Hey hey.
Last month my family and I moved into this epic 450 yr-old listed brick building. A farmhouse surrounded by fields (latter not owned by us).
I mention listed because no double glazing possible. Has shutters and thick curtains instead.
Over its history, a bunch of heating methods have been used, inclu a massive incinerator-style boiler, long since gone, supplying large cast-iron radiators via thick pipes, currently decommissioned.
The house is in a U-shape, with the entrance at the bottom of the U. North wing and south wing. North wing has damp problems due to neglect, being north facing, and earth that sits just below window level in most G/F rooms (not removable).
North wing has an old Rayburn (sp?) oven off mains gas running 24/7 in the kitchen, heating the hot water for the bathroom, and heating the kitchen. Running very low volume.
South wing has a serious wood-burning stove in that kitchen (no 2, lol), supplying radiator heat to a series of newer radiators on copper pipe, plus hot water for the bath / kitchen taps. It's not very efficient. The showers in the south wing have electric instant hot water.
A heating specialist came around last week, and gave us these options:
1) new gas mains boiler, plus 30 new radiators and plumbing. Annual heating bill £2,800
Cost: £27,000 inc
2) a 45Kw Okofen biomass 7-9 ton system, using wood pellets. Annual bill £2,300, plus a RHI of £11,000 over 7 years.
Cost: £27,500 for boiler & £17,000 for new central heating system - the radiators etc
3) Geothermal energy hybrid ground source borehole system with back up gas boiler. Annual bill £2,000 plus a RHI of £30,000 over 7 years.
Cost: £39,500 for the kit plus the radiators at £18,000 (£57,500) overall (if you did horizontal trenches the price would reduce by £10,000)
If we can get the previous owners to let us use a field to lay the geothermal pipework horizontally, it wouldn't impact their sheep farming, as approx 1m below the surface, though presumably we'd have to pay them something.
I'd also want to use solar &/or wind energy to reduce electricity costs, esp for the geothermal pump, aside from the overall desire to save electricity costs. Wife is very keen on solar, but that would never be sufficient for heating.
The house needs to be warmed up after all these years, to restore its health. No damp proofing, and not possible. Previous owners used the bare minimum of rooms, and sold the house to concentrate on farming, and now live down the road.
What would you do? Money is an issue.