Heating Oil prices put Pellets on back burner.

[MCPO]

Always said I will never have gas in this house. Grew up with it but I have never seen a wood pile or stack of pellets explode and level a house.

Gas can be dangerous of course , but considering how widely used it is in so many homes and businesses , it is really quite safe at that.
I do recall a family who was blown up in their home (nearby town) about 30 yrs ago due to a gas explosion but the likelihood of that happening is likely to be one in a million.

 

[notch]

You tellum the truth!, I was lucky got in early and only paid $1800 for my whit in 1998, pellets were $134 a ton for year's, my house then was electric heat and was burning wood for 10 yrs, got sick of the stacking and carrying wood, bought a pellet stove and now I'm sick of buying/stacking/cleaning pellet stove, my back is shot and carrying a 40lb bag to load before work suck's! it was a novelty, it's wearing off fast.....my kids 22 and 19 have NEVER lived there lives in a evenly heated home, freeezing in one end hot in the other end...NO MORE!!

Like most things, you have to take the good with the bad. Good is a nice warm room on one side of the house, a fixed price for your entire winter fuel supply (assuming you buy all you need at the beginning of the heating season) regardless of what some OPEC prince or saber-rattling dictator says or does, reducing your carbon footprint, using a renewable fuel, and helping the US economy (assuming you buy US-made pellets). You've covered the bad already.

I plan to mothball my stove and burn the dinosaurs until such time as pellets make economical sense again, which I can guarantee will not take very long. I definitely prefer having an alternative to oil, even if I don't use it until the cost warrants.

You may want to consider changing your member name to something more fitting - Pellet-Hater comes to mind.

 

[slls]

Dont forget the pump screen

Too new for that.

 

[Bioburner]

Family managed to catch their home blowing up on dash cam after someone ran off the road and hit the house meter. Was all over the news early this week.

 

[Pellet-King]

Last summer this time I was all set to convert to NG, had the 98% efficient Lennox furnace all set to be installed, called Yankee Gas they told me because I live on a state owned road it would cost me $6000 to connect 30 feet to my house, there website says FREE hookup, said need special permits/police to direct traffic etc to tap into the gas line.

 

[Bioburner]

I watched a crew horizontal bore in a line under a state highway in front of the county courthouse last week. Saw no traffic control or a orange cone or fence off the sidewalk. I mentioned to the Deputy the crew had the machine idling and they walked off to the café for lunch.

 

[LordmetalZ28]

I would have paid 6000$ for 3ft of pipe. Just get the gas in my house. Its worth every penny in my eyes

 

[Bioburner]

Basically what I am saying is I would have done a bit of research into what the real cost of permits etc were and if they were giving you a blow off. I was talking to a phone and cable service guy and he made mention of the rural electrification and communication program that paid them to keep your phone active.

 

[English BoB]

You can say that again!!

Where I am, when the price of oil dropped, the governments just jacked up the taxes and the refineries and retailers jacked up their prices and kept the difference!

Right now, the price of gas, diesel and fuel oil is pretty much exactly the same as it was when oil was at about $90 per barrel!!

Gas is $4.82 per US gallon
Diesel is $4.44 per US gallon
Heating oil (delivered) for 250 gallons delivered at once is $4.28 per US gallon

I am terrified of what would happen to gas, diesel and heating oil prices if oil went back up to $95 a barrel!! Probably $10 a gallon gasoline!!

By the time my oil tank is empty, I'll be ready to convert the boiler to pellets!!

Pellets were running up as high as $350/ton last winter, then dropped to $314/ton around mid May then dropped again to $250/ton on July 1st. Mid July they dropped to $200/ton and now they are back up to $330/ton. I am using prices of the same brand of bagged pellets for comparison, so it isn't an issue of different types or brands of pellets.

Luckily I got all I need for this winter, plus an extra 2 tons just in case, when the price was down at $200/ton. I also got them to throw in free delivery because I bought so many at once (8.5 tons).

Where are you located ?

