My house is heated with oil, which means my heat source would as well be oil. It is a really old house, that's why we don't have any other type of heat source.
How does it work?
A heating system that uses oil for fuel relies on several different components to properly heat a home. The components that are often part of an oil-fueled heating system are:
- Oil tank: The oil tank stores the oil until it needs to be used by the heating system. Oil tanks are available in a variety of sizes and shapes, including horizontal and vertical tanks. They might be located above or underground.
- Filter: The filter removes sediment and debris from the oil as it flows from the tank to the heating system.
- Fuel pump: The fuel pump controls the movement of the oil from the tank to the heating system.
- Combustion chamber: The combustion chamber is where the oil is ignited, so that it can warm either water or air, depending on the type of system in place.
- Thermostat: The thermostat measures the temperature in a particular area of a house. When the temperature falls below the set level, the thermostat triggers the heating system to kick on.
When an oil heating system gets the signal that it needs to warm up a house, the oil gets pumped from the tank into the combustion chamber. Usually, the oil is under a lot of pressure as it enters the chamber. Once in the combustion chamber, the oil is lit on fire. Although older oil heat systems featured a pilot light that was burned continually, newer models feature electronic ignition. A flame is only lit when the heating system is running through a cycle.
Sources:
How does oil heat my home? (smoenergy.com)