Heating Your Home or Business - THE CHOICE SHOULD BE YOURS - Click here to read more...
Dear Friends,
When you make preparing for fall part of your spring to-do routine, you’ll be ahead of the game come September. That’s crunch time, especially if you have kids in school.
For starters, we recommend scheduling your tune-up now to beat the fall rush. A tune-up doesn’t “wear off” and you’ll have your choice of appointments.
Here are five more things you can do now that will make things easier when the weather gets cooler — and life gets busier.
Remember, we’re here to help make your home more comfortable no matter what the season. Let us know what we can do for you!
Warmly,
Joey Grigarauskas
General Manager
Sit back, relax and watch your grass-cutting chores performed by the pre‑programmed Landroid robotic lawn mower. Read this newsletter and answer the questions on our contest page. All entries received by 6/28/19 with the correct answers will be entered into a drawing.
The Landroid uses a shock sensor system to mow around obstacles and automatically returns to its base for charging or in case of rain.
No purchase necessary. A purchase will not increase chance of winning. See contest page for details.
The last thing you want to see is a flood in your basement due to a leaky water heater. Here are five signs that it may be time to replace your water heater so you can avoid this from happening.
Age: The life expectancy of a water heater ranges from 7 to 13 years.
Higher bills: Your water heater may no longer be doing its job efficiently.
Rusty water: This usually means that the inside of your water heater tank is corroding.
Water stains: White stains on your glassware are common signs of hard (mineral containing) water in your tank. Those minerals reduce efficiency and shorten the lifespan of your water heater.
Unusual noises: Growling or gurgling noises coming from your water storage tank are usually a sure sign of sediment buildup — a problem that eventually requires water heater replacement.
Joe Germain, our Energy Advisor, can advise you if it’s time to replace your water heater.
If you want to replace your water heater, call us or contact us here.
Propane can power just about any appliance inside your home — and outside too! Just when you think you’ve seen it all, you just may find something else that propane can do.
To give you a better idea about how “propane can do that,” take a look at some of your options for taking propane outdoors.
Grilling: Nothing beats the clean-burning precision of a propane gas grill. Whether you cook on a simple portable model or a high-tech built-in grill, you’ll get the same even-cooking performance, time after time, with no starter-fluid smell, dangerous chemicals, or mess.
Fire bowls: Many models have ignition systems that can be turned on and off with a smartphone or tablet. And unlike with wood fire pits, there’s no mess to clean up.
Lighting: Propane-powered outdoor lights can burn for just pennies per hour, and they can be matched to almost any outdoor décor.
Outdoor heaters: With freestanding or wall-mounted models available, you’re sure to find a propane patio heater that meets your needs and budget — and one that will work even if the power goes out.
Outdoor water heating: Enjoy a swim throughout the season by investing in a propane pool heater, which will heat your pool water quickly and efficiently — and far more effectively than an electric model.
Here are a few tips to help you cope with any extreme weather this summer.
People like heating their home and water with propane because they know they will have a reliable supply of propane on hand whenever they need it. Having a propane tank on their property gives them the ability to safely store a plentiful supply that’s always ready for immediate use.
Natural gas customers don’t enjoy the same type of security, as recent events have shown. This past winter in the Midwest, the combination of brutal cold and a fire at a compressor station resulted in the gas utilities pleading with customers to turn down their thermostats to prevent a serious natural gas shortage.*
Propane has a distinct edge over natural gas because of the way it’s processed and transported. After propane gets compressed into a liquid, all of this liquid petroleum gas (LPG) gets stored inside large tanks until it’s delivered to the on-site supply tank at a home or business.
Compare that to the delivery system of natural gas. If an underground natural gas pipeline gets damaged — or other problems occur — hundreds and even thousands of customers may lose their supply until repairs get done.
*Source: Detroit Free Press 1/30/19.
How many ways are you using propane at home?
Heat your home: propane-fired furnaces and boilers are much more efficient and generate greater comfort than electricity. And by increasing your usage, you may qualify for a lower price.
Heat water: propane water heaters can cost less to operate than electric units. They provide much more hot water faster, and come in both storage-tank and tankless options.
Cook: propane cooktops/stoves offer more precise temperature control and are cheaper to run than their electric counterparts.
Dry clothes: propane dryers are almost twice as efficient as electric models, drying your clothes faster and for less money.
Fireplace glow: imagine being able to start a fire with the flick of a switch. It’s possible with propane — and a propane fireplace delivers more heat into the room than a wood fireplace, without all the smoke and mess.
Emergency power: propane is a popular choice as a fuel for whole-house backup generators. And since your fuel is stored right on your property, you can continue to enjoy all the comforts of home until your power is restored.
Recent media coverage has talked about heating systems shutting down because a fuel supplier delivered heating oil with a blend of biodiesel that was much higher than heating systems could handle.
At Pioneer, we remain committed to delivering the highest quality fuel to our customers. That’s why we strongly supported the statewide transition to ultra-low-sulfur heating oil, which went into effect last summer.
While Bioheat® has made big inroads in Massachusetts, we have not yet made an investment in this fuel. Until we are 100% confident that our customers will never experience any fuel-related problems, we will not be introducing this fuel for delivery.
At Pioneer Oil and Propane, we are committed to quality, in fact, we guarantee it.
If you get your heating fuel from us, you can rest easy knowing we are delivering only the highest quality ultra-low-sulfur heating oil and will not run into the issues of extreme biodiesel blending.
Q: What can you tell me about handling portable propane cylinders for my grill?
A: Here are four tips:
ALWAYS store or place a propane cylinder outdoors and in an open area, and not in a basement, garage, shed or tent.
ALWAYS avoid storing a cylinder near a stove, fireplace, or other heat source. This is also why you should not store a spare cylinder under or near your barbecue grill.
ALWAYS make sure your cylinder does not come into contact with ignition sources such as flames or sparkproducing electrical tools.
ALWAYS leave the care and repair of a cylinder in the hands of a skilled propane professional. You should not make any attempt to modify or repair valves, regulators, or other cylinder or appliance parts.
Many contractors take a cookie-cutter approach with cooling systems that is easier for them, but always leads to problems for you, the customer. You’ll end up spending more on cooling costs and repairs.
We know every home is different. We look at a range of variables to make sure we give you the right-sized system. We’ll use this information to determine the “load calculation” for your home. That tells us how much heat your home gains during warm weather.
You’ll never receive a one-size-fits-all installation from us. You’ll get the efficiency, reliability and comfort you expect, and feel comfortable without paying a fortune!
Please contact Joe Germain (508-314-2444 or jgermain@pioneer-oil.com) to request a free estimate.
You can now download our app (available for IOS and Android) to have 24-hour access to your account, so you can pay bills, look up information and schedule service when it’s convenient for you. Just search for Pioneer Oil and Propane in the App store or Google Play Store to get started.
