Hunter Geist, Author at FuelSnap

How to Setup your Smart Oil Gauge

May 13, 2024April 17, 2024

Setting up your Smart Oil Gauge is very important for its functionality. Without making sure that the gauge properly connects to the internet, it won’t communicate with our servers or the app. For your gauge to be able to work properly, you’ll need to make sure that the gauge is set. In this blog post, I’ll cover all the ways you can make sure that your gauge is set up properly!

The Smart Configuration Method

The first method that you’ll likely try is the “Smart Config” method. You can find this method by going onto the Smart Oil Gauge App and clicking on “connect sensor”. Upon clicking on this option, you’ll see that this method is asking for your WIFI network password. This is the WIFI password for the network that your phone is currently connected to. It’s important to note that when doing this method, whichever network that your phone is connected to is the network the gauge will try to connect to. So be sure that your phone is on the network that you want to connect the gauge to.

Once you’ve clicked on “connect sensor”, be sure to type in your WIFI network password and select continue. On this next screen, you’ll see a little animation that looks kind of like Mickey Mouse’s hand. This is demonstrating how to press the button on the gauge. The tall-thin black button that we’re referring to is located on the top right of the top board. Press the button twice and the gauge should start blinking twice a second, then press the continue button.

This is what the Smart Config method looks like from the quick start guide. It gives a brief explanation of how to get the gauge connected and shows the steps required.

The app will then go to another screen where it will say “Beginning configuration process, please wait”. Simply wait for the gauge to connect to your WIFI and when the process is done, it should say “Config Process Complete”. It will then take you to another screen where you’ll be able to fill out all the information that you need on your tank! This will include tank size, upload interval, and the tank’s name.

If the app says “Configuration Failed” then try seeing if you can verify the WIFI network password to make sure that you’re using the correct password. If you are, try rebooting the router and trying again. The process should be able to be successful after rebooting the router. If it still fails, try the below processes and see if they work!

The Alternate Configuration Process

This process is a little bit different from the Smart Config process. Unlike the smart config process that takes you through the Smart Oil Gauge app, this process will take you through your WIFI settings on your phone. With the Smart Config process, the process is identical for IOS and Android devices. However, the alternate process is slightly different depending on what type of device you use. I will be covering those differences here.

The first thing that you’ll need to do is go to your phone’s WIFI settings. Once you’ve made it to the WIFI settings, make sure that the gauge is turned on. Then, press and hold on to the tall-thin black button once for two seconds. Try counting one-one thousand, two-one thousand before letting go. I’ve often found that this will help you get exactly the amount of button presses that you’ll need.

This is the guide to the alternate setup process. This can be found on either the troubleshooting guide or the quick start guide depending on your model of Smart Oil Gauge.

Once you’ve done that, the gauge should start flashing once per second and you will see a network pop-up in your WIFI settings that says “CCF######”. The numbers will depend on your gauge’s serial number but the network popping up is the same. This is where you will need to connect to the network on your phone. The password when attempting to connect is smartoil.

Now, after typing in the password, the process might be different depending on your device. If you are on an IOS device, the gauge should take you right to the login screen. However, if you have an Android device, it will say “connected without internet”. In that instance, you will need to go to your web browser and type in the IP address. In the search bar, type in 192.168.4.1, and your phone will open up to the login screen.

Once on the login screen, you should see your WIFI network in a list of other networks in purple. Make sure that you select your WIFI network so that it can autofill the SSID box. Then, be sure to type in your WIFI network password and email address so that the gauge can send you a registration email. Then, hit the save button and check your email for the registration email!

The WPS Method

The final method that you can try is the WPS method. Now, this method is usually a last resort because it’ll only work if your WIFI router has a WPS button. If your router doesn’t have a WPS button, then you will likely not be able to do this process. The WPS button usually looks like either a globe, lock, or two arrows chasing each other but it might even just say WPS on the button.

The WPS button can often be found on either the front or back of your router like in the above photo.

The first thing that you have to do is press the WPS button on your router and the router should start flashing. Once you’ve done that, press and hold on the gauge’s configure button once for three seconds (one-one thousand, two-one thousand, three-one thousand) and let go. The gauge should then start flashing three times a second before connecting to your router.

After successfully going through the WPS configuration process, simply go on your Smart Oil Gauge app and refresh the page and you should see the gauge listed there on the app!

Gauge Bandwidth Compatibility

While most devices nowadays are compatible with 5ghz WIFI connections, the Smart Oil Gauge is not. Now, you might be wondering why we had gone with 2.4ghz rather than 5ghz. Well, the answer is very simple. While 5ghz is certainly faster than 2.4ghz, it doesn’t reach as far. That’s why 5ghz mostly finds use in streaming and gaming because those high-performance tasks require a faster speed to function properly.

Now with 2.4ghz bandwidths, they tend to reach farther than 5ghz. Most of the time, your oil tank is not going to be right under the router. It’ll usually be farther away in the basement or outdoors. For that reason, we chose 2.4ghz to provide the gauge with a strong signal that reaches farther than 5ghz networks.

This is a perfect example of how 2.4ghz and 5ghz work on your network. In the above photo, you can see that streaming and gaming take place within the 5ghz band. While everything else will be in the 2.4ghz band.

If your network shares both 2.4ghz and 5ghz, we recommend you open up a separate 2.4ghz-only network for the Smart Oil Gauge. This will give the gauge a solid connection to connect to and will make sure that the gauge doesn’t disconnect if it switches to 5ghz. If you can’t open up a separate 2.4ghz-only network for the gauge to connect to, then I would recommend getting a WIFI range extender. This will give the gauge another access point to connect to the internet with, as well as being able to split the 2.4ghz and 5ghz bandwidths.

