New to oil heat! HELP!

sam2chris

New Member
We're renting a home that is oil heated and this is the first time that my husband and I have ever had to deal with it. We filled our tank up November 23rd, 282 gallons (about 36 inches deep) and now apparently we only have about 12 inches left in the tank! We keep the thermostat at 69-70 when we're not home and 73 when we are. I know people have told us to turn it down more, but with a 3 year old, I just cant.

So my question is that right?? Does it really only last 3 months? We paid over $800 to fill it! I cant afford to fill it again. Is it normal? We dont know anything about it.

Thanks for any advice!
 

pointfarm

New Member
You obviously wouldn't take advice to turn the thermostat down, what more do you expect? 70 degrees when you are NOT home???
 

Aerogal

USMC 1983-1995
I have a 3200 sq ft home, filled about the same time and I haven't used that much oil! You either have a leaky tank or a leaky house.
 

twinoaks207

Having Fun!
We're renting a home that is oil heated and this is the first time that my husband and I have ever had to deal with it. We filled our tank up November 23rd, 282 gallons (about 36 inches deep) and now apparently we only have about 12 inches left in the tank! We keep the thermostat at 69-70 when we're not home and 73 when we are. I know people have told us to turn it down more, but with a 3 year old, I just cant.

So my question is that right?? Does it really only last 3 months? We paid over $800 to fill it! I cant afford to fill it again. Is it normal? We dont know anything about it.

Thanks for any advice!

Consulted with Hubby on this -- we live in a 100 year old house with oil heat. What you are saying is about right and actually your usage is a bit low for the temps that you are keeping your house at. We keep our thermostat at 60 at night & when we are at work, and at 70 when we are here. I'm usually chilly but I have sweaters, heavy socks & afghans, lol. You might want to consider lowering your temps. We've raised kids in this house and the lower temp at night never bothered them with footie jammies.

You might want to talk to your oil company about getting on some kind of a "balanced budget " payment plan. That way, the cost of the oil is spread out over many months instead of a big chunk for "pay as you go". You can also get on auto-delivery so you don't have to worry about running out.
 

dgates80

Land of the lost
We're renting a home that is oil heated and this is the first time that my husband and I have ever had to deal with it. We filled our tank up November 23rd, 282 gallons (about 36 inches deep) and now apparently we only have about 12 inches left in the tank! We keep the thermostat at 69-70 when we're not home and 73 when we are. I know people have told us to turn it down more, but with a 3 year old, I just cant.

So my question is that right?? Does it really only last 3 months? We paid over $800 to fill it! I cant afford to fill it again. Is it normal? We dont know anything about it.

Thanks for any advice!

Programmable thermostat. When it's this cold yes, you will burn oil like that. Heating degree days are running high this year also. Would really suggest 65 degrees when you are not home, maybe even 60, the cost of a programmable thermostat will pay for itself in a short time.

Clean / replace the air filters regularly also. Isolate low use rooms by shutting the registers and closing the doors, the less square footage you heat the less the energy use. And, sweaters are great!

I hate the cold weather too!
 

DEEKAYPEE8569

Well-Known Member
I have a 3200 sq ft home, filled about the same time and I haven't used that much oil! You either have a leaky tank or a leaky house.

.....or, somebody's stealing your oil. I have heard of that happening.
Some folks put a locking cap on their tank.

An ounce of prevention perhaps to eliminate all doubt?
 

sam2chris

New Member
You obviously wouldn't take advice to turn the thermostat down, what more do you expect? 70 degrees when you are NOT home???

No need for you to be rude, like I said we're new to this.

Doesnt it burn more oil to try and heat the house up once we're home? We were keeping it at 65 but it was just so cold and took forever for it to get a little warm and that was with it constantly running. So we were thinking it burns more than leaving it a little warm. We dont know, thats why Im asking.
 

sam2chris

New Member
I have a 3200 sq ft home, filled about the same time and I haven't used that much oil! You either have a leaky tank or a leaky house.

I was wondering if tanks could leak. We've put plastic on all the windows, checked the doors for leaks, hubby says the attic is well insulated and he's going to change the filter just to be sure. He's going to call our landlord and see what they say, I just didnt want to go into it being completely naive.
 

annemayer

New Member
I was wondering if tanks could leak. We've put plastic on all the windows, checked the doors for leaks, hubby says the attic is well insulated and he's going to change the filter just to be sure. He's going to call our landlord and see what they say, I just didnt want to go into it being completely naive.

The house we live in has a very drafty bay window,and we keep heavy drapes over it,and keep them closed. So insulating your windows is a good start. If I were you,I would simply turn the heat down. No matter what are talking about,whether it is oil or anything else,if you are using it constantly,it's going to get depleted fairly quick. We have had the same tank,I'm thinking the same size as yours,and as it was full when we moved in,have not needed oil at all thus far-this is since October. We have kids here too,but the temp you are keeping it at,especially when not at home,is going to be very expensive for you. We do also have an electric fireplace to supplement,and it is perfectly comfortable here,and we generally don't even use the thermostat,we just flip it on when needed,which is maybe twice a day for about 15 minutes each time.
 

Tigerlily

Luvin Life !!!
I was wondering if tanks could leak. We've put plastic on all the windows, checked the doors for leaks, hubby says the attic is well insulated and he's going to change the filter just to be sure. He's going to call our landlord and see what they say, I just didnt want to go into it being completely naive.

