500 rubles. At the same time, this type of fuel is very convenient to use for boilers in which fuel can be supplied automatically.

Heating without gas. Alternatives

With a permanent or temporary absence of the types of fuel to which a person is accustomed, it is possible to arrange heating at home without gas and even without electricity. According to practice, if these technologies are replaced, it will be possible to save significantly.

Considering different ways of solving the issue, you may prefer fireplaces and stoves that run on coal or wood. When choosing this option, it will be necessary to build the appropriate brick structures or purchase a ready-made unit. This will help organize an environmentally friendly way of heating, and some models of stoves allow you to cook food thanks to the presence of an oven and a hob.

If you are faced with an urgent question, how can you heat a house without gas, then we recommend that you follow the experience of some owners of private dwellings who resort to original technologies. They are heated by their own source of electricity. In this case, you can use one of two ways to generate electricity autonomously.

Heating from an autonomous source of electricity

How to heat a house without gas and electricity, you will learn by carefully reading the article. If you want to save money, while still being original, you can heat yourself with solar energy. To do this, you need to buy solar collectors that are able to convert the energy of the sun into heat. At the same time, you can use an autonomous heater that works without electricity. Initially, you will have to spend money on the purchase of appropriate equipment, but during operation you will receive light, as well as heat, almost for free.

Are you still thinking about how to heat a country house without gas? You can also use the technology that involves wind into heat. To do this, experts recommend purchasing a ready-made device that is capable of converting mechanical energy into electricity. Many home craftsmen assemble such devices on their own. It is worth noting that such a unit is quite simple in execution, you will need to make a windmill by connecting it to a battery and a generator. Such methods of obtaining heat, according to modern summer residents, are extremely beneficial for country houses in areas where there are no gas pipelines. This is especially true for rarely visited properties.

Heating without a boiler and pipes

The heating system can be equipped with a boiler, to which, as a rule, a structure of radiators and pipes is connected. At the same time, communications heat several rooms at once, which depends on the power of the device. For a country house, this is the most relevant solution, because there will be no boilers and pipes.

In summer, you can use one heat source, for example, a brick or metal stove is suitable, which will heat two adjacent rooms. Quite often, fireplaces are used with this technique.

If we are talking about an old Russian house, which is built on the principle of a five-wall, then one heat source, for example, a stove, will be enough for it. It is best placed in the center, between two adjacent rooms.

Heating based on a heat pump

If you are trying to solve the question of how to cheaply heat a house without gas, then you can use a rather interesting technique that does not involve the use of fuel. The technology is implemented using the operation of a unique unit called a heat pump.

Device and operation

The heat pump consists of tubes that are filled with freon, as well as several chambers, namely a heat exchanger, a throttle chamber and a compressor. This device will work by analogy with a refrigerator. The principle of operation in this case is based on liquid freon, which passes through tubes lowered into the ground or a reservoir. There, in winter, the temperature does not fall below plus 8 degrees. Freon under such conditions begins to boil, for this it needs only 3 degrees of heat.

Rising up, the substance, which becomes gaseous, enters the compressor chamber, where it is significantly compressed. As you know, if you compress any substance in a limited space, this leads to an increase in its temperature, so freon heats up to 80 degrees.

Giving off the generated heat through the heat exchanger of the heating system, the mass passes into the throttle chamber, where the temperature and pressure decrease, thereby freon turns into a liquid. At the next stage, he goes into the depths to warm up and repeat the cycle again.

Still not sure how cheap it is to heat a house without gas? You can apply this rather effective technology, for the implementation of which, of course, you will need electricity. However, it will be consumed in a disproportionately smaller amount compared to direct heating of the coolant.

Varieties of heat pumps

If you are thinking about the question of how to cheaply heat a house without gas, then it would not be superfluous to consider the types of heat pumps that will be needed to equip the heating system using the technology described above. Models of this equipment differ in the method of heating freon, that is, in the source of low-level heat.

If the house has a surface reservoir, then it is best to choose a water pump that is designed specifically for this. This type of device is also suitable for groundwater. On sale you can find air and earth pumps. The name of the unit includes the type of coolant in the installed heating system. Thus, the passport for the device must contain the following words: "ground-air", "ground-water" or "water-water".

Heating a house without gas using electricity

Quite often, owners of country houses are faced with the serious question of how to cheaply heat a house without gas. The most common heating method is the one in which electricity is used.

Depending on financial possibilities, you can choose installations and equipment that will be able to provide maximum heating.