We recommend the following extenders, this TP-Link extender is a 2.4ghz-only extender, meaning that it will only extend a 2.4ghz signal. There is also this NETGEAR extender, which is a dual-band extender. This means that it will be able to extend both 2.4ghz and 5ghz bands separately. I have had some personal experience with the NETGEAR extender and never had any issues with it when I used it!

Conclusion

Making sure that you connect your Smart Oil Gauge to the internet is very important for its functionality. The device will need a stable 2.4 GHz internet connection for it to function on the network properly. We’ve outlined everything that you’ll need to know above! Getting the gauge online will ensure that it’s able to read and upload without issue.

If you’ve gone through all of these methods and have still yet to get the gauge online, then do not panic, our support team is more than willing to help! You can reach us at 203-456-1499 option 3, Monday through Friday from 8 am-5 pm EST. But when you call, just make sure you have your WIFI password, Gauge Serial Number, and account email address all handy to make the process go smoother!

Happy Heating,

Hunter

The Untold Truth of Heating Oil Service Contracts

April 29, 2024April 17, 2024

Service contracts are common practice when it comes to working with oil dealers. They’ll usually recommend that you setup automatic delivery with service contract. But, there tends to be a lot of strings attached to these service contracts. In this blog, I’ll be covering several service contract myths and go into detail about them.

Myth #1: Automatic Delivery Only

Most oil companies will often require you to sign up for their automatic delivery to get a service contract with them. They’ll often try to scare you by saying things like “You’ll have to buy our oil because we can’t risk you getting waste oil from another company. Ordering through us is the safest option”. When in actuality, this isn’t true. There are thousands of dealers from reputable companies that you can safely buy from. If you’re unsure, read their reviews first to see how other customers felt after dealing with them. It’s also important to mention that you should NEVER order from online anonymous dealers.

It’s also worth mentioning that there are plenty of companies that will offer service contracts without forcing you to get an automatic delivery plan. DollarWise Oil for, example, offers their annual maintenance plan and doesn’t require you to order from them to get a maintenance plan. They also offer 24/7 support and you don’t have to buy heating oil through them! Their service contract also includes an annual tune-up, system cleaning, and much more! Of course, this is in their best interest because it would be better for them not to come to your home in the middle of the night (and I’m sure you wouldn’t want that either). But if you’re interested, be sure to read the fine print and be expected to pay for some parts and labor in an emergency.

This is what DollarWise will then to offer for their maintenance plans. For more information, you will have to contact DollarWise.

Down on Long Island, there is another heating oil company known as Ryan Anthony’s Heating Service. They’re rated very highly amongst their customers and will also offer service contracts without the need to order heating oil from them. If you get a service contract with Ryan Anthony’s, you’ll probably have to pay a small monthly service fee as the months go by. You’ll also be able to shop around on oil when you’re running low and aren’t required to order through them! You’ll end up saving more money on heating oil compared to automatic delivery in the long run.

Myth #2: Your Oil Company Offers “Free Service Contracts”

There’s a common saying in today’s day and age “If it seems too good to be true, then it probably is”. Nothing in life is free and the same applies to service contracts. Usually when a company promises to give you a “Free Service Contract”, it will come at a cost, even if it’s a small one. When it comes to automatic delivery, heating oil can normally be priced at an additional $0.40 to even as high as a dollar more per gallon! In CT, we’ve seen it get as high as $1.25 per gallon more for automatic delivery! So let’s do a quick little math equation to determine how much that “Free Service Contract” really is.

Your average-size home uses around 800 gallons of heating oil yearly
You’ll usually end up paying an average of $0.60 per gallon more with automatic delivery.
The supposed “free service contract” will cost you 800 X $0.60 = $480!

For spending that much money, you should at least be getting an annual tune-up for your heating oil system.

Keeping up to date with your heating system maintenance will ensure that your system is running in tip-top shape and will be the best optimized heating system for your home.

Myth #3: You Can Only Get 24/7 Support with a Service Contract

One of the best things that you can do for your HVAC system is to get an annual tune-up. When you get a chance, check Google and see which qualified local service companies are in your local area. Do a little bit of research and see which services companies seem reputable and trustworthy. If they seem to have good reviews and seem trustworthy, then reach out and see open a service contract. They might even offer you free support. Reaching out to your local service companies will help you not only establish connections, it will put you on good terms with the local servicemen.

But you might be wondering, isn’t emergency service expensive? Well, it is expensive! But, if you run the numbers, spending $500 for an emergency service call once every couple of years is better than an additional $480 every year. This often makes you better off not having a service plan. However, if your heating system is on the older side and it constantly breaks down throughout the year, then you should consider getting a service contract. But at that point, you might as well upgrade!

Conclusion

The bottom line when it comes to home heating is ensuring that your family stays warm during the winter. You can make sure of this by keeping your home heating system well-maintained. You can do this by utilizing a maintenance and service plan. But, be sure to do some research and only choose from a trusted company.

Additionally, make sure that you don’t fall for the trap of “automatic delivery”. Be sure to find a company that will allow you to shop around if you can’t get a delivery soon. You’ll be able to save hundreds of dollars yearly by choosing a call-by-only delivery option. You can then use that money saved to buy other things you might like! That might even include a Smart Oil Gauge to ensure that you never run out!

Happy Heating,

Hunter

How Much Heating Oil Will I Use During the Spring?

April 15, 2024February 15, 2024

With Spring currently in full swing, you might find yourself using less and less oil during this season. With the warmer weather slowly making its way back to the northeast, you might be wondering how much oil would you be using consistently. In this post, I’ll be covering what you should expect for heating oil during the spring months until summer.

How Much Heating Oil Should I be Burning on Average?

