Consumer Information About Oil Heat

Green is smart, environmentally friendly, homegrown, and renewable. Green gives you more for your money. And when you look closely, Oilheat has been going green for years. No other energy source has come close to reducing greenhouse emissions like Oilheat has.

Through advancing technology, consumer education, equipment maintenance, and financing and tax credit programs, we’ve been dedicated to reducing emissions and making environmental improvements. Now with Bioheat – the new alternative fuel made from renewable, domestically grown agricultural products – we continue to lead the way in reducing emissions, lowering Connecticut’s carbon footprint, and ultimately putting a little more “green” in your pocket. How’s that for intelligent warmth?

Efficient

Wintertime puts every home heating system in Connecticut to the test. Some pass with flying colors, providing users with ideal comfort, energy savings and peace of mind. Others … well, not so much.

• How did your heating equipment perform last winter?
• Were there cold spots in your home — rooms or wings that were much colder than others?
• Did your boiler, furnace or radiator break down at any point?
• Did your heating equipment require multiple service calls or repairs?
• And what about your fuel costs?  Do they continue to rise even when you use your system less?

If you answered ‘yes’ to any of the above questions, then it might be time to replace your home heating system. (And if you answered ‘yes’ to more than one, plus your heating equipment is more than 10 years old, then it’s definitely that time.) The good news is that upgrading to a new, high-efficiency boiler or furnace can greatly improve your comfort, reduce your fuel costs and give you year-round peace of mind.

Let’s take a look at what a new efficient heating system can do…

• Oil-fired boilers and furnaces come labeled with AFUE (annual fuel utilization efficiency) ratings as high as 95%, but the real fuel efficiency and savings are typically even higher than what it says on the label.
• Recent studies funded by NYSERDA show fuel savings as high as 48.3 percent when replacing an outdated boiler with a new, high-efficiency boiler, so the new unit can pay for itself in just a few years.
• Since 2016, more than 800 Connecticut residents have upgraded to higher-efficiency home heating systems, boosting their energy efficiency on average by more than 13%.
• An energy-efficient combi boiler (short for combination) can provide both heating and hot water, so you won’t have to use multiple systems or fuels. In fact, there is never a time when you need to switch fuels. Click here to find out more.
• A licensed Connecticut fuel dealer can provide efficiency tests or system comparisons, which will show you the real efficiency of your current home heating system and the real fuel savings you’d see from a new unit.
• Oilheat equipment is constantly evolving to incorporate advancements in efficiency and comfort. Many new boilers are designed to incorporate weather-responsive controls that greatly reduce fuel usage during mildly cold weather and provide a more even heat with fewer temperature swings.
• Other important advancements include two-stage burners that conserve fuel and electronically commutated furnace blowers that save electricity, provide smoother operation and work well with high-efficiency central air conditioning systems.
• Schedule your annual heating system efficiency checkup to reduce heating oil usage by up to 10 percent.
• Install programmable/smart thermostats to automate your home temperature settings, and you may reduce your usage by as much as 10 percent.
• When correctly installed by a licensed Connecticut fuel dealer, a new home heating system can be expected to perform reliably for 15-20 years, and even longer if you have the system serviced regularly.
• Many of Connecticut’s ultra-low sulfur heating oil and Bioheat fuel dealers offer preventive maintenance and service plans that help protect against heating system breakdowns and keep your equipment running reliably all year long.

Rebates up to $1,300 and financing is available to help you upgrade your heating systems.  Go to http://www.upgradeandsavect.com/ to lean more and for more efficiency information and tips go to http://www.bioheatnow.com/energy-efficiency-tips.html.

Renewable

The evolution of oil heat, Bioheat® is Connecticut’s forward-thinking, new heating fuel. Bioheat blends ultra-low sulfur home heating fuel with 100% renewable, domestically-grown crops such as soybean, sunflower, linseed and sesame.