Electric units are available in the following varieties: fireplaces, fan heaters, underfloor heating systems, infrared heating, and convectors. Popular "warm floor" systems are often used for heating residential premises, if there is a need to heat the house without using gas. They are installed not only on the floor, but also on the surface of the walls, as well as the ceiling. For a country house, the most relevant solution will be fan heaters, which in a short time increase the temperature inside the premises to an acceptable level.

Use of electric boilers

When deciding how to heat a house without gas inexpensively, be sure to consider electric boilers as an option. This heating system will be more complex in execution, but at the same time the most effective. You will need to purchase and install a boiler that will heat the water to the required temperature. After that, the coolant will circulate through the heating system.

Considering it as a heat source, there are many advantages, among which are the following: the ability to heat a home in a short time, ease of use of equipment, the ability to adjust the level of heating, as well as installing a heating system at any time, which allows heating without gas.

The use of solid fuel boilers

When deciding how to heat a private house without gas, you may prefer a solid fuel boiler. Especially this heating option has become popular in European countries. This type of solid fuel units is able to provide economical heating, as well as ease of use. Such devices work not only on wood, but also on pellets, coal, and also peat. Heat will be supplied through the pipeline thanks to the water, which acts as a heat carrier. This method of heating for a long time allows you to maintain the required temperature inside the premises, all this is ensured due to the rather long burning of fuel in just one load.

Conclusion

After you have learned how to heat a house without gas inexpensively, you can implement one of the ideas presented above. It is important to determine exactly which of them will be optimal in a particular case.

Efficient home heating system.

The costs of private homeowners for the maintenance of the house are already quite high. That is why the question is so popular, the cheaper it is to heat a house, the answer to which will save your budget.

Why is it profitable to heat the house yourself?

In terms of heating, the owners of country houses were more fortunate than urban residents. After all, the owners of cottages can turn on the heating in their house at any time of the year, since they do not depend on a centralized heating system. Other advantages and benefits include:

• the ability to turn on the heating in the house at those moments when it is necessary.
• the ability to adjust the temperature to the desired level.
• the possibility of self-selection of the heating option (solid fuel, electricity, gas).

However, here the main question arises - how to economically heat a house and what heating method is considered the most profitable? This is what we have to figure out.

What is the best way to heat a house - how to decide?

To understand how to heat a house inexpensively, you need to answer a few important questions:

• Will you live in the house permanently or only a few seasons a year?
• To you quality is more important heating or the financial side of the issue?
• How much can you spend on equipping all the systems you need?

Important: no one will give a universal answer to the question of how to economically heat a house. It all depends on various factors: energy and fuel prices, the cost of purchasing and installing equipment, and a number of other factors. However, having familiarized yourself with the options for heating, it will be much easier to make a choice.

Stove heating and its features

The stove is considered the most profitable way of heating.

Considering options for how it is profitable to heat a private house, one cannot fail to mention stove heating, which has not lost its relevance over the years. Installing a stove in a house is a difficult job, so it should only be trusted by professional specialists. However, the correct installation of the furnace is the guarantor of its long-term operation.

They heat the stove with wood or coal, and therefore “fuel” should be stocked up in advance so that it lasts for a long time. A lot of heat is given by dry logs of hardwoods, which include beech and oak. Wet pine also burns normally, but there will be little heat from it in the house.

The main thing to remember is that the oven requires maintenance. So, you can not do without cleaning the chimney and permanent removal of ash.

To keep the rooms always warm, you need to constantly throw firewood, while observing all the necessary safety measures. Otherwise, a fire cannot be avoided.

To reduce the risk of fire hazards, it is better to line the floor near the stove with iron, but it is not recommended to line it with parquet or linoleum. If a spark strikes such a floor covering, a fire may occur.

Heating with a fireplace: is it profitable?

Fireplace heating is similar to stove heating, but it has some differences: it will not work effectively to heat the house in this way. The fireplace is most often installed only for beauty, since its heat is enough to warm the room where it is installed.

We can not talk here about the economy. If you are interested in what is more profitable to heat the house, you can safely say that not with the help of a fireplace. Despite the fact that the fireplace is powered by wood or coal, it consumes a lot of "fuel", but almost no heat is given off. Thus, it should only be installed in conjunction with some other type of heating equipment - so to speak, for the soul.

Water heating system

The water heating system will allow you to profitably heat the house.

Today, more and more often they say that a fairly popular method is to heat the house efficiently with the help of a water heating system. However, here you should immediately make a reservation - the heating bill itself may be small, but you will have to spend money on installing equipment, laying pipes, installing batteries, a tank and a pump. In addition, the cost of heating directly depends on the equipment.

To do this, you need to understand the operation of the system. So, there should be a boiler with the function of heating water, which then goes through pipes and enters. After a while, the water cools down and goes back to the boiler, where it is heated again. This system works in a vicious circle. In some cases, you can not do without a special pump when supplying fluid on a forced basis.