During the spring, the average homeowner will only be burning around 2-3 gallons a day. However, this can depend on many different variables. For example, if you’re using heating oil for both hot water and heating, then you’ll use more oil than someone who is using it for only heating. If you’re like me, I use heating oil in my home for both hot water and heat. So my daily usage might be a bit more compared to someone who uses heating oil just for heat.

In the above graph, you’ll notice that the average daily usage changes depending on the size of the house and temperatures. These are some of the most important factors when it comes to how many gallons of oil you’ll use to heat your home.

Additionally, if you have a large home then you will by default burn more oil than someone with a smaller house. The square footage of your home will also determine how much oil you will be burning daily. For example, a home with a 1500 square footage will not be burning as much oil as a home that has a 2500 square footage.

Outside Temperature

The weather and temperature outside both play key and important factors in oil consumption. The temperature outside will determine if you decide to burn oil or not, as well as how much oil you are burning. During a hot summer day, you likely won’t be running your heat and will be using an air conditioner. However, sometimes spring nights can be a little chilly, so running your heat during these times isn’t unheard of. But, you probably won’t be burning a significant amount of oil.

Using Heating Oil For Heat and Hot Water

Most of the time, if your home has an oil-fired water heater, then you should most definitely be monitoring your oil level yearly. This is because even if you are not using heating oil for heat during the spring, you will still certainly be using it for hot water. Because let’s be honest, who doesn’t enjoy a hot shower? With heaters, you’ll be constantly using oil to keep the water in the house hot.

The average oil-fired water heater like the one shown above will usually use between a half a gallon and one gallon of heating oil per day for the average home. Doesn’t seem like a lot at first, but over time you’ll be burning through quite a bit of oil.

If you’re using heating oil for both hot water and heat, I recommend the Smart Oil Gauge. The gauge will help you read your tank’s oil level year round! It can track usage and oil level through our Smart Oil Gauge app! Simply just connect it to the internet and put in your tank information and you’ll be able to start reading the level from wherever you are! If you’re interest in learning more, check out our blog posts on the Smart Oil Gauge and the Smart Oil Gauge Duo.

What’s the Verdict?

How much oil you burn during the first few months of spring will ultimately depend on what you’re using it for and how big your house is. If you’re using your heating oil for hot water and to heat your home when it’s chilly, you might use 3-5 gallons a day. This might seem like a lot, but compared to the winter months where you’ll often burn anywhere from 8-10 gallons daily, 3-5 is nothing.

If you’re using your heat only when it’s a little too cold for a spring day, then you might only see 1-3 gallons a day. The same goes for hot water usage. If you’re only using your heat for hot water during the spring, you’ll only see

Happy Heating,

Hunter

Replacing the Batteries in your Smart Oil Gauge

April 8, 2024February 14, 2024

It’s important to replace the batteries in your Smart Oil Gauge when they start to get low. Like most wireless devices, the Smart Oil Gauge uses batteries to function. However, unlike your cellphone or portable gaming consoles, the batteries are not a single internal rechargeable battery. They are instead two AA-sized 3.6v lithium batteries. In this post, I’ll cover how to replace them and much more!

When Should You Replace the Batteries?

The battery life on the gauge has four different stages. These are Excellent, Good, Fair, and Poor. We typically recommend you replace them when they start reading “Poor”. When they start reading “poor”, this typically means that there are only a couple of weeks or months before they die completely. If you order the batteries when they start reading poor, it gives you enough time for them to ship and arrive in time for you to replace them.

In the above photo, you’ll see that two of my gauges have different battery readings. The top one reads poor, while the second one reading good. I should probably replace the batteries on my top tank!

While you can replace the batteries once the gauge starts reading “Fair”, you’ll still have a good few months before the gauge starts reading a “poor” battery life. So you’ll be able to get away with them reading “fair” for a while before needing to replace them. However, being on top of your battery life isn’t a bad thing either!

What kind of Batteries does the Gauge Use?

The Smart Oil Gauge uses SAFT LS14500 3.6v Lithium batteries. These are a special brand of batteries and cannot be found at your local Home Depot, Lowe’s, or Best Buy. You’ll only be able to purchase them locally at a battery department store, or online on our website.

This is what the correct batteries for the Smart Oil Gauge look like.

The gauge cannot use standard Duracell or Energizer AA batteries either. This is because these batteries are not strong enough to power the gauge. While they’ll only be able to power the LED lights in the gauge, they are not strong enough to power the rest of the device. This is because these batteries are only 1.5 volts, while the gauge needs two 3.6 volt batteries.

How to Replace the Batteries

Replacing the batteries on the Smart Oil is very easy. On the standard Smart Oil Gauge model, replacing them is very simple. All you have to do is take the battery box out of the device and open it up. It can be opened up by turning the box over and finding the three ridges on the back of the box. Once you’ve located them, push down them and push forward. The box should slide right open. Once the box is open, simply take out the old batteries and replace them with the new ones. Close up the battery box and turn the gauge back on. You should then be able to go onto the app and refresh the page.

On a Smart Oil Gauge Dup however, it is so much easier. Simply unscrew the top of the gauge and open up the Duo. Simply push down on the cap to the interiors and it should pop right open. Then simply take out the batteries and put the new ones in. Then close everything up and turn the gauge back on and it should show up online!

Updating the Battery Life

While this doesn’t happen all the time, it’s important to know that sometimes the battery life won’t update right away. You’ll probably notice that once you replace the batteries, the device will come back online and will still read “Fair” or “Poor”. In an instance like this, we recommend that you wait 24-48 hours for the battery life to update on the app.

While the battery life will usually update right away, in some instances it won’t. Waiting 24-48 hours will give the gauge enough time to connect to our servers and check to see if they were changed. If it does check the batteries, you’ll see that they will be reading either “Good” or “Excellent” on the app.

