Can I replace oil heating when renovating my off-grid home?

Renovating your home is not only a great excuse for you to say goodbye to dated decoration, but if you’re doing up an off-grid home, renovation can also allow you to leave an oil-based heating system behind. Your choice of heating significantly contributes to your home’s carbon footprint, and oil can also create unnecessary ash, soot, and smells around the house. As a cleaner burning fuel, LPG could be the ideal alternative for homeowners looking to switch to a more convenient and pleasant fuel source, with the added benefit of a reduction in carbon output.

LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) is a colourless liquid hydrocarbon gas. While it creates less ash, smells, and fewer carbon emissions than oil, it’s still an energy-rich fuel. This means your heating will continue to keep you warm, but it offers significant benefits in its flexibility and storage. LPG can be kept in either bulk storage tanks or a range of cylinders to suit various space requirements; so you may need less space compared to oil, and it could help to retain beautiful countryside views when stored in an underground tank. It can also be used for cooking as well as heating, which can help in homes where the electricity supply may be unstable (or, as a keen cook you prefer cooking on gas, rather than an electric hob and oven). If you’re near a body of water or other wildlife, another big perk of switching to LPG is that it won’t cause environmental contamination if it leaks, unlike oil.

Installing an LPG solution when refurbishing your home is relatively quick and simple as your existing infrastructure shouldn’t need to change – a new boiler and a new tank or cylinders and your home has switched! Often, there is no need to upgrade radiators or install additional insulation. And as it’s a fuel source with a long lifespan, LPG is an ideal bridging solution if you are looking for renewable alternatives in the longer term but aren’t ready to make a full leap. It can also work alongside other technologies like solar panels and heat pumps, and in the not-so-distant future – perhaps as soon as 2025 onwards – you will be able to use fuels like renewable DME and bio-propane in the same heating system. These are already in development, so switching to LPG helps prepare your home for the future.

Flogas is a leading LPG and blended solutions supplier, making us the ideal partner for your switch. Are you ready to get started? Let us show you how!