Heating in new build

[Elizabethlovejoy]

We are thinking of buying a new build.
We are looking at two developments.
Neither has mains gas.
Development one is all electric with underfloor heating.
Development two is calor gas with one big tank serving all the properties[10 in all] So no opportunity to negotiate own contract with gas supplier.
Would you be happy with all electric ?

Yes all electric would be my preference

I would just try to find out about the heating bills. We lived in a flat about 10 years ago which had what was a brand new electric heating system but was water panelled radiators, it was EYE WATERINGLY expensive. It was a 2 bed flat and we were paying off the debit for a good year or so after moving. I hope the systems have since improved but that is just one thing I would check! The system itself worked fine so I'd be happy with it from practical point of view, so long as it was an induction hob for cooking.

Bear in mind that energy from electricity currently costs five times as much as energy from gas.

A well insulated electric house will cost much more to heat than a well-insulated gas house.

So by choosing homes with no gas you are putting yourself at a disadvantage.

I don't believe you can negotiate on the gas anyway.. with oil you own the tank so you can use any supplier to fill it. With gas the gas provider owns the tank so you are tied to that one gas supplier.

Yes the concern of the gas would be it is one central tank to serve all ten properties.So even less chance to negotiate a new supplier. Also this is LPG so much more expensive than natural gas. The dependence on delivery by tanker could also be a problem in bad weather....

That's why I'd stick with electric

I’d opt for the electric. We have a larger period property with electric heating. It’s fine, more expensive than regular mains gas but not by that much.

"not by that much."

I bet it is.

We moved into a 1960’s house in 1990 it was a small cul-de-sac of about 25 houses all sharing one oil tank. It became horrendously expensive as we were tied into a supplier, when oil prices dropped our charges remained eye wateringly high.

It was cheaper to pay for our own oil tanks and could then negotiate better prices.

Electric may be better as friends who live in a new build rarely use their heating as the modern house is so well insulated.

I was under the impression that electric underfloor heating was the most expensive heating one could have.
Why can't you have your own gas tank?

We live in a newly built apartment with electric underfloor heating.
The apartments are so well insulated that in 4 years we put on the heating twice and it was mainly to make sure that everything was working fine.

GAS price per kWh is 2.2Pence

Opps - pressed too soon

Mains GAS price per kWh is 2.2 Pence
Electric is 12.5 Pence

Electric is about 5 1/2 times MORE expensive than gas.

Source :- www.theenergyshop.com/guides/energy-prices-per-kwh

This is LPG though which is more expensive.
I also dont like the inflexibility of not managing our own energy prices.[the development has central gas tanks common to all 10 houses]

Neither is ideal, that's for sure. But I still think the LPG options would be cheaper. Have a read of this which discusses metered estates:-

www.liquidgasuk.org/advice/faqs/metered-estates-what-are-my-supply-options

It looks like it IS possible to change suppliers which means you do have a negotiating position. But all residents have to be onboard.

Personally I like oil - modern oil boilers are super efficient and you are not locked into any contracts with supply. I wonder if it would be possible to rip out the LPG boiler and install an oil one. Bit of a pain though.

TobyHouseMan,you are right that gas is generally cheaper but the OP has to take in consideration that new built properties are very well insulated so there is less need to use heating compared to an older property for example.
For a 2 bedroom apartment we spend around £30 monthly in electricity.