Has the unit been serviced for winter? I would also suggest having the ductwork inspected for rust, holes and or gaps that you may be losing heat from.
 

annemayer

New Member
No need for you to be rude, like I said we're new to this.

Doesnt it burn more oil to try and heat the house up once we're home? We were keeping it at 65 but it was just so cold and took forever for it to get a little warm and that was with it constantly running. So we were thinking it burns more than leaving it a little warm. We dont know, thats why Im asking.

Also,you saying it takes forever to get warm tells me something is wrong. Our house is almost uncomfortably warm within a few minutes of turning on our heat. Either that or I have an extremely good heater.
 

twinoaks207

Having Fun!
I was wondering if tanks could leak. We've put plastic on all the windows, checked the doors for leaks, hubby says the attic is well insulated and he's going to change the filter just to be sure. He's going to call our landlord and see what they say, I just didnt want to go into it being completely naive.

Yess, they can leak. If it's an above-ground tank, however, you would definitely be smelling it if it leaked!
 

Ohiogirl

New Member
I was wondering if tanks could leak. We've put plastic on all the windows, checked the doors for leaks, hubby says the attic is well insulated and he's going to change the filter just to be sure. He's going to call our landlord and see what they say, I just didnt want to go into it being completely naive.

I don't know anything about oil (we have all electric) but if you have a basement, check around the doors and windows for cracks. We rent the house we live in now, and could not believe how many cracks where you could see daylight from outside in the basement. We got Great Stuff (in the can-well about 5 cans) and went to town closing all the cracks. It helped with all the spiders finding their way into our house too. I have 3 kids, the youngest being 18 months. After our electric bill reached $320 for one month, I made it a point to turn down the thermostat to 68 when we are home. I usually had it at 70, and 68 really isn't that bad as long as you got socks on. Maybe even if you turn it down from 73 to 70, that could make a big difference! Good luck.
 

twinoaks207

Having Fun!
No need for you to be rude, like I said we're new to this.

Doesnt it burn more oil to try and heat the house up once we're home? We were keeping it at 65 but it was just so cold and took forever for it to get a little warm and that was with it constantly running. So we were thinking it burns more than leaving it a little warm. We dont know, thats why Im asking.


When was the furnace last serviced? Sounds like there might be a problem with it. Definitely contact your landlord & ask them some questions about oil usage in the past.
 

itsbob

I bowl overhand
No need for you to be rude, like I said we're new to this.

Doesnt it burn more oil to try and heat the house up once we're home? We were keeping it at 65 but it was just so cold and took forever for it to get a little warm and that was with it constantly running. So we were thinking it burns more than leaving it a little warm. We dont know, thats why Im asking.

Programmable thermostat (as someone else said) will warm your house for your arrival back home during the day, and for when you get up in the morning.

We turn our heat (not oil) down to 62 during the day, and 66 at night, and when we get out of bed in the AM and home after work the house is back up to 70 - 72.
 

OldHillcrestGuy

Well-Known Member
Have to remember December was one of the coldest Decembers on record for this area, and January is running below normal also. Ive got oil heat, and keep my thermostat at 60, but my main source of heat is a pellet stove.
 

bcp

In My Opinion
I have oil heat. have for the last 20 or so years.
Keeping it at 73 is going to suck the oil up fast.

example, when we kept ours at 68 to 70 we would burn about 90 gallons a month. due to my wife constantly cutting my a/c in the summer in some strange attempt at boiling me to death, I retaliated and turned the heat down to 64.
we burned 86 gallons in about 7 weeks. 4 to 6 degree decrease resulted in using almost half the amount of oil.

We do have a new (2 year old) high efficiency heater now too.

try dropping the temp just 2 degrees and see if that will bring you up to what you think it should be.
A couple sweaters cost a whole bunch less than heating oil.
 

bcp

In My Opinion
other good points that were made so far.
I also have the programmable thermostat.
I keep it at 60 from 11 pm until 3 pm, at 3 it goes to 64.
a heat lamp in the bathroom ceiling is required to get out of the shower at 60 degrees.
We also upgraded to thermal windows a few years back, and right after I bought the house I took the outside siding off and put all new insulation in the walls. My attic is insulated with 6 inches of vermiculite from the 30s when the house was built, and I added R-30 across the top of that. We don't heat half of the basement, the side that has the weight room and washer and dryer we keep at around 60 all the time.
 

Aerogal

USMC 1983-1995
We remodeled the downstairs and I think that helped alot with keeping out drafts. We use a 3 zone system and keep the sleeping areas cooler and I have closed off my late mom's downstairs bedroom. Still have a couple of leaky spots, but I use draft stopping methods to help.

My family is older - I tell them to wear clothes if they're cold :evil:

Little ones are closer to floor (and cooler air). Dress them warm and make sure they have socks and shoes or slippers on.
 
We're renting a home that is oil heated and this is the first time that my husband and I have ever had to deal with it. We filled our tank up November 23rd, 282 gallons (about 36 inches deep) and now apparently we only have about 12 inches left in the tank! We keep the thermostat at 69-70 when we're not home and 73 when we are. I know people have told us to turn it down more, but with a 3 year old, I just cant.

So my question is that right?? Does it really only last 3 months? We paid over $800 to fill it! I cant afford to fill it again. Is it normal? We dont know anything about it.

Thanks for any advice!

Why not? I have a 3 year old in the house and ours stays on 66 whether we're home or not.
 
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