Many people are interested in how it is more economical to heat a house with a water heating system, because it is known that it can work on various energy sources. That is why the equipment is usually divided into:

• electric boilers;
• gas equipment;
• solid fuel boilers.

When answering the question of how to economically heat a house, it is worth stopping at gas and solid fuel boilers, since the cost of "fuel" in this case is quite acceptable. Electric boilers can be quite expensive due to the cost of electricity.

Use of heaters for heating

Modern heaters are a very efficient and safe method of heating rooms. Especially if they live in the house not all the time, but several seasons a year. The most profitable option is the use of oil coolers, which store heat for a long time and consume a small amount of energy.

Thus, in order to determine which type of heating suits you best, you must first examine all the available options, weighing their advantages and disadvantages, the economic costs of installation and operation. Do not forget to choose the heating option based on the time spent in the country house. After all, if you live in the country only in the summer, a fireplace with a stove is enough, but if you live there in the winter, you cannot do without a high-quality heating system.

As a result of the steady increase in the cost of energy carriers, the demand for economical heating naturally increases among the owners of private houses. The fact that the vast majority of dwellings were built in the Soviet era and in the early 1990s also plays a role. Then people did not think about how much this or that energy carrier costs and how to heat the house, having low incomes. Now it is important for the owner of a country cottage to figure out which heating is cheaper before organizing one at home.

What heating is more profitable in the Russian Federation

Before determining the cheapest way to heat, we list all the energy sources available to residents of the Russian Federation:

• various types of solid fuels - firewood, briquettes (eurofirewood), pellets and coal;
• diesel fuel (solar oil);
• used oils;
• main gas;
• liquefied gas;
• electricity.

To figure out which heating is the cheapest, you need to find out how much each energy carrier can release heat and how much it will result in, and then compare the data. To determine the most economical heating will help the table, which contains the results of the calculations:

Note. The prices in the table are taken for Moscow and updated as of July 15, 2019. Due to constant increases in energy costs and currency fluctuations, the figures presented lose their relevance over time.

Anyone can perform such a calculation by substituting in the table the heat load on the heating system of their building and the cost of fuel in the region of residence. The calculation algorithm is as follows:

1. Column No. 3 contains the values ​​​​of the theoretical heat transfer per unit of fuel, and column No. 4 - the efficiency (COP) of heating equipment using this energy carrier. These are reference values ​​that remain unchanged.
2. The next step is to calculate how much heat actually enters the house from a unit of fuel. The calorific value is multiplied by the boiler efficiency divided by 100. The results are entered in the 5th column.
3. Knowing the price of a unit of fuel (column No. 6), it is easy to calculate the cost of 1 kW / h of thermal energy received from this type of fuel. The unit price is divided by the actual heat transfer, the results are in column No. 7.
4. Column No. 8 shows the average heat consumption per month for a country house with an area of ​​100 m², located in middle lane RF. You must enter your heat consumption value for the calculation.
5. The average monthly heating costs for housing are indicated in column No. 9. The figure is obtained by multiplying the monthly heat consumption by the cost of 1 kW obtained from various types of fuel.

The table shows 2 types of firewood commonly available for sale - freshly cut and dry. This will help you understand how profitable it is to heat a stove or boiler with dry wood.

Analysis of calculation results

The calculations carried out show what is the most in 2019 for private houses Russian Federation is still provided by natural gas, this energy carrier remains unrivaled. Consider the fact that gas-using equipment is relatively inexpensive, and is quite efficient and comfortable to use.

When using condensing boilers, efficiency can be increased by another 5-6% compared to conventional gas heat generators. True, condensing equipment will cost a lot (30-50% more expensive depending on the model).

The problem with gas in the Russian Federation is the high cost of connecting to existing pipelines. In order to economically heat a home, you will have to pay from 50 thousand rubles. (in remote regions) up to 1 million rubles. (In the Moscow region) for joining a gas pipeline.

After learning how much the connection costs, many homeowners are thinking about how and with what to heat their home. There are other energy carriers listed in the table:

1. Firewood dried and wet. According to column No. 9, it is noticeable that burning good dry wood is much more profitable than fresh, albeit purchased inexpensively. Wood-burning heating equipment is quite affordable for a wide range of users.
2. Burning briquettes, pellets and coal can also be attributed to cheap ways of heating a private house without gas, their cost is about the same. One clarification: automatic pellet and coal boilers are more expensive than conventional ones (1.5-2 times).
3. Electric heating at night rate. Given the minimal cost of equipment and its installation, it is quite possible to heat with electricity cheaply, but only at night. A suitable option for both a country house and an apartment.
4. Used engine oils occupy a middle position between cheap and expensive energy sources. But their burning is associated with certain difficulties, which will be discussed later.
5. Heating with liquefied gas can no longer be attributed to profitable heating methods. Especially if you take into account the cost of a gas tank and its installation, only a summer house can be heated with cylinders.
6. Diesel fuel, liquefied gas and electricity at a daily rate are the most expensive energy carriers in the Russian Federation, and it is not possible to organize economical heating with their help in the short term.

