The Most Cost Effective Way to Heat a Detached House Has Been Revealed

Firewood, gas, or pellets: an expert explains the most cost-effective way to heat a private home.
A 5-cubic-meter truckload of firewood will cost approximately 12,000–15,000 hryvnia.
Firewood is the cheapest option for heating a small private home, especially if you harvest it yourself. Oleh Popenko, Chairman of the Union of Utility Consumers, told UNIAN .

“Firewood is the simplest and cheapest way to heat (an 80-square-meter house, – UNIAN). A person living in a private home often ends up with some firewood in the yard: from the garden, trimmed branches, and so on. Some firewood and brushwood can be collected from vacant lots,” noted a housing and utilities expert, adding that sometimes people in rural areas don’t have the money to afford other heating options.

Much depends on when exactly a person buys firewood, since prices for it vary depending on the time of year.
“So the question arises: when do you buy firewood and how do you harvest it in the village? If you harvest it in the summer, it will, of course, be much cheaper,” said Oleg Popenko, adding that much depends on the type of wood and the seller.

Hardwoods (oak, hornbeam, acacia) have the highest calorific value and are therefore the most expensive. Softwoods (pine, alder, aspen) are significantly less expensive.

The expert also draws attention to the cost of delivering firewood to the home.

“Delivery is currently more expensive than the firewood itself. For example, a 5-cubic-meter truckload of firewood will cost approximately 12,000–15,000 hryvnias,” the specialist says. He also notes that five cubic meters of firewood can be enough to last a small home through the winter.
According to expert calculations, gas heating is generally more expensive than wood.

“Heating an 80-square-meter house costs an average of 50 hryvnias per square meter. This means total gas costs will be approximately 4,000 hryvnias per month,” says Oleh Popenko.

However, the heating season lasts for more than just three winter months. It also includes the second half of October, all of November, and at least half of March.

“In fact, five months of the heating season at 4,000 hryvnias per month will cost 20,000 hryvnias, assuming permanent residence,” the expert believes.

Alternative options: pellets and electricity
When it comes to heating, much depends on the financial capabilities of the homeowner. This is especially true for heating with pellets.

A standard solid fuel boiler can’t be easily converted to use pellets. Meanwhile, a high-quality semi-automated pellet boiler with internet connection and automatic feed costs, according to Popenko, between 150,000 and 250,000 UAH.

Pellets have a specific shape, size, and combustion rate. This is why a standard wood or coal boiler cannot burn them effectively and safely.
“If we’re talking about ‘pellets,’ that’s a whole different story, a completely different level of calculation. 90% or even 95% of Ukrainians won’t be able to afford such a purchase. No one will install a pellet boiler just for the sake of it—only if they have the money,” notes Oleg Popenko.

The expert also advises against relying solely on electrical appliances for heating due to the situation in the power grid.

“Electrification is the third level that needs to be considered when it comes to heating in the private sector. That is, first firewood or gas, and then electrification,” says a housing and utilities specialist.