Owwwww...

[PHPaul]

I just ordered 250 gallons of #2 Fuel Oil. That'll set me back $950

OTOH, that's a year's supply for my shop heat and tractors, so I guess it could be worse.

 

[Bmyers]

Cheaper than what we are paying per gallon, just over $4 here.

Yet, I will agree with you, way to expensive.

 

[DustyRusty]

You paid $3.80 a gallon for a small delivery. When I order oil I tell them that I will pay the driver in cash, and that there is no rush and to just give me a delivery date when the driver will be in the neighborhood. That gets me the best price. It costs the oil company just about the same amount to make a delivery of 250 gallons as it does to deliver 1000 gallons, except for the additional time for the truck to put the additional 750 gallons into the tank. The economy in the fuel delivery business is by clustering all deliveries into the smallest area. It cuts down on driving time and boosts productivity. Driving long distances between deliveries is nonproductive, and it is built into the price per gallon.

I just checked the prices locally, and it is $3.70, but if I wait till they are close by and pay cash, the price drops to $3.30.

 

[ctfjr]

I feel your pain PH. Since we moved to this house just about a year ago we burn propane and not #2, which was how I got my 'diesel' fuel. I repurposed a 55 gallon drum as a diesel tank with 12v pump. The oil man would fill it when he made his regular deliver.
I'm not sure I would feel right asking one of our oil company customers to make a 40 gallon delivery. So onto the forks it is going and I'm going to drive the .6 mile to the gas station and fill it there (and pay for 'road use' diesel).
On the plus side the previous owner installed a 95% + effiecency propane boiler. So at $2.50 / gallon its cheaper than oil, by a lot.

 

[PHPaul]

I only use propane for my generator, so 30-50 gallon deliveries are the norm. Last price was over $4/gallon.

 

[skeets]

Off Road Diesel is still over 4 bucks a gallon around here. Sheets had a sale on diesel for if I remember right 1.67 for over the road. I got about 45 gallons,, was a deal I couldnt pass up. The surprising thing is as many diesel pick up as there are around here, the clerk said there were very few stopping in for fuel. If I had another barrel I would have got more.

 

[jimh406]

We are about $3.50 or so for off road diesel. It has been creeping up again though.

 

[jyoutz]

This is today’s price for road diesel near me. Off road would only come from a bulk supplier and would be considerably cheaper.

 

[fried1765]

I feel your pain PH. Since we moved to this house just about a year ago we burn propane and not #2, which was how I got my 'diesel' fuel. I repurposed a 55 gallon drum as a diesel tank with 12v pump. The oil man would fill it when he made his regular deliver.
I'm not sure I would feel right asking one of our oil company customers to make a 40 gallon delivery. So onto the forks it is going and I'm going to drive the .6 mile to the gas station and fill it there (and pay for 'road use' diesel).
On the plus side the previous owner installed a 95% + effiecency propane boiler. So at $2.50 / gallon its cheaper than oil, by a lot.

Unfortunately though, ........propane does not have the same BTU rating per gallon as #2 oil does.
#2 oil = 137K BTU per gal
Propane = 91K BTU per gal.
At your $2.50 er gal. that makes propane 15 cents cheaper, than $4.00 per gallon oil, for equivalent BTUs.
That is not "a lot"... IMHO.
Good shopping, as DustyRusty suggests, could easily make that difference flip.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Unfortunately though, ........propane does not have the same BTU rating per gallon as #2 oil does.
#2 oil = 137K BTU per gal
Propane = 91K BTU per gal.
At your $2.50 er gal. that makes propane 15 cents cheaper, than $4.00 per gallon oil, for equivalent BTUs.
That is not "a lot"... IMHO.
Good shopping, as DustyRusty suggests, could easily make that difference flip.

You won't find a #2 boiler that has a 95% efficiency rating they are closer to 75% older ones were 60%.
So when you add that to your equation, propane becomes even cheaper to use.
There is also less maintenance costs with a propane boiler.

 

[GeoHorn]

I have our residence on “keep full” service…. which means whenever the driver is in my area and has more propane on the truck at the end of his deliveries…he stops and puts it in my tank.… This results in a 50 cents/gal discount for me. It’s on an “auto-charge” to my credit card and they email me same day as delivered…but charge the card only after I “reply” to the email.

I like this system and never have to worry about being low on propane.