Conclusion

Replacing the batteries on the gauge is very easy. They can be done within a few minutes and can have your gauge operating as normal again! We have a guide on our YouTube channel that gives you a step by step process on this method. You can watch it here.

Simply follow the steps in this blog post and the video and you’ll be able to get the gauge up and running in no time! If you are still having trouble getting the gauge online after they’ve been replaced, feel free to reach out! You can reach us at 203-456-1499 option 3, from 8 am – 5 pm EST, Monday through Friday. You can even reach us by email at support@smartoilgauge.com

Happy Heating,

Hunter

Reconnecting The WIFI on Your Smart Oil Gauge

April 1, 2024February 14, 2024

With the Smart Oil Gauge, it’s important to have a stable internet connection. But sometimes you’ll need to change your router, password, or SSID for your network. In this case, you’ll need to update the credentials. This is to ensure that the gauge can continue to upload to our servers so you can get your readings. In this article, I’ll cover the most popular and effective way to reconnect your gauge to the WIFI!

When You Would Need to Update the Gauge’s Credentials

Updating the Smart Oil Gauge’s WIFI credentials isn’t something that you would need to do very often. You’ll only ever need to do this if you have made a change to your WIFI network. This can include something as simple as an SSID change or even a password change. More often than not, you’ll need to do this if you’ve changed your WIFI router recently.

Changing your WIFI router is something that you should do every couple of years. It is also the most common reason for needing to update the WIFI credentials on the Smart Oil Gauge.

Method 1: Smart Update

The most common method in reconnecting your gauge to the WIFI is through the Smart Oil Gauge App. There is an option in the “Tools” screen that says “Reconnect WIFI”. From here, you will simply just need to follow the steps on reconnecting the Smart Oil Gauge to the WIFI.

In the above picture, you’ll see each step of going through the in-app reconnection process.

When using the in-app update process, it’s important to be on the same network that you wish to connect the gauge to. It’s important to know that your network MUST be 2.4 GHz only. If it isn’t, you’ll have to go through the alternate process.

Once you’ve typed in your WIFI password, hit continue and make sure you press the tall & thin black button twice. This will cause the gauge to enter the Smart Config/Update mode. The hit continues and the gauge will start updating the credentials. You might get an alert that says “This Sensor was already registered”. If you do get this alert, select “WIFI only”. Your gauge should then complete the update process and reconnect to your WIFI!

Method 2: Alternate Update

If you cannot reconnect the Smart Oil Gauge using the in-app method, then going through the alternate method is probably the best way to reconnect the gauge to your WIFI. Unlike the in-app process, you’ll need to go into your WIFI settings.

First, you’ll need to press and hold the tall thin black button on the top right of the Smart Oil Gauge, once for two seconds. You can usually trigger this by counting “one-one thousand, two-one thousand” while holding the button, before letting go.

In the above photo, you’ll see the steps needed to get through the alternate process. It starts off at your phone’s WIFI settings, before you’ll eventually need to make it to a login screen.

After you’ve held the button down once for two seconds, you’ll see in your WIFI settings a network that says “CCF######”. As you can see in the above photos, in my phone’s WIFI settings, I can see that the CCF network shows up under my “Available Networks”. Once I select the network, if this is the first time I’m joining it, I will need to type in the “smartoil” password to connect to it.

Now, if you’re on Android when doing this, then it will say “Connected without internet” when you successfully connect to the CCF network. If you are on Android, it may or may not take you to the login screen right away. If it doesn’t, you’ll need to go to your web browser (Google Chrome, Firefox, etc) and type in an IP address. That address is 192.168.4.1, and after typing it in, you’ll be brought to the login screen.

Once you’ve made it to the login screen, on the top right or in the center, you’ll see your WIFI network listed there in purple. Tap on your WIFI network and it should auto-fill the SSID box. Once you’ve done that, it will then prompt you to type in your network password. Type it in and leave the email address blank, before hitting the save button. Your gauge should then reconnect to the WIFI.

Method 3: WPS Update

The final method that I recommend is the WPS method. This will only work if your router has a WPS button. When going through this process, I recommend bringing the gauge up to the router if possible. It makes the whole process a lot easier. The first thing that you’ll need to do is go over to your router and check for a WPS button. Usually, this button will look like either a globe, two arrows chasing each other, a lock, or simply might just say WPS on it. Once you’ve located the WPS button, press it and the router should start flashing.

Once you’ve pressed the WPS button, press and hold on to the tall-thin black button once for three seconds (It’s best to count one-one thousand, two-one thousand, three-one thousand, before letting go). If all goes correctly, then the gauge should start flashing three times every second and should automatically make a connection to the WIFI.

Conclusion

If you’ve made any changes to your WIFI network, then going through these processes will help get the gauge back online. They are all pretty simple and easy to follow, so getting the gauge online using these methods, shouldn’t be an issue!

However, if you’ve tried all of these methods and still cannot get the gauge online again, please feel free to contact our tech support team! We are always happy to help troubleshoot your device! You can reach us at 203-456-1499 option 3, Monday through Friday from 8 am-5 pm EST.

Happy Heating,

Hunter

Choosing a New Furnace

March 25, 2024January 31, 2024

Usually, once your furnace hits the ripe age of 30 years old, it means it’s time to replace it. While your annual maintenance can be incredibly helpful for maintaining your home’s HVAC system, there will come a time when you will eventually need to replace it. If that time is now, or if it’s coming over the horizon, please follow these steps to help you choose a new furnace!

What is a Furnace?

