If your home or office is heated by heating fuel, then you want to make sure that you have plenty of it to keep your furnace or boiler working. Having adequate heating fuel ensures that you don't run out of it--which can be a hassle, because it may require you to contact your heating fuel company for an emergency delivery. Emergency deliveries can be very expensive, so to avoid the excess cost (or the discomfort of not having heat or hot water for days!) you should take steps to ensure that your space never runs out of heating fuel. Here are the best ways to avoid that challenge.
Set Up Automatic Delivery
If your heating fuel company offers an automatic delivery program, consider signing up for it. An automatic delivery program uses data about your fuel usage from the last year, as well as weather in the local area. When the gas company predicts you only have about a quarter of a tank of fuel left at home, they'll automatically come and refuel your tank. Relying on experts with factual data to make sure your heating fuel tank stays full is a smart and safe way to ensure that you never run out.
Make Sure Your Heaters are Free and Clear
Don't keep your furniture or belongings too close to your radiators. The radiators are the devices that spread heat through your home, and if you block them, you are stopping the heat from traveling to warm the space. If you make sure the space around your radiators is free and clear, you can ensure that you are using your heating fuel to heat your home in the most efficient way.
Check Your Tank Regularly
If you are worried about running out of heating fuel, it can help to check the level of fuel in your tank regularly. This is especially important if you've decided that you want to have will call deliveries from your heating oil company. By checking your tank regularly, you can see when you are getting low, and then you can schedule a delivery for more fuel before you actually run out. Heating fuel companies recommend getting a delivery to refill the tank when it's about a quarter to empty.
Be Mindful of Your Usage
Heating fuel is a natural resource. So, it can pay to be mindful about how you use it--both so that you don't use too much of it at your home and run out quickly, and so that you don't overtax the environment. Be mindful about when you use the heating fuel. Take short showers or colder showers; do your laundry in cold water when possible, and consider running your dishwasher on a cycle that uses less hot water. Also, take showers instead of baths when you can because they use less hot water, which means that you'll need less heat to heat that water. In addition to thinking about hot water, think about your heating usage. Heat your home to a comfortable point, but don't overheat it. Reduce the temperature when you're not at home so that it's low enough to keep your house's structure and pipes safe and not frozen, but so that it's also not wasting heat and heating fuel when it's empty.
Take Advantage of the Sun
During the daytime, open up your curtains and blinds wide in the rooms that get a lot of sun. The sun is an excellent source of warmth and can heat your space without you having to rely as much on your heating system.
Wear Layers, Even at Home
This one's pretty straightforward, but to reduce the usage of heating fuel at your home, dress warmly when you're there. This means that you should wear long pants and layers. You should also consider wearing socks when you're at home. By dressing your body for the cold when you're at home, you'll increase your body temperature naturally, which means that you can rely on the heating fuel that heats your home less.
Keep Windows and Doors Shut Tight
A great way to waste heating fuel is by allowing the heat to escape your home when you're heating it. Make sure your windows and doors are shut tight if your heating system is on. That way, none of the heat that is being created is accidentally escaping. You should also do things like check to make sure the kitchen ventilation fan is off when you're not using it, since this is another good way for heat to escape your home, too.
Heating Fuel at Home: a Little Mindfulness Goes a Long Way
If your home is heated by heating fuel, you should try to be mindful of the level of heating fuel you have so that you never run out. You can check the tank regularly, be careful about how you use the heating fuel, and even rely on your heating fuel company to control deliveries for you so you never get caught without a way to heat your space. By paying attention to the heating fuel levels in your home, you can be sure that you keep your house a space that is comfortable and safe for everyone that spends time there.