Pete. let me summarize for you:
1 - I've lived in homes with both oil heat and nat gas heat. In over
40 years experience, I've found nat gas to be consistently more
reliable. I've never had to make a single call for service where a
natural gas furnace stopped working. On the other hand, I have made
many emergency sevice calls for oil heat due to clogged nozzles and
failed pumps.
2 - In 40 years, I have never had nat gas service go out. I'd like to
know where you live that you think nat gas is so unreliable and what
exactly makes that nat gas system unreliable. IMO, for just about
all, the very small chance of losing nat gas service pales in
comparison to electric outages that most of us routinely live with.
3 - Most people do not have backup generators, which come with their
own set of new problems. And they obviously have made the judgement
that their needs, probablilities, etc don't justify having one.
4 - As to the risk of dying from carbon monoxide from nat gas, vs oil
heat, here is some data:
How great is the risk of carbon monoxide in my home from natural gas?
From 1979 to 1988, there were 578 deaths in the United States that were
attributed to natural gas (out of 56,000 total carbon monoxide-related
deaths). This is an average of 50 deaths per year. You are more likely
to die from a lightning strike (approximately 80 deaths per year).
http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/a/acci...ath/deaths.htm
Estimated 130 people die each year from non-fire carbon monoxide
poisoning in the US 2001 ((US Consumer Product Safety Commission,
National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, 2003)
Estimated 58% (75) people die each year from non-fire carbon monoxide
poisoning caused by heating systems in the US 2001 (US Consumer Product
Safety)
Estimated 36.4% (28) people die each year from non-fire carbon monoxide
poisoning caused by natural gas heating systems in the US 2001 (US
Consumer Product Safety)
So, of the whopping 130 people who die each year from non-fire CO, 75
are caused by all heating systems, and of those 28 are attributable to
a natural gas system. That should put to rest the notion that natural
gas systems are more prone to CO problems. Compare this to the 50K
people killed on our roads each year to put it in perspective.
5 - If nat gas were unsafe compared to other heating system, insurance
companies would charge higher rates or not insure buildings that use
it, yet this is not an issue.
6 - Your suggestion that most homeowners should know how to change
nozzles in a furnace that stops working in the middle of the night is
bizarre for 2 reasons. First, clearly most homeowners do not have that
level of experience and knowledge. Second, it's very strange for
someone so concerned about the safety of nat gas vs oil to be
recommending that most homeowners start fooling around with their own
oil burner. IMO, that is far more likely to result in injury or a fire
than having a nat gas furnace ever would.
7 - People can make their own choices based on their needs and
priorities. But to suggest that nat gas is unsafe or unreliable
compared to oil heat is bogus.