The use of purely electric equipment for round-the-clock heating of the house cannot be called profitable, since the cheap nightly rate is valid for 8 hours a day, and the rest of the time you will have to pay the full rate. So heating with electricity alone will not work out cheaply.

The cheaper it is to heat a house in Ukraine

Due to the increase in the price of firewood in 2019, the overall picture with the cost of heating in Ukraine looks very interesting. The layout reflects a similar calculation table:

Note. Electricity tariffs are indicated on the basis of 2 conditions: electric heating is arranged in the dwelling according to all the rules and energy consumption does not exceed 3000 kWh per month.

The first place in terms of cheap heating in Ukraine is still occupied by dry, used at night. But due to the rise in price, their cost is almost equal to the price of natural gas, which has fallen in price by 5-10% (in the current conditions, it is not easy to voice the exact figure 😊).

Consider this point: the 2019 table shows average fuel prices. Pellets and briquettes of the worst quality can be bought cheaper, and electricity and gas cost the same everywhere. So, energy carriers are arranged in the following order (from cheap to expensive):

• electricity at night rate;
• main gas;
• dried firewood;
• pellets, sawdust briquettes;
• freshly cut wood;
• waste oil;
• coal-anthracite;
• electricity at a daily rate (with consumption up to 3600 kW/month);
• liquefied gas;
• diesel fuel.

It is impossible to predict the size of tariffs for gas and electricity in Ukraine due to the unstable economic situation. It is unlikely that energy resources will become significantly cheaper, subsidy payments are decreasing every year.

On the issue of supplying main gas, Ukrainians are in the same position as Russians, whose houses are not connected to gas pipelines due to the high cost of the service. Both have to burn different types of solid fuel or use electricity at night.

Comparative analysis by other criteria

In addition to the purely economic calculation of the cost of heating, there are other factors that influence the choice of energy carrier. For example, it is difficult for an aged pensioner to chop and carry firewood to the boiler room. Someone does not like the smell of diesel fuel or dirt from coal, and someone does not have the opportunity to store a supply of pellets or briquettes. That is, it is wrong to choose fuel for heating only from the point of view of economy. Additional criteria need to be taken into account:

• comfort during operation;
• the possibility of warehousing;
• frequency and cost of maintenance.

Nuances of operation

It is most convenient to use electricity for heating, although it is difficult to classify it as an economical energy source. The electric boiler does not need supervision, the system is fully automated. The unit is easy to control remotely, and the boiler room is quiet, clean and free of unpleasant odors. An important point: heating electrical installation, which greatly simplifies and reduces the cost of installation.

Electric heaters and boilers are the cheapest heating devices, heat generators using other fuels are much more expensive

In addition to the high price, electric heating has another disadvantage. Not every private house has sufficient electrical power or a limit has been set that does not allow the use of energy for heating. And the connection of units with a power of more than 6 kW requires a 3-phase input with a voltage of 380 V.

It is almost as comfortable to operate boilers that burn natural and liquefied gas. But they need a chimney and good ventilation of the furnace room. Burning diesel and used oil is no longer so comfortable, because an odor inevitably appears and periodic replenishment of the fuel container is required. In this regard, a diesel heat generator is similar to a pellet one, but the latter wins due to the absence of odors and dirt.

The champion of inconvenience is the wood and coal boiler, which requires constant attention and exercise. With the most economical way of heating with wood in the boiler room, burning smells and dust mixed with dirt cannot be avoided (this is especially true for coal). An exception is an automatic coal boiler, which operates on the principle of a pellet boiler, but it also needs to periodically replenish the bunker.

Automatic boilers: pellet (pictured right) and coal (left)

About fuel storage

The nuances of warehousing and storage are easier to indicate in the list:

1. Electrical and gas system heating of a private house operates from external sources, storage is not needed.
2. For reliable operation of any solid fuel boilers, a supply of fuel is needed, respectively, it is necessary to organize its storage. You will have to make a firewood shed under a canopy or a warehouse in a barn.
3. The stock of diesel fuel and working off also needs to be stored somewhere and, preferably, outside the residential building. It is necessary to buy and install a container of sufficient volume.
4. The most difficult thing is to organize storage with independent heating with liquefied gas as an alternative to natural gas. The cost of an underground gas tank and its installation will quickly make you forget about economical heating at home.

