Did you just move into a home with heating oil? Maybe you are thinking about replacing your old gas furnace with an oil furnace. Whatever the situation is, heating oil is a whole different beast and there are several things that you need to be aware of. First off, you should know that heating oil is one of the most effective ways to heat a home so you are making the right decision. Below, you will learn more pertinent information about heating oil.
Monitoring Your Oil Usage Is Essential
Heating oil is unlike natural gas. With natural gas, your furnace is tapped into the main line. This means that your furnace is constantly supplied with gas. That is not the case with oil. Your oil will feed your furnace from a separate tank that will probably be installed somewhere in your yard. This oil will be delivered by truck and you will need to keep an eye on it to make sure that you never run out. However, you can sign into a contract with a quality oil company like heating oil by Ariba and they will come out to the home on an annual or bi-annual basis and maintain the system as well as fill the tank. This ensures that you never run out of oil.
Maintenance Is Necessary
It is true that every furnace or central heating and air system will need maintenance, but this is especially true for the oil systems. These types of systems just require more maintenance and it will be imperative to make sure that you are getting annual check-ups. This will include the inspection of the system, cleaning the system, tuning up the system, and it might even include the replacement of crucial components like nozzles and filters. There is one upside to this. And, that upside is that a well-maintained oil system can last up to twenty years. Whereas, the natural gas furnace only lasts right around ten years.
Oil Is Completely Safe
Many homeowners fear that oil systems are unsafe, but that is not the case at all. In fact, oil systems are probably some of the safest systems on the plant. With natural gas or propane, there is always a risk of an explosion. And, this is not to even mention the potential threat of carbon monoxide. Heating oil is not flammable and can only be ignited by the advanced burning system located within your furnace. In fact, if you dropped a match in heating oil it would be like dropping a match in a bucket of water. It would just simply go out.
A More Environmentally Friendly Option
Heating oil has really come a long way over the past twenty years. Heating oils today only contain right around one percent sulfur. This really reduces emissions and is overall better for the environment. A report is 2004 conducted by the Oil and Energy Department showed that heating oil was more environmentally friendly than natural gas, in terms of overall emissions.
