Skip to main content

What the Natural Gas Utilities aren't telling you

By

Methane Gas is 20x more powerful of a greenhouse than Carbon Dioxide.



When you think of Oil heat what comes to mind? Dirty, expensive, foreign and inefficient fuel source what about Natural Gas? The Natural Gas utilities want you to believe that their product is cleaner, more efficient, domestic, and better for the environment.  This is what they are telling you, but it's not the whole story about Oil heat or Natural Gas.

First we would like to paint the modern picture that is Oil and heating with Oil.  The United States is projected to became the worlds' largest producer of Oil by 2015. That means that the Oil that is used to heat your home will come from and stay in the US.

Natural Gas comes from the US too, right? Yes it does however the Oil that is delivered to your home helps to keep people in your local community employed. While Natural Gas utility companies are monopolies and like National Grid can be owned and headquartered outside of the US.  Local Oil companies are trusted and known throughout the community, supporting charities, high schools, sports clubs, and the economy.

Oil is a dirty and environmentally harmful heating source that is contributing to greenhouse gases.  While it is true that like our cars and other applications that burn any fuel, oil heating systems give off carbon dioxide. Natural Gas pipelines leak methane Gas which is 20x more powerful of a greenhouse than carbon dioxide.

The Natural Gas infrastructure was originally put into place around World War II, and the main pipes that bring Natural Gas throughout the country haven't been upgraded since then. This leads to cracks and gaps which leak out Methane gas. Natural Gas is about 95% Methane gas, in a 2011 study surveyors found 4000 leaks just in the city of Boston and 6000 this year in Washington D.C.

The utility companies have no plan to upgrade these pipes and if they were willing to it would take 67 years to upgrade the pipes. This isn't in the fore front of the push to convert to Natural Gas because it is a colorless and odorless gas, however it is a major problem in combating climate change and protecting our environment.

 This past winter was one of the coldest in over 30 years, this put a strain on budgets and the infrastructure to supply fuel to homes.  Like a highway with too much demand that slows down to a crawl, the Natural Gas pipes during this past winter were unable to keep up with the demand here in New England.  This left homes without proper heat and in some cases affected the supply and price of Electricity as the electric companies use Natural Gas to produce electricity.  

 As more and more homes converting to Natural Gas without the proper infrastructure to keep up with the demand and with the old pipes cracking, Natural Gas isn't the perfect fuel source you are led to believe.

 By:

 Robert Stahelski
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Being More Energy Efficient in the New Year

By
What is your New Year's Resolution? Many of us make resolutions to lose weight, get that promotion at work, find our soul mate, or to save or spend less money in the New Year. If your resolution is the later a great place to start is your home. Some of these suggestions might involve an up front cost but will save you money over several years. There are many appliances, devices, and products that we use on a daily basis in our home that could be eating up your money. From your water heater, to your heating system, light bulbs, tv's, and other electrical devices. Water heaters are a great place to start, with a lifespan of 7-9 on average and taking up 25% of your home's energy consumption, an update could help to reduce your monthly bills.  When looking for a new water heater it is important to take in consideration your needs or demands for hot water. How many people are in your home, what type of fuel source do you have in your home, how your want your water to ...
Post a Comment
Read more

The C-Wire

By
Smart Thermostats almost always require them. The internet of things is on the rise and one of the easiest and most useful applications of this is the smart thermostat. Popular smart thermostats that come to mind at the Nest, Ecobee, and the Honeywell Lyric most of these and other smart thermostats that come with WiFi. Installing these thermostats can be tricky due to the C-Wire or Common Wire. For thermostat installations you need to have a set of wires that run from your heating and/or cooling system to your thermostat(s). In instances where you just have a boiler or furnace without the ability to cool you see a thermostat with just two wires, red and white. If you have a cooling system with your heating system you'll most commonly find the thermostats using 4 wires. If you add a smart thermostat you're going to need a fifth wire, the c-wire. C-wires help delivery more power to the thermostat to power the Wi-Fi functions. Adding this wire can be difficult as it requ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Boiler vs Furnace: What do I have?

By
Boilers use Water while Furnaces use Air to Heat Homes. When the cold air hits and the familiar sound of the heating system isn't heard, it's time to have your heating system looked at and possibly replaced.  A common issue that comes about is what kind of heating system do I have, a boiler or a furnaces and what is the difference? Well there is a big difference between the two, first is the efficiency and how the each equipment heats the home. Boilers use water or steam, while furnaces use air to heat the home. This is where the terms forced hot air or forced hot water come from, as the system will force heated water through base boards or radiators or heated air through duct work. Boilers traditionally are more energy efficient than furnaces due to the delivery of the heated source.  There is a lower amount of energy loss from piping involved with a boiler than the duct work that is required for a furnace.  The energy energy rating fo...
Post a Comment
Read more