We have owned our home for almost exactly one year, and since the beginning of the winter, we have had issues with our furnace (we have oil heat with an above-ground tank.) Fortunately we have a service plan, but at least once a month we have to call them because our heater won't turn on, and every time it's because of something to do with air being in the hose (or something like that.) Our home is about 30 years old, and so the furnace and tank are likely that old, too. The technician told us we could get a tiger loop for $500 that would fix the problem temporarily, but he can't say how long exactly.

So my husband has made some phone calls about replacing the furnace and it appears that the cost of switching to gas heat is pretty close to the cost of a new oil furnace and tank. The bad news is it is about $6,000-$7,000 either way. The gas company offers 0% financing as an incentive to switch, but I'm not sure if their price includes removal of the oil tank. The interest rate for a new oil system would be at least 9%, so technically it would wind up being more expensive to get a new oil system after you factor in all the interest.

Either way, I just don't think I want to finance something like that right now. It would cost $500 for a new "tiger loop" which will supposedly fix the problem temporarily (which could be a fix for 5 years or only 1 year - they can't be sure. Awesome.) But I'm thinking a $200/month extra payment is just not something we need right now. I'm trying to get rid of our debt - not add to it. So I think it's best to get the new part and even if it only lasts a year, next year we may be in a better position financially to get a whole new system - plus, we can do more research about what kind of system that should be.

So my question is should we bite the bullet and get a whole new system, or is a tiger loop a pretty good fix for at least a year or two? And if we get a new system, should we stay with oil or change to gas?

Thanks for any help you can give us!