Putting a gas tank is not affordable for everyone, but constantly carrying cylinders to refueling is hard work

There is another, cheaper way to store liquefied gas - in cylinders. But “thanks” to the frequent replacement and refilling of cylinders, comfort when operating a propane boiler is equated to exercises with wood when loading a solid fuel heat generator.

Equipment service

Electric heating installations practically do not require maintenance (check and cleaning once every 2 years). If it weren’t for the draconian daily tariff, then with the help of electricity it would be possible to organize an “economical smart home” system. More often you will have to service gas boilers, they require annual preventive cleaning of the heat exchanger and chimney. But here you can save money if you clean the unit with your own hands, as described.

Due to the low quality of diesel fuel, diesel heat generators will need to be cleaned as they become dirty, which can happen several times per season. The same applies to waste oil boilers, and the cleaning process is very dirty. Faced with similar problems in the middle of winter, you will think twice if you need economical heating for work.

It is advisable to clean the smoke pipes with the firebox of the boiler on wood and pellets once a week, and the ash pan - daily. When working on damp wood from the combustion chamber, it is important to remove soot and tar more often until they have completely boiled over.

After a comprehensive analysis, we can draw the following conclusions about the choice of economical heating of a private house:

1. Residents of the Russian Federation, whose houses are connected to gas mains, can continue to sleep peacefully - they will not find a more economical way of heating. Unless it is good to warm the dwelling in order to reduce fuel consumption. In the short term, natural gas will remain unrivaled.
2. The cheapest heating without mains gas is the combustion of solid fuels. But for the sake of financial gain, you will have to give up the time and effort spent on loading firewood and maintaining equipment. In this case, it is worth paying attention to the solid propellant itself one of them.
3. With financial capacity best option economical heating - pellet boiler. If you have little space for storing pellets, then the issue is solved by periodically supplying pellets during the season, although the purchase price will then increase.
4. The best results in terms of efficiency are obtained by a combination of 2-3 energy carriers. For Russia, the most popular pair is solid fuel and electricity at a nightly rate. For Ukraine - electricity at night and natural gas during the day (including subsidies and without exceeding the limit of 3600 kW).
5. To endure dirt and odors in the boiler room is possible only if you get used oil inexpensively. Like diesel fuel, mining is not the best option for a residential building, except to place the equipment in a separate building.
6. Residents of the Russian Federation with incomes above average can afford to heat their homes with liquefied gas, for the sake of comfort. In Ukraine, this method is practically not considered as very uneconomical.

Combination of a wall-mounted gas and electric boiler, the second one serves as a backup (night) heat source

At the moment, when energy prices tend to European ones, the insulation of private houses is becoming increasingly important. This is also a way to get economical heating, because with small heat losses it becomes possible to constantly use an electric boiler with a water heating system or local electric heaters, which is very convenient.

It is realistic to provide a cheap and efficient heating system. The electric convector is built on the principle of natural air circulation. From the heater, warm air moves upwards, thus stimulating the movement of air inside the room, and ensuring uniform heating. However, the convector is effective only in a warm climate, when the temperature does not fall below 10-15 degrees.

pros

• No forced air blowing. Even in the cleanest home, there are solid particles that lie on surfaces. By artificially blowing warm air out of a heater, this dust becomes part of the air we breathe. Natural air circulation is not so active, therefore, dust does not rise into the air.
• Small size with sufficient power. The heating elements of convectors heat up quickly, converting electricity into heat with an efficiency of up to 80%. In addition, there is a system of operation in different modes, as well as thermostats that allow you to work not constantly, but only when the air temperature drops.
• Mobility that allows you to move the convector around the room, to places with maximum cold supply.
• The possibility of creating a heating system exclusively with the help of convectors or using them as an integral part of a more complex heating system.
• The electric heating element does not heat up more than 100 degrees, and the body - 60 degrees. They have an increased level of protection against moisture, which allows the use of the convector in the kitchen and bathrooms.

Minuses

• The disadvantages of electric convectors is the installation of heaters in every room of the house.
• In addition, if you turn them on at the same time, then there is a possibility of exceeding the limits of permissible power.

However, the minuses can be turned into pluses by installing a relay for turning on the heaters in turn. The relay will allow you to create a stable temperature in the house, reduce energy costs and stay within the allowable power. There is one more argument in favor of a system of convectors - they will not fail all at once. Replacing one or two appliances without losing heat is not difficult.

