Fireplace vs. Boiler?

This heating season, I had a fireplace insert installed to provide most of our house heat. I would now like to minimize our boiler’s oil consumption, as it merely provides hot water (and serves as a back up heat source).…

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This heating season, I had a fireplace insert installed to provide most of our house heat. I would now like to minimize our boiler's oil consumption, as it merely provides hot water (and serves as a back up heat source). I would be most appreciative for any/ all suggestions.

Thanks,

Dave

NOTE: We do not have a local, natural gas, source.

Our Answer

It’s great using a fireplace as supplemental heat, but your boiler is still the main heat system for your house, and needs to stay that way. Your house devalues dramatically if you make it non-functional.
Here's one way to minimize its use, though: Move your thermostat so it's not in direct view of the fireplace. A thermostat that’s “seen” by a fireplace feels the fireplace's radiant heat, and thinks the house is hot when it's not. So it needs to be in a room where the fireplace isn’t in. If your thermostat's properly positioned, it's going do what you want it to do: Only come on when house truly cold enough to need backup heat.