BarcelonaWinter is coming to an end and Europe has not frozen over, despite bad omens that the Russian invasion of Ukraine could bring gas supply cuts that would leave homes without electricity or heating. Despite this, the price of heating the house has skyrocketed due to the rising cost of energy, and you can always look at what are the best methods to keep homes that do not have heating installed at a comfortable temperature .
Cost of heating devices
Data in euros per hour
For consumption, heat pumps are the cheapest option, with an hourly operating cost of less than 20 cents. At the other end are paraffin stoves, also called kerosene, with around 90 cents per hour, according to OCU data. This type of heater is not used much because, as the name suggests, they use kerosene as fuel, which through an internal mechanism turns into gas and burns like a butane stove.
Precisely, butane has a much lower cost, at 45 cents per hour, but it has the same drawback as paraffin heaters: we have to supply the devices with fuel, either kerosene, or changing the butane cylinders . In the latter case they are difficult to transport, as they tend to weigh around 25 kilos in the case of the typical orange canisters with the price regulated by the government. There are lighter cylinders from companies such as Repsol and Cepsa, but they cost more and are not delivered to homes.
The rest of the electricity consumption systems have different costs. Halogen radiators use very little, but have limited power, so they are not useful for heating large rooms, a problem shared by electric heaters – devices that usually have a built-in fan to distribute the hot air. Plate heaters and radiators – the most common – cost about the same at 46 cents per hour they are on, while oil radiators cost more at around 57 cents per hour.
All these systems have advantages and disadvantages. In the case of flats with little surface area or for small rooms, it is worth opting for low-consumption and low-power devices, such as halogen heaters or radiators – widely used in toilets, for example -, while in large rooms or flats large it is more useful to have large radiators.
Firewood and biomass, less easy alternatives
Another option is wood stoves, biomass stoves (called pellets) and fireplaces. Pellets are particularly economical and, in addition, have a very low level of emissions. In fact, the OCU calculates that the savings can reach 600 euros per year in heating compared to other systems in some houses. On the other hand, firewood is more expensive if it has to be bought – families with gardens or who have agricultural estates find it much easier to get it for free – and it is more difficult to handle, as it weighs more. All three systems are very popular in old houses and in rural houses, because they have the main disadvantage that they need an outlet for the smoke, either through a metal pipe in the case of stoves or a chimney, all and that there are already some biomass stoves on the market that do not produce smoke for a price that usually does not fall below a thousand euros.
Apart from that, regardless of the system we use, we must remember that keeping the temperature around 20 degrees is the best way to spend little without getting cold, as long as we walk around the house in a sweater. Likewise, having good window and door closures and having thick curtains also allows the heat to escape from the home and, therefore, reduces consumption and the bill.
Do you need to install heating?
Although a large number of homes do not have integrated heating, new homes tend to incorporate it. Despite the comfort it represents and the convenience of pressing a button to heat the house, it is not the cheapest option. Heating a flat of 90 square meters costs around 455 euros per year with a heat pump and around 545 euros with pellet stoves, but rises to 816 euros with heating with a gas boiler, according to OCU calculations published in november Despite this, the highest cost is the electric radiators, with an annual cost of more than 1,200 euros.