In the photo there is an electric convector from Nobo, Norway

Method 2 - tubular electric heaters

Heat is transferred from a tubular electric heater to a liquid-based heat carrier. Usually, water and oil are used as a coolant, sometimes antifreeze. The principle of the device of heaters is the same as that of electric kettles, therefore they are also called heaters and oil radiators. In fact, this is a boiler placed in a vessel with water. The efficiency of such devices is quite high, and heat loss for heating is minimal.

pros

• The undoubted advantages of tubular heaters include their safety, reliability of operation and versatility of use.
• They can be used in both gaseous and liquid media.
• Not explosive, and not afraid of vibrations and shocks.
• Tubular heaters are available in a variety of design solutions, which allows you to economically heat a private house with electricity without violating the aesthetics of the interior.

Minuses

Heating elements have a high cost due to the expensive metals that are used in production. Since scale forms on the tubes, it is necessary.

A tubular radiator is a thin-walled metal tube with a spiral inside, so if you do not need particularly high temperatures, then you need to take a heater with carbon steel tubes. If the device must produce a consistently high temperature or work in an aggressive environment, then you need to take a device made of stainless steel.

Pictured is a do-it-yourself tubular electric heater

Method 3 - warm floor

As the only source of heating, they are chosen to free up usable area, i.e. arrange heating without the use of radiators. In addition, the uniform distribution of heat in the room helps to reduce dust in the air. I recommend buying electric floors in the form of heating mats - this will greatly simplify installation.

Method 4 - electric boiler with heating element

Popularity is determined by their safety, low cost and reliability. Most consumers stop at heating element boilers - they are much cheaper than electrode and induction boilers, and they are easy to maintain.

However, due to the use of a thermoelectric heater (TEN), such heating cannot be called the most economical. In addition, before buying, I recommend clarifying the operating mode of local power networks - perhaps the networks will not be able to cope with the load you need and the purchase will be in vain.

Pictured is an electric boiler KOSPEL, Poland

Method 5 - induction boiler

This is a transformer with two types of winding. The resulting eddy currents follow a short-circuited coil, which is the boiler body. In this case, the secondary winding receives energy, which is converted into heat, which heats the coolant.

Induction boilers quickly heat up the house, can operate at low voltage and do not contain parts that fail. The efficiency of such a boiler is almost 100% and does not depend on the period of operation.

The photo shows an induction boiler EPO Evan for 9.5 kW, Russia

Method 6 - electrode boiler

Inside there are electrodes, which act as a heating element. When current passes through a liquid, heat is released. This means that in electrode boilers there is no actual heating element on which scale could form. The absence of scale will greatly facilitate operation.

Electrode boilers are highly reliable and operate much longer than tubular heaters. In addition, they are small in size, which is very convenient for a small residential building. The disadvantages include high requirements for the liquid used as a coolant. Water must be subjected to special treatment. Often, antifreeze should generally be exclusive - from the device developer.

In the photo, the Galan electrode boiler, Russia

Method 7 - infrared heaters (most economical)

Infrared heaters are considered the most economical of all types of electric heaters. They do not need heating elements and pipes with water. Infrared heaters heat objects, not the room. Then the air is heated from the heated objects. If an electric boiler can be compared with a kettle, then an infrared one can be compared with a microwave.

Infrared panels are especially popular. They are installed on the ceiling or on the walls of residential and industrial premises. Since the heating area is increased, the room becomes warm faster than usual. Such a panel can be used as an independent source of heating or as an addition to existing system. The infrared heater is well combined with electrode boilers. For example, an infrared heater can only be turned on in spring and autumn, when it is too early to turn on the main heating, or when it suddenly gets cold outside.

Pictured is a GROHE infrared panel, Germany

conclusions

1. It is generally accepted that heating a house with electricity is not a cheap pleasure. This, of course, is true, if we mean only payment by tariffs. However, the cost of equipment, as well as the cost of its maintenance and repair, must be added to the price of heating.
2. If we compare bills for electricity, firewood, coal, pipes, boilers and other equipment, we can conclude that private electricity heating is cheaper than stoves and other systems alternative to gas heating.
3. In addition to money, there is another argument in favor of electric heating - it is time saving: turn it on, leave it and forget it. The only downside is a sudden power outage.

Watch the video below on how you managed to make cheap heating with electricity of a large private house.

Content

As you know, the most efficient energy source for the heating system of a private house is natural gas. In addition, modern automated boiler equipment makes the use of gas simple and as safe as possible. But how to provide cheap heating at home, if in the foreseeable future there is no way to connect the house to the gas main?