• Biodiesel and other renewable biofuels are blended into the U.S. fuel through a program called the Renewable Fuel Standard.
• A study released by the University of Connecticut in 2016 found that home ultra-low sulfur heating oil used in our state contains on average 7% biodiesel.
• Nearly 1.6 billion gallons of biodiesel were produced in the U.S. in 2017 alone. Every 1.7 billion gallons supports $16.8 billion in total economic impact, more than 62,000 jobs, and $2.6 billion in worker wages.
• Connecticut’s Bioheat fuel distributors are looking to blend more biodiesel into the oil supply, which means more economic and environmental benefits, which means more spending power and a cleaner, greener future for all of Connecticut. The sustainability cycle continues.

Clean

Connecticut’s energy markets are abuzz with a word you might’ve heard recently: Bioheat. It sounds like something new — but, the fact is, this clean, reliable, affordable, and renewable fuel has been helping Connecticut’s home and business owners meet their heating needs for years now. It doesn’t matter if you’re in Waterbury or Danbury, New Haven or Norwalk, Bridgeport or Hartford. In Connecticut oil heat is transitioning to Bioheat fuel.

Bioheat fuel is defined as a blend of clean renewable biodiesel and ultra-low sulfur heating oil. This blend is measurably safer and better for the environment than conventional ultra-low sulfur heating oil, because biodiesel comes from natural, recycled resources like soybean oil or used restaurant grease.

According to a study by the University of Connecticut, ultra-low sulfur heating oil in Connecticut contains an average of 7% biodiesel. That means the fuel inside your oil storage tank right now is some of the cleanest, greenest heating fuel in the whole country!

Here is how clean todays oilheat is –

• About 324 million gallons of Bioheat fuel were used in Connecticut in 2016. This reduced the state’s carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 427 million pounds.
• As of July 1, 2018, the heating oil contained in Connecticut’s Bioheat fuel is ultra-low sulfur heating oil, which reduces sulfur dioxide emissions by 97%.
• The University of Connecticut produces 3,000-4,000 gallons of waste cooking oil a year, which is used to produce about 2,000 gallons of biodiesel.
• Burning ULSHO means reduced sulfur dioxide by 97%, particulate matter by 90%, and nitrous oxide by 10%. When you include the biodiesel blend you can add 5-10 points to those numbers.
• Taking sulfur out of fuel causes no problems for oil heating equipment or storage tanks. Reducing the amount of sulfur prolongs the life of heat exchangers (particularly condensing boilers and furnaces) because of the elimination of soot and scaling.

Safe & Reliable

When it comes to your home and your family, you want your heating system to be safe and reliable. Here are ways in which Oilheat exemplifies safety and reliability:

• Approximately 43% of all Connecticut homes are “Bioheat homes.”
• Bioheat has the highest heating capacity of any alternative fuel.
• It’s delivered directly to your tank by a local, licensed Connecticut ultra-low sulfur heating oil dealer — an independent business you can count on for personalized service.
• Most fuel retailers offer convenient programs like automatic delivery, which helps ensure you have a constant heating fuel supply all through the winter.
• Ultra-low sulfur heating oil and Bioheat fuel can be used interchangeably, with no modifications to your heating equipment or storage tank.
• There is more than enough ultra-low sulfur heating oil and Bioheat fuel available at any given moment to meet the winter heating demands of Connecticut homes.
• It will not burn in a liquid state. In order to light heating oil on fire, you must heat it above 140 degrees, the temperature at which it begins to vaporize.
• It is non-explosive. Heating oil is not explosive in its liquid form.
• Today’s tanks are stronger and less likely to leak. Whether your oil storage tank is hidden in your basement, in a pantry, outside or even underground, today’s tanks are composed of state-of-the-art steel and fiberglass, many with double walls of plastic and steel and sensors, and should last for decides year, nearly 600,000 homes in Connecticut are kept warm by the cleaner, greener ultra-low sulfur heating oil known as Bioheat fuel.