A furnace will convert home heating oil, propane, and/or natural gas into heat and will then transfer the heat through the ductwork into the rooms of your home. Your furnace will normally consist of:

The Burner: This will normally combine the air, fuel, and flame that will ignite the fuel to create heat.
Heat Exchanger: This takes the heat from the furnace’s combustion chamber (the location where the fuel burns) and will transfer the heat to the clean air that will then circulated into the home.
Blower: The blower will take air from the inside of the house, and push it through to the heat exchanger and will then blow the hot air out of the furnace and into the home.

When going through the process of choosing a new furnace, we recommend following the below steps.

Step 1: Choosing a Fuel Type

Most of the time, we don’t have much of a choice when it comes to deciding what type of fuel we use for our home. You’ll be considered one of the lucky ones if you have natural gas plumbed in from your street. Be sure that you hook into it as soon as possible and get yourself a gas furnace.

With natural gas available in your street, you will often see meters similar to these installed on the side of homes. Check to see if you’re able to connect to these natural gas lines and heat your home via natural gas. However, sometimes some moratoriums will prevent you from connecting to these lines.

If you don’t have natural gas in your street, then don’t fret. The price differences between oil heat and natural gas are very slight. While heating oil is a bit more expensive, heating oil tends to be a bit more accessible.

When replacing your furnace, the most common approach is to continue using the fuel source that you had used before needing a switch. For example, if you use propane heat, stick with propane. The same goes for heating oil and natural gas. However, when it comes to getting a new furnace, a majority of propane dealers will encourage you to make the switch to propane when you need a new furnace. Don’t do this because THIS IS MORE PROFITABLE FOR THEM. You’ll end up paying significantly more money in the long run to heat your home rather than with heating oil. Additionally, if they tell you that the price per gallon is lower than heating oil, then remember that: it takes 1.35 gallons of propane to generate the same amount of heat as one gallon of heating oil.

When choosing a new furnace, deciding to stick with your current fuel source is usually the best idea. We go a little bit more in-depth about the differences between propane and heating oil in our blog post here.

Step 2: Choosing a Brand

One of the nice things about oil-fired furnaces is that there aren’t a lot of options to choose from. Whichever system you decide to buy, you’ll only end up having one or two burner options that you’ll be able to choose from, but they are all good choices. Additionally, if the burner that you choose stops working in the winter, the technician who will come to fix it, and will have the correct parts to fix it.

However, this is unfortunately not the case when it comes to natural gas furnaces. Natural gas furnaces are usually built and sold all across the country. This results in too many types of these furnaces in particular and technicians are unable to service every single one with the parts that they have in their trucks.

When you choose your brand, you will get what you pay for. If you are buying this furnace and intend to use it over the long term, I recommend ThermoPride or a comparable high-end furnace. If you are purchasing this for a rental property that you’re only going to own for a few years, then the best-priced furnace available is your best choice.

Your best resource overall is your HVAC company. Make sure that you have them quote you a large of brands that you can compare.

Your furnace is the heat of your home’s HVAC system. High-end furnaces such as ThermoPride can usually last 30+ years!

Step 3: Choosing a Size

Choosing a size for your furnace is pretty easy if you look at what your current system’s size is. A replacement that is the same size as your current system will be the easiest and give you the least amount of trouble. However, things might’ve changed since your house was originally built. Was there an extension put into the home? Did you upgrade the windows and siding? Was the system sized properly, to begin with?

All of these factors can lead to your current system being under or over-sized. A knowledgeable and competent HVAC contractor will usually ask you a lot of questions about your home. Some of those questions will usually include:

What’s your home’s square footage?
How tall are the walls?
How many windows does each floor have?
What are the windows’ dimensions?
Are they single-pane or dual-pane windows?
How well insulated is your home?

If your HVAC technician asks for just the square footage of your home to figure out the size of your furnace, it’s time to find a new HVAC technician. There are a lot more factors that will contribute to loss of heat other than the square footage of your home.

The easiest by far is to keep the same size furnace as you originally had. But, it might not be sized properly for your home. Heat loss calculations will help determine the best size for your new furnace.

Step 4: Considering Other Factors

The biggest factor in replacing your furnace is price because replacing your furnace can be expensive. The whole job of replacing your furnace can cost anywhere from $8k-$10k depending on the company who does it. Most companies will usually offer 0% financing for these types of jobs in particular. That might be something that you’ll want to consider for additional work other than replacing your furnace. Some examples of this are replacing your oil tank or adding central AC.

Putting all of these jobs together can help bring the total price down. But, it can also help you take full advantage of the 0% financing – for the entire project.

If buying a new furnace system is out of your price range, then maybe buying a new heating oil tank is more in your budget. They can take advantage of amazing finance rates that many HVAC companies will tend to offer.

New Furnace Final Thoughts

Getting a new furnace is super important if it’s time to upgrade. They will help make sure that your home is being properly heated regardless of whichever form of heat you choose to use to heat your home. When choosing a new furnace for your home, think about whether or not you will be selling the home and what your potential buyers might be looking for.

While it’s more expensive up-front, a high-end furnace can pay for itself over the long run. Providing you with effective heating that is incredibly more reliable over the long run. Just make sure to get your furnace tuned up at least once a year to keep it in peak condition.

Happy Heating,

Hunter

Installing the Smart Oil Gauge on a Tank with Only Three Fittings

March 18, 2024January 11, 2024

One of the best things that you can do for your heating oil tank is to install a Smart Oil Gauge. The Smart Oil Gauge will alert you when your tank is low and notify you that oil needs to be delivered. It will also give you the ability to only order oil when you need it! That way, you’re in control of your deliveries! This will help you save a significant amount of money in the long run. Finally, this gauge will also help you preserve heating oil and allow you to see how much oil you are burning.

But, none of this will matter if you can’t get it installed! Especially if your tank has only three fittings in the tank. However, you’re not entirely out of the game yet. There are still a few things that can be done to ensure you install the Smart Oil Gauge correctly.