The cheaper it is to heat a private house - we are looking for ways

Principles for choosing an energy carrier

Economical heating of a private house is based on the cost and availability of the coolant. When choosing, one should be guided not only by the current situation (for example, the opportunity to get coal or diesel fuel at prices below the market average or receive woodworking waste for free) but also to assess the prospects sensibly.

If the house is without gas, you need to choose at least two alternative energy sources - for the main and backup heat source. This approach allows you to protect the house from serious problems associated not only with the low temperature in residential premises, but also with the defrosting of the water heating system.

Before comparing the efficiency of energy carriers (excluding main gas), one should single out those types of fuel that are most accessible to the average consumer.

For example, it is worth taking the solar collector out of the line, since it can only be seriously considered as an additional source of energy due to the fact that there are not enough sunny days a year in the main territory of Russia, in addition, the equipment is not cheap.

Also, let's leave aside the heat pump for now - it produces free energy, but in order to get it, you need to use electricity. Plus, the system is difficult to install and requires serious costs for professional calculation and construction.

Thus, the list of available coolants includes:

• liquefied gas in cylinders (installation of a gas tank requires a one-time investment of serious funds);
• diesel fuel (solar oil);
• electricity;
• ordinary firewood;
• coal;
• pellets;
• eurofirewood.

Attention! If there is access to such fuels as cheap peat briquettes, etc., you can calculate their performance for comparison using the method below.

Fuel cost calculation

To decide how to heat your home cost-effectively, you need to calculate the consumption rate of each available type of fuel.

Before proceeding with the calculations, it is important to understand the units of measurement of the amount of energy carrier and bring them into line so as not to compare cubic meters with kilograms. In addition to electricity, all other fuels can be measured in kilograms.

Finding out the best way to heat a country house, it is useful to compile the following table:

energy carrier	Cost 1kg	Calorific value (kW/h for 1 kg of fuel)	Cost of 1 kWh	The amount of heat required for a house with an area of ​​100 m 2 during the heating season (kW / h)	Estimated costs per season	boiler efficiency	Real costs per season
Propane		13		21600		0.9
diesel fuel		11.9		21600		0.85
Firewood		4.5		21600		0.75
Coal		7.7		21600		0.75
Pellets		5.2		21600		0.8
eurofirewood		5.5		21600		0.75
Electricity (one-tariff scheme)		-		21600		0.99
Electricity (multi-tariff scheme)		-		21600		0.99

To choose the most economical heating for a private house, fill in the empty columns in the table.

This is done as follows:

• Column 2 . The cost of each energy carrier is entered, focusing on current prices in the region of residence or the price at which you are able to get this fuel. Don't forget to convert units of measure to kilograms (excluding electricity).
• Column 4 . To calculate how much 1 kW of received thermal energy will cost, it is necessary to divide the price of 1 kg of fuel by the specific calorific value (divide the value of column 2 by the value of column 3).
• Column 5 . An approximate value is entered here (the length of the heating season is 180 days, the average consumption of thermal energy per hour is 5 kW for a house of 100 m 2, hence 5 × 24 × 180 = 21600 kW / h). Instead, indicate the figure obtained as a result of an accurate thermal calculation of your home.
• Column 6 . To calculate estimated costs per season, multiply the values ​​in columns 4 and 5.
• Column 8 . The estimated costs must be divided by the efficiency of the boiler unit, since fuel consumption directly depends on the efficiency of the equipment.

So, by comparing the indicators in the last column, you can determine the cheaper it is to heat the house in your case.

However, when looking for the most economical way to provide heat in your home, you need to take into account a number of other points in order not to be disappointed in your choice as a result.

The convenience of use

The heating system should be not only efficient and economical, but also comfortable to use. The less trouble it causes, the better, since the effort to keep it running is an indirect heating cost.

The ease of use of the fuel that is chosen to heat the house is evaluated according to very specific criteria:

• the complexity of servicing the heat source, its maintainability;
• the need for fuel storage and what is required for this;
• convenience of everyday use (fuel supply, etc.).

Note! Fuel should be evaluated according to the above criteria, taking into account the characteristics of boiler units, etc. For example, a long-burning coal-fired boiler is incomparably more convenient than a conventional brick solid fuel stove. That is, first decide on the type of heater that you can afford.

Service:

1. The undoubted leaders are electric boilers. They are durable, the maximum that they can require is sometimes to clean oxidized contacts.
2. Propane gas boiler - the equipment is unpretentious, cleaning the igniter, burner, etc. required approximately every two years.
3. Pellet boiler. Several times a year you will have to clean the combustion chamber, once a year - clean the chimney.
4. Coal and wood boilers, stoves - regularly require ash removal, but this figure is highly dependent on the design of the heater and can range from once a day to once every two months or more. May need frequent chimney cleaning.
5. Solar boiler. It depends on the characteristics of the unit and the quality of the fuel - it can work without yielding to a gas boiler, or it can constantly “be capricious”, as a result of which it will be necessary to systematically purge the nozzles, etc.