 

[ctfjr]

Unfortunately though, ........propane does not have the same BTU rating per gallon as #2 oil does.
#2 oil = 137K BTU per gal
Propane = 91K BTU per gal.
At your $2.50 er gal. that makes propane 15 cents cheaper, than $4.00 per gallon oil, for equivalent BTUs.
That is not "a lot"... IMHO.
Good shopping, as DustyRusty suggests, could easily make that difference flip.

Ok fair statement. Let's take a look at what it takes to 'make' 100,000 btu's of heat.
An oil boiler at 80% efficiency (modern boilers when new or right after they have been vacuumed clean) will give you .8 * 137,000 = 109,600 btu's. So to make 100,000 we would need ~ .9 gallons of oil. If you are paying $4.00 / gallon that .9 gallons will cost you $3.60.

Since propane contains 91,000 btu's and my boiler is 95% efficient I get 86,450 btu's out of my gallon of propane. To make 100,000 I will need ~1.16 gallons. I am paying $2.50 / gallon so it costs me $2.90.

The annual savings is ~ 19.5%

How much do you pay per year for fuel? Is 19.5% 'a lot' of $$$

You are absolutely correct that the difference will vary by what you pay for the fuels (and the efficiency of your equipment). A friend of mine just told me he is paying $1.50 / gal for propane while I know his brother is paying $3.40.

 

[lugbolt]

got a coworker that heats his house with wood, says it's free.

Define "Free".

Had to put gas and oil and bar oil in the saw to cut it. Had to bust it all up, days upon days of splitting the old fashioned way (he's got a tractor but too egotistical to use the tractor to bust it). Back injury, gets aggravated when splitting wood. Have to clean the box out every so often. Drive to get the wood, wherever it is (didn't say). Price of a couple saw chains, maintenance/repairs on the saw(s), the truck, etc

I've done this and thought the same thing until the pen hit the paper. Gas is cheaper, so is propane. Well, for now anyway. I'm sure that'll change right along with forced compliance into electric propulsion in cars.

 

[fried1765]

I have our residence on “keep full” service…. which means whenever the driver is in my area and has more propane on the truck at the end of his deliveries…he stops and puts it in my tank.… This results in a 50 cents/gal discount for me. It’s on an “auto-charge” to my credit card and they email me same day as delivered…but charge the card only after I “reply” to the email.

I like this system and never have to worry about being low on propane.

Ok fair statement. Let's take a look at what it takes to 'make' 100,000 btu's of heat.
An oil boiler at 80% efficiency (modern boilers when new or right after they have been vacuumed clean) will give you .8 * 137,000 = 109,600 btu's. So to make 100,000 we would need ~ .9 gallons of oil. If you are paying $4.00 / gallon that .9 gallons will cost you $3.60.

Since propane contains 91,000 btu's and my boiler is 95% efficient I get 86,450 btu's out of my gallon of propane. To make 100,000 I will need ~1.16 gallons. I am paying $2.50 / gallon so it costs me $2.90.

The annual savings is ~ 19.5%

How much do you pay per year for fuel? Is 19.5% 'a lot' of $$$

You are absolutely correct that the difference will vary by what you pay for the fuels (and the efficiency of your equipment). A friend of mine just told me he is paying $1.50 / gal for propane while I know his brother is paying $3.40.

"How much do you pay per year for fuel?"

Fortunately (or unfortunately) I have absolutely no idea how much I pay per year for fuel.
Six months of each year I live in Florida in my SO's house.
She has electric heat, which is all rolled into her electric bill, and I have no idea what that amount might be.
She pays whatever her electric bill is.

I do have natural gas heat in my 294 year old house in NE, but that building is completely un-insulated, and I would not even consider heating that all Winter.
I use hot water (natural gas) heat there, but only in the shoulder seasons, and do not think about what it costs me.
When I need heat there.....I simply turn up the thermostat to be comfortable.

 

[GeoHorn]

A vacant home in the NE heated all winter on natural-gas… is an amusing thought to those of us Texans …who have been told that Texas pipelines NG to the NE where it’s sold cheaper than we pay for it here locally…. (at least those of us who they’ll sell it to…. out where I am it’s unavailable*… which is why I’m on propane)

* ”They” are just-completing a 30-mile 8” NG pipeline for a new “community” out west of Austin near the intersection of Hwy 71 and US-281 …but it’ll serve only that “community” of wealthy retirees who can pay large money for paperboard houses clad in thin-limestone with high-ceilings by some builder recently from CA.