What type heating do you have?

[Dace]

We have a gas furnace. We rely on the fireplace for warmth during evenings in the cooler months but it is not very efficient and our house is just too large to heat that way anyway.

 

[lupinfarm]

We have an oil furnace, plus a baseboard heater in the laundry room, and the propane fireplace in the master bedroom, which is the extension.

We're investing in a woodburner this coming summer, installed in our living room.

 

[Beekissed]

Wood heat, thank God! Also have electric baseboard heaters that we never use. Love my wood heat!!!

 

[johnElarue]

We heat with wood only, and I have the same concerns that you do about not being able to be there 24/7 and worry about pipes etc.

Have you looked into Monitor heaters?

http://www.monitorheat.com/oil_products.html

I don't know what Kerosene costs now, nor the price of the unit, but these types are popular around here and in the States.

Anyone out there with Monitor heater experience?

That's interesting. We have 2 kerosene stoves, but the smell when first lit and when extinguished is obnoxious. I see this is vented but can it be on when no one is home? I never leave my portable models on if I'm gone. Here kerosene at a pump is $3.99 gal but
$12 gal at a box store.

That's quite a difference in Kero prices, yikes. Yes, the Monitor heaters can be left on and programmed on timer, also they have seperate tanks.

 

[Homesteadmom]

We have gas pack units on our house that use natural gas. It is sufficient for us but if we were without elec for awhile we might be in trouble. But my gas stove cooking a big pot of soup or stew would help keep us warm along with bread in the oven too. And we have a lot of windows to let in a lot of sunlight & heat too during the day. Even though it has been in the 40's at night it has not gotten colder than 65 in our house at night yet, which is okay for sleeping.

 

[countrymama]

We have a corn furnace and get free corn from my dad's farm. We do some work for him around the farm every few weeks and he gives us the corn!

 

[Cassandra]

I have an electric central heating and cooling unit. I think when my bosses are doing appraisals, they refer to that is CAC/FWA (central air conditioning/force warmed air.) It is extremely typical of what we have here in MS. Any other type of heating would be considered either archaic or exotic.

I have a fireplace for back-up heat (and a chainsaw, just in case!)
If the electricity went out and we were in danger of freezing, I could block off the kitchen/dining/living area with blankets and build a fire. Though we might have to cut down some of the trees in the yard if the power was out too long.

Cassandra

 

[shareneh]

We use Woodstove heat for the majority of our heating. I use a small space heater when we leave for more than a day in the basement where the water pipes are.

I would suggest using electric in your addition when needed. You can have your electric company install them and add the cost of the heater and labor onto your bill on a payment plan system if needed so you don't feel the crunch so much.

Close off your addition if you can during cold days. You could use heat tape for the pipes when you are gone to ensure the water doesn't freeze them when you are away.

 

[lupinfarm]

I have radient floor heating using a hot water tank fueled by propane and a pellet stove. The floor heat is wonderful- you feel so warm at a lower tempertatue but propane is expensive. The pellet stove has the advantage of being on a thermostat and as long as the hopper is full, the stove runs itself. For me a bag of pellets usually lasts 2-3 days depending on the temperature. A bag costs about $6 here.
The bad thing with the pellet stove is that it needs electricity to run. We lose power a lot around here. Need to run the generator to keep warm. I want a wood stove back up but I simple don't want to find and store the wood needed for heating all winter but for back up, I think it's important.
The other thing with pellets is availablilty- I usually stock up in mid-winter and have never run out- it's easy to store bags in the garage.

I don't have free wood and it's expensive to have it delivered.

Propane is expensive? Ours isn't... An average tank lasts almost a year to power the fireplace and stove, and I believe it cost us $300 to fill it up. It's the oil that is scary expensive, we're getting it filled in the spring but installing a woodburner so we don't have to use the oil.

 

[lupinfarm]

I know I'm hearing a lot about peoples pipes and stuff, our furnace is located in what would have been a rootcellar under the house. Someone installed a vent that pumps heat into the rootcellar, and keeps the pipes nice and toasty. Without that vent, it's still warm enough down there for them.