It’s currently early November, which means heating oil is starting to become crucial for us to get through winter! While it’s primarily used for heating during the winter, it’s got a variety of different uses! However, because of the cold temperatures, heating oil becomes very sought after this time of year. This means that heating oil prices are going to be higher, and scheduling deliveries won’t be as easy. So, if your tank’s low, you might be asking, “How Much Will Five Gallons of Oil Last Me?”
However, if you’re low on oil, then place an order immediately! Getting yourself on your dealer’s schedule so you don’t run out is crucial! If you’re about to run out, or you’ve got less than 15 gallons of oil, run to the gas station and get about 5-10 gallons of diesel. This’ll help hold you over until the delivery arrives.
There are a lot of things that can contribute to your usage. Five gallons is not a lot of oil at all, and during the winter months, you might not even get a full day out of five gallons! But during the summer, you’re going to get a couple of days out of five gallons. But it’s still important to ask yourself the following questions:
- What’s your Heating Oil being used for?
- What’s the size of your home?
- Is your home properly insulated?
- Are there any drafts in your home?
- How warm does your home tend to be?
- What’s the weather like outside?
- Is your boiler well maintained?
Improving Insulation
Good insulation is one of the best ways to make heating oil last! Well-insulated homes can hold heat for a longer period of time than those that aren’t. One of the best ways to improve insulation is to seal up any drafts in the home. This can include covering up any doors or windows with draft stoppers. On older homes, you can even wrap plastic wrap over your single-pane windows to act as a makeshift second pane! Proper insulation will absolutely decrease your heating oil usage and make it last!
Sealing Windows with Drafts
If your windows are drafty, then they absolutely could be affecting your usage and will result in higher usage. If the home can’t maintain the heat your system is producing, then your system will work harder to produce more. That heat will then escape your home through the draft, which repeats the cycle. Most older windows are single-pane, and they don’t properly hold the heat in as well. I mentioned this earlier, and while it might seem silly, putting plastic wrap around the single-pane windows will help provide a makeshift dual pane!
While it isn’t a cheap solution, you can always update your drafty windows and replace them with new ones. But replacing your outdated windows with new double-pane windows can be helpful to reduce your overall usage. While newer windows will be less drafty, sometimes newer double-paned windows will be able to trap air inside them! This acts as another form of insulation!
Using Heating Oil For Your Home
During the colder months of the year, heating oil becomes very sought after. This is because cold weather is more common now. Sure, we might have a warm day here or there, but most of the time, the weather this time of year will be cold. This results in your system working much harder to get the house to a warm and comfortable temperature. Now, if your home is larger, your consumption will be higher as the system tries to heat the overall larger surface area. Your boiler/furnace will work much harder to accomplish this. Higher usage overall will be the result.
The time of year is a major cause for usage. Right now it’s mid-autumn, which means that temperatures are fairly cold outside. Not as cold as winter, but enough for us to want to start using heating oil! But it’s not cold enough to warrant us burning 5-7 gallons like in winter! In the fall, you might see yourself burning between 3-4 gallons a day on average, just to keep us warm! But, during the summer, you might see yourself burning no oil at all! If you use heating oil for hot water, you’ll likely only burn around half a gallon daily.
How Temperature Outside Affects Usage
The temperature outside plays a major role when it comes to heating oil usage. In Connecticut, it typically averages around 30-35 degrees during the winter. Average homes of 2000 square feet will tend to use an average amount of 5-7 gallons of oil daily during the winter. However, during the summer, when temperatures average between 70-80 degrees, you’re only going to use around .5-1 gallons daily. That’s only if you use it for hot water. If not, then you won’t end up burning any oil at all!
Looking at the above graph will give you an idea of the average amount of annual oil consumption in Danbury, CT. This is based on low, mid, and high usage. In Connecticut, we often see low temperatures in the winter. The lower the temperature outside is, the higher your usage will be.
Your Thermostat Reduces Consumption
Your thermostat is actually a great tool to use during the winter. You can often set it at a specific temperature to make your usage optimal. Ideally, this tends to be around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. During the winter, this is a perfect temperature that’s not too hot, but also not too cold. This’ll keep you comfortable during this time of year! But if you live with your parents, just make sure you don’t change the temperature for them!
WIFI thermostats are a bit more modern, but boy, are they useful! You can set the thermostat to any temperature you’d like, simply from your phone! Most of them have an app that you can download from your phone’s app store to be able to control the temperature wirelessly! If you’re not home, then you can always lower the temperature in the house so you don’t burn unnecessary oil! However, if you have pets, you won’t be able to lower the heat.
Boiler and Furnace Efficiency
Even if your home has good insulation, that won’t matter if your system isn’t efficient! You should make sure that your system is checked annually to ensure everything is working as it should. Burners tend to have a lifespan of about 30 years. If it’s older than that, it may not be as efficient as you think. Your system might not be as reliable as you think! If your system is older than 30 years, it’s likely not very efficient. While it’s expensive, replacing your boiler or furnace will help increase your system’s efficiency! It’s always good to have an HVAC technician come out and take a look at your system. Their expert opinion will be a great way to make sure your system is reliable!
The Smart Oil Gauge
While all the above-mentioned ways are great ways to mitigate oil consumption, getting a Smart Oil Gauge puts you ahead of the game! You’ll be able to properly keep track of your heating oil consumption and usage. All you’ll need is a stable WIFI connection and the app installed on your phone. After you’ve got your gauge connected to the WIFI, it’ll keep track of your usage and level data based on day, week, month, and year. Similar to a WIFI thermostat, you’ll be able to track your level and usage all on your fingertips! Plus, you will get notified as to when you need a delivery, when you get one, and when your tank level is low! You can purchase one here. The gauge works off WIFI, and as long as the device is set up for the right tank size, the gauge will be able to upload accurate readings.
So How Long Will Five Gallons of Oil Last you?
Depending on what time of year it is and what your usage is, five gallons of oil could last you either a full day or even a couple of days! However, your usage and insulation play a major role in this! The better your home is insulated, the longer it’ll be able to hold onto the heat your system produces. Covering up any drafts that might be causing heat to leak out of the home is another great way to lower your overall usage.
But ultimately, the best thing to do to determine how long five gallons will last you is to get a Smart Oil Gauge! Each home is different, and what might last me a couple of days might not last you a couple of days! The Smart Oil Gauge will be able to monitor your usage and tank level, so that you know how much oil you have and how long it’ll last you until you run out or need a fill-up!
Happy Heating!
Hunter
