My heating oil supplier here in Cumbria is promoting something they call "Cleanburn" heating oil. It's claimed to be upto 13% more efficient than conventional heating oil and reduces boiler maintenance frequency. The product is described here
tony
And how much more expensive is it than bog standard 28sec?
Well It all reads very nicely but read what is written closely and it doesn't really stand up IMHO. For instance the highlighted "testimonial" towards the top of the page:
"Since changing to Cleanburn I find the house much warmer and have had to turn the temperature down making it more economical - even the boiler needs less servicing".
How does changing the fuel affect the temperature of the house controlled by a thermostat? Of course if you turn the stat down by a couple of degrees you will use less fuel "making it more economical"... Boiler servicing, well that is debateable ours gets done every year but I'm not convinced it *really* needs it that often burning ordinary Shell 28sec oil.
Not that none of the "testimonials" are credited.
Why no link to the University of Ulster research? The only link is to the makers of the addative, they are not likley to be unbiased are they...
Shell have been marketing a 28sec heating oil with similar claims for the last couple of years. I've not been convinced by any one that the extra cost is really worth it.
Classic!
I reckon it's probably low sulphur, which means low sulphur dioxide in the exhaust, and less corrosion of the baffle plates/heat exchanger. But enough to make a difference? I don't know.
Thanks guys, objective analysis is always helpful. The price for the stuff is available "on application" - a phrase that always makes me run for cover. Your sceptism reflects my own, but I was still hopeful that someone would say its brilliant stuff and has halved their fuel use! tony
Well if you live in north Cumbria you probably use the same supplier as us (based in Dalston), and hence have used the same fuel as us, since moving into our new house in 1970, the 1st boiler packed in in 1988, and we have just replaced that one recently, although whilst I accept that they may have gone on longer if they had been maintained, neither had had any maintenance on them and both packed up for different reasons, 1st mechanical fault I think, and the second was a rusty water tank which eventually leaked out. So if boiler lasts 15 yrs without any maintenance, how long are they suggesting that they will last using this fuel?
Jon
Which one is that then? There is more than one supplier working out of Dalston; Allan Stobart, Scottish Fuels & Shell and thats just looking the Yellow Pages...
An oil boiler does really need a check, the jet does wear over time. It might not need replacing every 12months but a decoke and check of electrodes and jet is worth it to keep the effeincy up.
Dipetane if it is di pentane is a white spirit or paraffin type additive. What northern Ireland is famous for is red diesel fraud.
In the 1940's, the USA oil companies were searching for additives. They came up with one good one -now banned, in all their research. Funny how the Irish have come up with something after all these years and are not using it in their engines.
Dunno, but Ive had the fun of two boilers in my time 25yrs +
Both suffered from dirt in the oil, clogged jets and carboned up
igniters (poor installations) and needed servicing very year or two.
The aga needs a once a year clean up tho.
Possibly the additive raises combustion temp and inhibits carbon?
Probably the additional cost is more than a yearly service...
Anyone been to Magna in Rotherham? I worked there until a round of job cuts about a year ago (actually, looking at the date, exactly a year ago today) as a technician.
Magna has (I assume it's still open!) an exhibit called the "fire tornado". I believe there's one in Bristol and one in Belfast, but ours was the most reliable of the three - they're very sensitive to cross drafts. A pool of kerosene is lit, and a tornado of flame created by four tangential fans is drawn up into the ceiling by a huge exhaust fan. As you can imagine, this creates absolutely tons of fine soot and, Magna being what it is, this gets into all the sensitive computer and video equipment and completely wrecks it.
We spent ages experimenting with various grades of kerosene / paraffin and found very little difference between them in terms of deposits of soot. I couldn't tell you about energy released - the thing is just bloomin' hot. In the end we admitted defeat and spent thousands piping clean filtered air directly to the projectors which we sat in enclosed boxes. Given that there were nine video projectors in that area with a combined original cost of well over 100k this was money well spent, and we went back to using the cheapest fuel :-)
Hwyl!
M.
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