The Typical Heating Oil Tank

Usually, a typical heating oil tank will have four openings on the top of it. However, sometimes you will see tanks have three fittings. The four fittings on the top of the tank are normally used for the following:

The Fill Pipe Opening: This is where oil pumps into the tank from the delivery truck
The Vent Pipe Opening: This is where the air leaves the tank when you are getting a fill. The tank’s whistle is usually located here.
The Opening for the Float Gauge: This is often the fitting where the float gauge will sit on the tank.
The Extra Opening: Tank installers will often use this fitting to connect a second tank. However, you might also see feed lines being installed on these openings instead of on the bottom of the tank. This will allow the oil in the tank to be drawn out from the top instead of the bottom. This is usually pretty common on outdoor tanks, or on tanks where the bottom isn’t easily accessible.

You’ll often see these four fittings on your oil tank. Each of them have their role to play on your tank weather it be for a Smart Oil Gauge, fill pipe, vent pipe or your float gauge.

Where Should You Install the Smart Oil Gauge with only Three Fittings?

If your tank only has three fittings, you’ll have a few options to install the gauge. Whichever way you decide to install it, will depend on your tank’s setup.

Orientation 1: Fill Pipe/Vent Pipe/Float Gauge

If your tank’s orientation is the following one, then this one has the simplest solution. All you will have to do is simply take the float gauge out of the tank and replace it with the Smart Oil Gauge. Removing the float gauge can be a little difficult, but it’s not completely impossible. However, removing the float gauge isn’t a simple task by any means. By just unscrewing the float gauge, the metal arm will crash into the side of the tank and possibly damage both the arm and tank. For removing the float gauge, follow our step by step guide on how to do that here.

While removing the float gauge can be a little bit confusing, once you follow through our step-by-step guide, the process will seem significantly easier!

Pulling the disk out of the gauge is the best way to start the process in removing the gauge from the tank.

Orientation 2: Fill Pipe/Vent & Gauge Combo/ Top Feed Oil Lines

Most oil tanks will often have their oil feed lines installed at the bottom of their tank. However, sometimes you can find their oil lines installed at the top of the tank. It’s important to note that for Roth tanks, this is always going to be the case.

If your feed lines are located on the top of your tank, you’ll have to have an HVAC technician come out and re-locate the feed lines to the bottom of the tank from the top. This is NOT at all something you should try to do. The technician will have to create a vacuum in the tank to remove the plug so that you don’t lose any oil in the tank. Sometimes, the technician might have to drain the tank to be able to move the feed lines. The technician will then have to determine that there’s no sludge at the bottom of the tank and clean up any if necessary. This is normally a last resort, but this is usually the only way to open up the fitting to use the Smart Oil Gauge.

Usually, the top fed lines of an oil tank will look like this. One of these lines connects to the tank, while the other connects to the burner. Some systems don’t have a return line. In that case, the top-feeding fitting will have to be removed and the oil lines would then need to be re-routed to the bottom of the tank. This will also free up an opening for the Smart Oil Gauge. However, this should only be considered for newer tanks that don’t have a lot of sludge build-up.

What’s the Bottom Line?

The Smart Oil Gauge is a phenomenal tool to monitor your oil level and usage. Especially with the inclusion of the Smart Oil Gauge Duo! Getting one installed onto your tank will be an incredible asset! Using our guide to removing the float gauge, you’ll be able to remove the float gauge with ease.

But, if you need to re-route your oil lines, we recommend that you wait for your HVAC technician and asking for a consultation first. They’ll then be able to tell you if moving the lines to the bottom of the tank is possible or not.

Happy Heating,

Hunter

Should You Own or Rent a Propane Tank?

March 11, 2024December 21, 2023

Moving into a house that has propane heat? Perhaps you’re thinking of switching to propane suppliers this heating oil season. If you are, then you’re likely wondering if renting or owning a propane tank is better. In this article, we’ll cover the pros and cons of each. But if you’re considering switching to propane, please read our article on Heating Oil vs Propane, before you jump to any conclusions.

Does it Make a Difference to Rent or Own a Propane Tank?

Like heating oil, propane is very different from other utilities. Most forms of modern heating today don’t require delivery. However, heating oil and propane both require a delivery truck to come out and deliver, while with natural gas and electric heating, that’s not necessary. Additionally, heating oil and propane will both need to be stored in a tank upon delivery. The good news is, that propane tanks can be stored both above and underground.

While with heating oil tanks, the homeowner owns the tank itself. However, with propane, that isn’t always the case. If you own your propane tank as the homeowner, then fantastic! You have the freedom to order whenever and wherever you want! But, if your provider company owns it, then you’re required to only buy from them. This also makes buying a propane tank a little bit more difficult. Due to that, it is important to know what the pros and cons of owning or renting these tanks are.

Propane tanks will often be outside and a decent bit away from the home. They are stored in large tanks like this and are connected to the home underground.

What are the Pros and Cons of Owning a Propane Tank?

The Pros of Owning a Propane Tank

Save Money in the Long Run: Buying a propane tank will give you the ability to shop around and get various prices from other dealers. You will be able to ensure that you get the best prices available to you.
No Minimum Consumption Amounts: A majority of propane companies will often have a minimum consumption amount for you to be a customer. This means that you have to be burning a certain amount of propane to be one of their customers. Usually, if you don’t meet these requirements, they will charge you greater prices when you rent your tank.
Can be hidden underground: If you are the owner of your propane tank, you can bury it underground. This will keep it out of sight and unlike buried heating oil tanks, it will not pose a threat to the environment!

The Cons of Owning a Propane Tank

Higher Cost Upfront: When you are buying a propane tank, you are buying it outright. Due to this, you will often see an upfront cost. You will likely end up paying around $1,000 or so to be able to purchase the propane tank when you move into your new home.
Tank Maintenance Falls on You: When you own equipment of any kind, it is up to you to take care of it. Propane tanks are no different. You will likely have to hire a propane tank service to help properly maintain it.