Fuel storage:

1. Electricity does not require storage. However, in case of an emergency, it is recommended to have a diesel generator on the farm. And under this unit itself and the fuel for it, it is necessary to allocate space.
2. Heating in a private house with firewood, eurofirewood, pellets requires a place for storage, and in the case of fuel made from sawdust, this must be a dry closed room. Firewood is also recommended to be stored, protected from precipitation, since the higher the moisture content of wood, the lower its heat transfer.
3. Coal. It is stored in a specially designated place, it gets very dirty and dusty, so it is not very convenient to use.
4. Gas cylinders. They require storage in a separate building, fire safety measures must be taken. Preference should be given to an underground reservoir - a gas tank.
5. Solar containers. They are stored in a separate room in the boiler room, away from home, as the fuel has a sharp unpleasant odor. Today, however, a reservoir with diesel fuel is often mounted underground, like a gas tank. This makes the system more user-friendly, but more expensive.

The convenience of use:

1. It is most convenient to heat with electricity, because thermal equipment does not require any intervention.
2. Pellet boilers are filled with fuel about once every two weeks or less (depending on the volume of the bunker), cylinders are changed at about the same frequency when heated with liquefied gas. A long-burning coal boiler can also work on one gas station for 1-2 weeks.
3. A diesel-fired boiler needs to be monitored regularly, especially if the quality of the fuel is poor.
4. Solid fuel boilers require loading the firebox 1-3 times a day.

Independently rate from 1 to 5 each type of fuel (or heating unit) in all of the above categories. And determine for yourself whether the most economical heating is always preferable to the more expensive, but convenient one.

We figure out how to heat a country house (cottage) without gas

When choosing cheap heating for a private house, also pay attention to such a characteristic of the boiler unit as energy independence. If it is decided to provide heating of a private house without gas using an electric boiler, a backup heat source should be, for example, a solid fuel non-volatile boiler or stove.

Boiler unit to heat the house

Choosing what is more profitable to heat the house, we must not forget about the costs of installing the heating unit. It is not always important how cheap an energy source is, since the equipment for its use (or generation, if we are talking about solar energy, etc.) can be expensive. We will give an approximate range of prices for thermal equipment of different types in order to determine which one is more profitable to choose.

Brick oven with stove. 20-100 tr. and more, depending on the size, type, design complexity, the presence of tiled cladding, etc. A well-made stove is ideal for a wooden house, it can last for several decades.

Oil boiler. The cost of the unit is 25-180 tons. Many models are suitable if a house heated by diesel fuel is planned to be connected to a gas main - it is enough to replace the burner at the boiler and no new equipment will be required.

Solid fuel boilers. 20-400 tr. An inexpensive option will require frequent fueling. Long-burning boilers are included in the middle price category. Automated units require a large investment during the installation phase.

Choosing a boiler unit

Electric boilers. 15-100 tr. depending on the power of the model. If there is a cheap nightly electricity tariff in the region, you can partially reduce heating costs by installing a heat accumulator complete with an electric boiler. In addition, when choosing how to heat a house if there is no gas, you can pay attention to other sources of heat that run on electricity: infrared heaters, fan heaters, underfloor heating film, air heating system, etc.

Solar collectors. 15-60 tr. - the cost of flat devices, about 80 tr. - vacuum. The energy of the sun is inexhaustible, but even in areas with a large number of sunny days a year, solar collectors serve only as an additional source of thermal energy for heating or preparing water in the DHW system.

Heat pumps. 200-1500 tr. depending on the complexity of the system. The heat pump draws heat energy from environment. Its operation requires starting energy, on average, to deliver 10 kW of thermal energy, it spends 3 kW of electricity - this is high efficiency. But the heat pump is also not universal, since it is able to function stably only at an air temperature of at least -15 degrees, and completely loses its performance at -30 degrees. In temperate regions, a heat pump would provide the cheapest heating if not for the heavy initial investment.

Results

Everyone selects the most economical heating based on specific conditions, there is no universal advice on this matter. A good option is an electric boiler in combination with any other unit, primarily solid fuel. A heat accumulator, to which several different heat sources can be connected, including a solar collector, is a real opportunity to spend a minimum of money on heating.

In addition, we should not forget about the quality insulation of the house. Saving on fuel will only work if heat loss is minimized.