Slowly moving away from the world of propane..

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Jotel me this

Feeling the Heat
Sep 21, 2018
302
Pennsylvania
my bill thus far from 1/2018 to today is $2,400 in propane which runs my dryer, stove, furnace, and water tank. Do you think thats 'normal', a lot, excessive? so many variables i know its impossible to answer.

i CAN NOT WAIT for my wood to season properly for next year when i can do away with my propane furnace.

good riddance to propane!

what does your propane bill look like / used to look like?
 
Don't know what size or type of home you have- so the standard answer is start adding insulation , sealing up air leaks, and the like. Might be worth your while to have a complete energy audit done on your home. this would help pinpoint problem areas.
only comparison I can offer is my home on propane- 2200 sq ft ranch- last years propane bill total was about 1/2 of what you stated above differences are electric dryer and stove/oven- now it is just me no one else and I consider that cost to be way out of line. wood stove is in process of being added. Would rather of had a outdoor unit but new installs are banned in my area. Which doesn't make any sense as I am out in the sticks of farm land.
 
Don't know what size or type of home you have- so the standard answer is start adding insulation , sealing up air leaks, and the like. Might be worth your while to have a complete energy audit done on your home. this would help pinpoint problem areas.
only comparison I can offer is my home on propane- 2200 sq ft ranch- last years propane bill total was about 1/2 of what you stated above differences are electric dryer and stove/oven- now it is just me no one else and I consider that cost to be way out of line. wood stove is in process of being added. Would rather of had a outdoor unit but new installs are banned in my area. Which doesn't make any sense as I am out in the sticks of farm land.


we had the audit done. our house is too closed up. strange.

i think it has someting to do with the the thermostat coming on too often. what kind of thermostat do you use?
 
just a standard digital Honeywell - it can be programed per day. It is set @ 65 for about4/5 of a day. I bump it up when I come home to chase the chill and then set back. Once the stove is up and running it will be set 60-62 and likely never move.
 
We had propane for heat, dryer, and range in NJ, 1994 - 2003. 3,500 sq. ft. house.

1997: $1,770.49. 1998: $1,112.17. 1999: $1,173.73. 2000: $1,261.09. 2001: $2,511.63. 2002: $1,958.17. 2003: $2,129.53 through March. Moved to MA. Good riddance propane is right!
 
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Dollars don't mean a whole lot. Cost per gallon and quantity used otherwise comparisons are pointless.
 
Propane prices vary dramatically from region to region. It's very high were we are. If we were still heating with propane our heating bill alone would be well north of $3000.
 
Throughout 2017, using propane for heating, cooking and hot water we spent $3,445.

2018 will likely be more as sometime in Jan - March we had to call them out twice for emergency repairs to the furnace. A mouse got caught in the blower motor, threw it off balance and burnt it out. Then again for a regulator outside that was frozen solid... So for 2018 I'm guessing around $4,200.

We have decent insulation, but my house is 250 years old and drafty.

So far I have about $3,700 dollars into my woodstove setup. Doing everything myself. That cost is for everything. The stove, chimney, hearth, all the way down to the ash bucket w/lid for inspection. I plan on finishing the install this weekend. Stove will pay for itself this winter I'm sure of it.
 
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Most of last season propane was apx $1.79/gal. here did a pre buy this year at $1.59 for 1100 gal- what I don't use will be rolled over into next year although there is a minimum of 500 gallons to be used. I only have the furnace and hot water heater on propane. No stove last season so from Nov till apx April was around 900gal. note there is only myself in this 2200 sq ft place.
 
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I just got a fill up in our 100 gallon tank. It cost us $3.71/gal for 57.2 gallons delivered. We are not on a plan so this is about 25¢/gal more than on the plan. And then there is the tax and lots of fees which bring the actual delivered price up to - are you ready for this - $4.56/gallon! Ouch. Fortunately this happens only about once every 3 yrs but that is painful.

Now you can see why I removed the propane furnace and replaced it with a high-efficiency heat pump and a good wood stove. The handwriting was on the wall back in 2006 when I did this. Have not regretted leaving propane heat behind.
 
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