What are the Pros and Cons of Renting a Propane Tank?

The Pros of Renting a Propane Tank

No Upfront Costs: Unlike owning the tank, you won’t have to pay any fees upfront for it. Your dealer will usually come out and install it for you, free of charge.

No Concerns when it comes to Maintenance: If you are renting, then it is up to your dealer to repair or replace your tank if needed. As well as any other servicing that might be necessary.

The Cons of Renting a Propane Tank

Tends to be More Expensive Overtime: Renting tanks tend to be more expensive over time. This is because you can’t shop around to get lower prices, and the provider can charge you whatever they’d like. It is often illegal in most states for a propane provider to fill a tank that belongs to another provider. Even if it isn’t illegal in your state, as a courtesy most providers won’t deliver to another provider’s tank.

Minimum Annual Usage: To be able to avoid the propane provider’s rental fee or high prices, you will need to meet certain annual usage requirements. This incentivizes you to use more propane so that you can get these “benefits”. Although, I am using that term loosely.

No Control Over Pricing: If another provider is charging less than what your dealer is charging, you can’t simply change providers. Instead, you’ll have to wait until your contract expires before you can switch. You will then get a new tank and provider.

These are all the various propane tank sizes that you will often see. While the 120+ gallon tanks are for homes, the small 20-gallon tank is used for outdoor grills.

Which Should You Do?

When buying or renting a propane tank, there are several questions that you should be asking when you’re making your decision. We’ve listed the important ones below:

How Long Will You Be Staying in the Home? If you are planning on living in this home for five years or more, then it would make sense to buy a propane tank outright to save on costs. But if you’re only going to be staying at this home for a few years, then renting one might be a better idea.
How Much Propane do you Plan on Using? If you only plan on using propane for cooking and hot water, it probably isn’t worth spending the money on a propane tank. If you are using it for those and the added benefit of heating your home, then you should buy a propane tank.
How Many Propane Suppliers are in Your Area? If you have a lot of suppliers in your area, then owning a propane tank might be beneficial for you. Doing so will allow you to shop around each time you need propane, allowing you to get the best possible price. If you don’t have many heating oil dealers in your area, then renting a tank is likely the better option.

In conclusion, the decision for you to rent or buy is completely up to you. Although, your situation will often influence your final decision. If your home has an underground propane tank preinstalled, then you have the upper hand. However, regardless of that, the decision is up to you to make based on your current living situation.

Happy Heating,

Hunter

How to Order Oil From FuelSnap

March 4, 2024March 4, 2024

If you’ve been keeping up to date with our blog posts, you’ve likely heard us recommend ordering from FuelSnap in several of our articles. We recommend this because our website guarantees the best prices when you order heating oil. But, we’ve never actually explained how to order oil. Well, in today’s blog post, I’ll be going over exactly that!

Step 1: Enter your Zip Code

The first thing that you do when you log onto the FuelSnap website is to enter your zip code. This will allow you to see what local dealers are in your area and what prices they are providing to you!

It’s also important to remember that you should enter the zip code of the area you live in. This is because some dealers have a different range of operations than others. So if you were to put in another local zip code that’s not yours, some dealers won’t be able to deliver to you!

By using the zip code for your neighborhood, you can see what dealers are in your area and what they’re offering!

Step 2: Select Your Dealer & Delivery Amount

After typing in your Zip Code you will be brought to another page that shows you your local dealers and their prices. All the dealers that show up on this page, are the dealers in your local area. They are all able to deliver to your area via the zip code that you entered into our FuelSnap page.

On this page, you can select a day of delivery and a price per gallon amount. Some dealers will offer special discounts on oil prices when you order more. For example, if I ordered 200 gallons from one of my local dealers, I could get a few cents per gallon off my order!

An important thing to note about ordering from Fuel Snap is that once you order oil, the price is locked. Meaning that if the price per gallon goes up or down, your order will not be affected. This can be both a good or bad thing depending on if the price increases or decreases.

These are the local dealers for Danbury CT. All of these dealers will be able to deliver heating oil directly to Danbury residents.

Step 3: The Delivery Address & Tank Location

Probably the most important part of placing the order is the address and tank location. Filling out this information is crucial to ensure that you get your oil delivery. The delivery address will also help the dealer to know if they’re delivering to the correct house.

Additionally, make sure to include your email address and phone number as ways for the dealer to contact you. This is so that they can call to confirm with you, as well as to get in contact with you to schedule a tank inspection or to verify possibly incorrect information.

The “Tank Settings” screen will request your address so that the dealers will know where to fill it. The location will also help the dealers understand where they are delivering to.

You can also mark your order with information on whether the tank is indoors or outdoors as well as the tank location at the home. Marking the tank’s location on your order will help the driver know exactly where to go so that they can start filling.

Final Step: Place Your Order

The last thing that you have to do to order oil, is to fill out the information on the checkout screen. Here, you can verify the amount of gallons that you want to put in the tank, the delivery date, the delivery address, and how you’ll pay.

On this screen, you will get a few possible alerts. An important one to note is that some dealers require a tank inspection. This normally consists of checking to make sure that the whistle works and make sure that there is no risk of a leak. Usually, it’s the delivery drive that does this. But once you get an inspection, you won’t have to get another one!

This is what the checkout screen looks like. Here, you will have to verify varying details about the delivery location. Such as what the address is, how many gallons you’re getting, and what payment method you’re using.

When you are ready to finalize your order, simply drag that slider to submit the order. You’ll then get an order confirmation email from both FuelSnap and the dealer. It will include everything that you need to know about the order. This also includes the dealer’s contact number, just in case you need to get in touch with the dealer!

