North Pole Coal is delivering coal for $110.00 a ton. Compared to the fuel oil I had delivered yesterday at $4.54 per gallion, coal to deliver the same amount of BTUs, would workout to $0.95 per gallion. Thinking about going with the coal. That means I would have to install a coal burning boiler outside and plumb it into my home heating system. It would take two years to recoup the cost of the boiler. Sooner if oil goes up to the $6.00 mark as they are expecting. Coal has gone up $5.00 in the last five years, looks pretty stable.
Fuel Type Approximate Heating Quantity of Fuel Required Estimated Local Cost Calculated Cost
Value of Fuel for Equal Quantity of Heat
Alaskan Coal 16,000,000 BTU/TON 1 Ton $110.00/TON $110.00
Natural Gas 100,000 BTU/THERM 160 THERMs $2.55 THERM $408.00
Propane 92,000 BTU/GAL 173.9 GALs $2.85 / GAL $495.60
#2 Heating Oil 140,000 BTU/GAL 115.0 GALs $4.50 / GAL $517.50
Wood 20,000,000 BTU/CORD .8 CORD $195 / CORD $156.00
Wood Pellets 16,000,000 BTU/TON 1.0 TON $245 / TON $245.00
Electricity 3413 BTU/KWH 4688 KWHs $0.095 / KWH $445.36
Comparable Price of Coal In Per Gallon of Heating Oil Terms: Heating Your Home With Coal is Equivalent To $0.95 Per Gallon Of Home Heating Oil