So are many of his neighbors. NStar is running a new gas line to his
neighborhood after nearly two-thirds of the households told the utility
they would consider converting.
Even with conversion costs, demand is up for cheaper alternative to heating oil
With prices for natural gas plummeting, and new burners and boilers
significantly more efficient, Loderick expects to recoup the $10,000 or
so cost to convert his system fairly quickly; in winters past Loderick
kept his house cool, yet still paid a stiff heating bill.
“Most
of the time the house is only about 64 degrees, except for a couple
hours in the evening,’’ Loderick said. “That’s $4,000 a year to keep our
area fairly cool.’’
Long the one region in the country where oil remains a popular fuel
for heating, New England appears to be on a natural gas binge. At NStar,
conversions have tripled over the past three years; National Grid said
conversions are up 34 percent in the same period.
Natural gas is enjoying a surge in popularity for several reasons.
Production in North America has increased substantially over the past
decade, and energy officials predict the nation has ample supplies for
decades to come. That has resulted in prices falling to the lowest
point in a decade. Gas prices have also been more stable, less subject
to the wild swings that have roiled the international oil markets the
past several years.
Though this past winter was mild, oil customers still paid much
more to heat their homes - $2,238 on average - than did natural gas
consumers, who shelled out $868 on average, according to the US Energy
Information Administration.
The cost of converting can vary widely, from a few thousand dollars
to update a younger system, to more than $10,000 for a complete kit of
burner, boiler, hot water tank, and chimney liner.
Utilities have incentives to ease the cost. GasNetworks, a collective
of New England natural gas companies, offers rebates from $400 to
$1,500 for high-efficiency boilers, furnaces, and other equipment.
Zero-interest loans are also available.
Another compelling reason: new gas burners are significantly more
fuel-efficient than older heaters, so consumers save twice - once on
the low price, and a second time on less consumption.
“I just tell people, in general, that this piece of natural gas
equipment only wastes 5 percent of what you burn and that piece of
equipment over there wastes 20 percent of what you burn,’’ said Joseph
Wood, owner of Boston Standard Plumbing, Heating, and Cooling, a heating
contractor.
The strain of running its 100-year-old oil-heat system finally
persuaded the Panagia Greek Orthodox Church in Cohasset to convert to
natural gas. The congregation held a fund-raiser and sold its antique
steam radiators to come up with the $40,000 to pay Wood to convert the
system. Wood estimates the church’s heating bill, typically $10,000 to
$12,000, will be cut in half.
“We have a building project going on and we’re having a fund-raiser
to build a community center right next to the church, so some of the
savings can go into that,’’ said Ed Lofgren, head of the Panagia parish
council’s buildings and grounds committee.
But the popularity of natural gas to heat homes and generate
electricity has made New England increasingly dependent on it as its
main fuel source. That has some concerned, particularly in the
electric-power sector, that the region could be vulnerable to
intermittent problems if demand sudden outstrips the system’s current
delivery capacity. With half of New England’s electricity coming from
gas-fired plants, the operator of the regional power grid has said it
wants to make the region less reliant on natural gas for electricity.
Jim Davis/Globe Staff
Shane George, with contractor Feeney Brothers, worked on the natural
gas line being installed on Stewart Road in Needham. More residents are
asking for gas service to their neighborhoods.
Meanwhile, there are still many households in Massachusetts that
cannot get natural gas because their neighborhoods do not have main
supply pipes. Typically utilities will install a gas main to a
neighborhood if the residents are willing to pay for it. Because of the
growing popularity, utilities have taken to installing gas lines
whenever a municipality is digging up its streets for other work.
In the Needham neighborhood, NStar is footing the installation bill
as many residents have indicated they will sign up for service.
Loderick, the Needham homeowner preparing to convert to natural gas,
estimated his heating bills will be less than half the $4,000 or so he
spent for oil.
“Growing up, I had gas for cooking, hot water, and clothes dryers and
it was always such an economical, wonderful fuel that I was sorry that
it wasn’t in the street when we moved here 20 years ago,’’ Loderick
said. “I didn’t have any concerns at all about bringing it in.’’
http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2012/04/24/demand-grows-for-natural-gas-heat/5DDA83CCLEwT0Hos39MLKJ/story.html
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