Conclusion

Ordering from FuelSnap is simple and easy! All you have to do is follow the steps above and you’ll be able to order oil with no problem! Just make sure that all of the credentials that you are putting in are correct and ensure that you’re ordering the correct desired amount for your tanks.

You are also always more than welcome to give us a call and we’ll be happy to place an order with you over the phone! We can be reached at 203-456-1499 option 3, Monday through Friday 8:30 am – 5 pm EST.

Happy Heating,

Hunter

What are the Different Types of Heating Systems?

February 26, 2024October 31, 2023

There are a variety of ways to heat your home. From electric heating to furnaces, there are a lot of different ways to heat your home! Some of the most popular heating systems consist of boilers and furnaces. But some electric heating systems have been growing in popularity recently. In today’s blog post, we will be covering the most popular forms of heating systems and how they work!

Boilers

This is one of the most common forms of home heating in the United States, only matched by a furnace. They are known as a form of Hydronic Heat. This is defined as the use of liquid or gaseous water for heating.

Boilers work by heating water and providing either steam or hot water for heating. The hot water and/or steam is then transported around the house and is often released via steam or baseboard radiators.

There are two types of boilers. There are hot water boilers and steam boilers. Steam boilers will tend to run at a higher temperature compared to hot water boilers. However, they are less efficient than your standard hot water boiler.

Similar to furnaces, boilers are designed with a particular type of fuel in mind. For example, there are specific types of burners for heating oil, propane, and natural gas. However, compared to propane and heating oil furnaces, natural gas furnaces tend to be significantly more expensive.

This is often what a boiler system will look like. You will often see these in homes that use hot water as a form of heat. Baseboard heaters are often found in homes with these systems.

Furnaces

Like a boiler system, furnace systems are amongst the most popular heating systems in the united states. However, unlike boilers, furnaces heat air and distribute it around the house using air ducts.

Because furnaces heat the air, they will often have a flue pipe that pushes the hot air through your home’s chimney. This flue pipe should be cleaned during your yearly maintenance. This is because soot can often get stuck in the flue pipe which can be hazardous for not only your furnace but for your home as well.

Furnaces operate by the use of simple convection currents. The air simply passes through the house using ducts that are placed in various rooms in the house. Additionally, there are return ducts that bring cold air back to the furnace to go through the process again.

In the above photo, you will see an old furnace on the left and a new furnace on the right. Replacing these furnaces when needed is vital for your system to be working in tip-top shape.

Heat Pump

Heat Pumps are a type of heating unit that’s located outside. Unlike boilers and furnaces, it doesn’t require fuel to produce the necessary heat it needs to warm the home. Instead, it extracts the heat from outside and pushes it into your home. This is kind of similar to air conditioning except the exact opposite.

The neat thing about using a heat pump is that in the warm spring and summer months, you can use it for air conditioning. When it is used as an air conditioner, it can extract the cold air from outside and use it to keep the house cool during the hot summer.

These heating systems will often have various designs similar to heating oil tanks. But you will often see these types of heating systems in two distinct styles. Heat pumps can be found in both Air-Source and Ground-Source styles. Air-source heat pumps are often found sitting above ground as a singular unit. However, Ground-Source heat pumps use a whole network of pipes underground that take the hot air from beneath the ground.

This is an example of what a ground source heat pump looks like. It’s a large array of wiring that connects to your home from under your yard. It takes the hot air from outside and spreads it throughout your home.

Radiant Heating

Radiant heating is a form of heating system where there is a network of pipes that is put into the flooring of the house when it’s being built. This form of heating is not easily included in a preexisting home without ripping the floors apart to implement it.

Radiant heating will transmit heat from beneath the floors and in the walls using electricity. This also means that you can “zone” where the heat is being distributed into the house. This means that if no one is in a specific room in your home, you can turn off the radiant heating in that room to not waste heat and electricity.

Heating with radiant heat is a fantastic way to heat your home. However, maintenance for this form of heating tends to be a bit frustrating. Servicing a radiant heat system is incredibly difficult. The system’s innate complexity makes it very difficult to service them. You will need a technician who is qualified for this type of work to be able to service one of these systems if needed.

This is an example of what radiant heating looks like. As you can see, it is a complex network of wires that can be a little difficult to service without tearing up the floors.

Solar Heating

This is a form of heating that is being seen more commonly nowadays. The solar panels will heat a liquid and will then transfer that directly into an interior space where it is stored for later. The neat thing about solar heating is that if the solar panels can’t produce enough heat to store, then a backup system will come on and provide additional heat that the panels couldn’t produce.

This type of heat can use a variety of different methods to distribute the heat throughout the home. You can use radiant flooring, radiators, forced air, or hot water baseboards to transport heat throughout the home! What you use is completely based upon what your current or previous system was if you choose to use this form of heating in conjunction with your current one, or just use this as your main heat source.

Maintaining solar heating can vary depending on quite a few variables. The site, design of the system, and overall installation can be crucial components for how the system is maintained. This is because different systems will require different ways to maintain and service them when needed. The system has to be properly maintained to be able to avoid breaking down and to ensure that the solar panels are working as intended.

What System Should You Use?

Which heating system that you end up using is completely up to you! However, in terms of reliability and maintenance, boiler and furnace systems are the clear winners. These are the systems that HVAC technicians will have more knowledge of. Both when it comes to servicing them and how they work.

However, that doesn’t mean that radiant heating, heat pumps, and solar heating are necessarily bad to use either. They’re all fantastic ways to heat your home. However, they all tend to be expensive to implement and maintain due to their complexity. Regardless of their complexities, they are still fantastic systems to use as a main source of heating.

Happy Heating,

Hunter