What are the key differences between natural gas and LPG? Here we compare them in terms of cost and efficiency.
The vast majority of UK households use natural gas to heat their property.
However, there are several notable alternatives including oil, electricity and LPG.
Liquid petroleum gas or LPG may also be a form of gas, however, LPG boilers and the fuel itself differ from their natural gas alternatives in several ways.
Let’s take a closer look at how these options compare and contrast.
What are LPG and Natural Gas Exactly?
Before looking at how they differ such as in relation to efficiency and cost, it’s important to define these two forms of heating fuel.
LPG
Liquid petroleum gas (LPG) consists of a flammable combination of two propane and butane, both of which are hydrocarbon gases.
LPG is produced by either processing raw natural gas or refining crude oil.
Natural Gas
In contrast, natural gas is an energy source derived from fossil fuels which form below the Earth’s surface. Natural gas consists of a range of compounds.
Cost: LPG vs. Natural Gas
First and foremost, how do these two options compare cost-wise?
Currently, according to official government data, the cost of gas between July to September 2023 shows that the UK averaged 27.67p per kWh for electricity and 6.77p per kWh of gas for pre-payment customers.
If you are on a standard variable rate figures average 28.68p per kWh for electricity and 7.15p per kWh for gas for the same period.
LPG currently averages at around 12.2p per kWh.
Beyond that, you’d also need to take into account the price of renting an LPG storage tank.
It costs about £60 to £70 annually to rent an above-ground LPG tank, while underground tanks tend to cost between £120 and £150 per year.
Additional costs may also apply.
So, as you can see it is more expensive to run an LPG boiler than a natural gas boiler.
But what about the price of installing these boilers in the first place?
Do they differ?
In general, there is no meaningful difference in the upfront cost of having either of these boiler types installed but it could vary depending on the brand in question.
Despite LPG being more costly to run than natural gas, both are markedly cheaper than the running cost of an electric boiler.
Oil boilers, however, cost about the same price to run per kWh as natural gas boilers.
Efficiency: LPG vs. Natural Gas
Since LPG burns hotter than natural gas, it generally offers a higher level of energy efficiency.
However, this would still depend on the boiler in question among other factors.
On average, LPG has an energy content of around 93MJ/m³, whereas natural gas comes with close to 39MJ/m³, meaning that LPG gas has more than double the energy content. This explains its higher efficiency levels.
Additional Considerations: LPG vs Natural Gas
LPG
There are many other points worth taking on board when it comes to LPG and natural gas.
Starting with LPG, one additional benefit (not yet mentioned) is that replacing a traditional LPG boiler with a condensing version (which offers more energy efficiency) is not particularly complex.
Of course, it must still be done by a qualified professional.
However, there are many practical concerns when it comes to using LPG gas. Indeed, LPG boilers are arguably not suited to most households (more on that in the next section).
Firstly, you need to have a storage tank installed and you may find it a bit of an eyesore for your garden.
Also, if you were to switch suppliers, you’d either need to transfer ownership of your gas tank to the new supplier or possibly even have a new tank installed entirely.
Beyond that, LPG gas must be delivered by road, so you run the risk of a delayed delivery causing you to run out of fuel or at least run low on fuel.
On the flip side though, if you have the money to spare, you could stock up on LPG, particularly when prices are relatively low.
This tactic could bring the cost of running an LPG boiler closer to that of running a natural gas boiler or even achieve parity.
As for environmental impact, LPG is more eco-friendly than natural gas. Along with being non-toxic, LPG is, as mentioned earlier, more efficient and releases fewer emissions.
Natural Gas
Running a gas boiler is far simpler than running an LPG boiler.
Aside from the fact that you can receive natural gas directly via the national grid (i.e., no need for a storage tank), your heating system would come with a gas meter meaning that you can pay for your heating through bills.
This is obviously way more straightforward than receiving LPG by road (or heading out and purchasing supplies yourself) and then adding it to the storage tank.
Natural gas may also be safer to run than LPG gas since natural gas usually disperses if there is a gas leak since it is lighter than LPG.
Obviously, any gas leak is a very serious issue and could prove lethal hence any concerns about a gas leak should still be taken extremely seriously whether from an LPG boiler or a natural gas boiler.
Among the disadvantages of natural gas is that it’s worse for the environment than LPG.
Moreover, if you are not on the grid, you cannot even access natural gas in the first place, which leads into the next section.
Who Should Use an LPG Boiler?
LPG boilers are a great solution for those who are not connected to the national gas grid.
If you have no access to mains gas, LPG boilers are arguably the next best option.
For one, they are cheaper to run than electric boilers and they do not require storage tanks quite as bulk as those usually needed for oiler boilers.
Moreover, oil boilers are also worse for the environment than LPG boilers.
If you want an alternative to natural gas and some of your main concerns are cost, the environment, and energy efficiency, LPG boilers arguably top the lot.
Of course, if you are primarily concerned with finding an eco-friendly option, an electric boiler may be preferable.
However, you’d still want to ensure that the electricity used is sourced from low-carbon or zero-carbon means.
Ultimately, if you have access to the national gas grid, LPG boilers wouldn’t really be a sensible solution.
After all, if cost is your priority, natural gas would be the optimal choice and if your main concern is the environment, having an electric boiler installed with energy sourced from a green energy provider would be the best solution.
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