 

[Brian26]

where do you see those prices?, newenglandoilprices.com does not reflect that

cashheatingoil.com

Keep in mind that prices are way cheaper when you live near New Haven, one of the biggest heating oil entry ports in New England. They have to transport the oil North and that increases the prices.

My fuel oil dealer is literally 4 blocks from the terminal and has to drive about 3 miles on the highway to deliver the oil.

If you put in New Haven's zip code 06510. Its 1.72.

Hartford area is around $2.00+

Think of the cost's to truck it North, store it, fill a small truck and then deliver it locally.

Around here they fill up right at the terminal. I believe New Haven is part of the Northeast Heating Oil Reserve.

 

[Pellet-King]

I got a coupon in the mail from Springer Oil, $1.85 until monday, will buy 100 gallons, i have 3/8 now and because some bozo put in the wrong vent whistle it stop's at 3/4, installed whistle for a 330 gal tank instead of a 275.

 

[Peterfield]

I am still holding out for Dan's (Pete Zahria) 50% off sale on douglas firs with free delivery.

 

[killie11]

The pellet hate hurts my eyes.

 

[stevemartin]

The pellet hate hurts my eyes.

Hahahahahaha!

 

[Daveman]

...a little Maritime Canada input....

Last year we saw .95 to 1.11 for heating oil, my neighbour just filled her tank last week at 0.89..but those prices are plus GST of 5% and are per litre...multiply roughly by 4 for US gallon price and even at the current going rate of 300$ per ton for pellets (and the Eastern Embers plant is 28 miles up the road) I am way ahead and much warmer sticking with pellets. I did get lucky with the house design, its a small 3 level semi and the basement dweller 25 pdvc easily heats the house to the point of opening windows

 

[Pete Zahria]

I am still holding out for Dan's (Pete Zahria) 50% off sale on douglas firs with free delivery.

Oh man.... You just missed it

 

[Pellet-King]

I watched a crew horizontal bore in a line under a state highway in front of the county courthouse last week. Saw no traffic control or a orange cone or fence off the sidewalk. I mentioned to the Deputy the crew had the machine idling and they walked off to the café for lunch.

like i said they folk the workin man over

 

[Pellet-King]

The pellet hate hurts my eyes.

Hate is do to price gouging, no reason for pellet prices as shipping cost's are way down, only a fool would pay these prices

 

[fedtime]

...a little Maritime Canada input....

Last year we saw .95 to 1.11 for heating oil, my neighbour just filled her tank last week at 0.89..but those prices are plus GST of 5% and are per litre...multiply roughly by 4 for US gallon price and even at the current going rate of 300$ per ton for pellets (and the Eastern Embers plant is 28 miles up the road) I am way ahead and much warmer sticking with pellets. I did get lucky with the house design, its a small 3 level semi and the basement dweller 25 pdvc easily heats the house to the point of opening windows

I'm holding out for the Kent sale - last year, Cozys were $4.60 per bag during the September sale. Rona tells me Eastern Embers will be $6.50 this year! And hold off on the oil fill-up if you can. I'm told we will see prices in the low $.70, maybe even $.60 before long.

 

[hockeypuck]

I have a friend in the wood trading business. He told me last week that there are some tarriffs about to expire on Canadian wood (October). Unsure if this will directly affect canadian pellets, but it will most likely flood the US market with low cost wood. Throw on China Yuan sinking and their slow down, one would expect pellet prices to come in line. I have not purchased yet. Waiting. Not my primary heat source either. FYI.. lumber commodity prices for the past 12 months below.

 

[Pete Zahria]

... no reason for pellet prices as shipping cost's are way down... .

Maybe for you guys... You're lucky.
Not here.

Dan

 

[maple1]

Hate is do to price gouging, no reason for pellet prices as shipping cost's are way down, only a fool would pay these prices

I don't think shipping costs are the only factor in pellet prices. And everyones fuel situations on this continent are not the same as yours. So don't think labelling people fools is warranted.

 

[maple1]

I have a friend in the wood trading business. He told me last week that there are some tarriffs about to expire on Canadian wood (October). Unsure if this will directly affect canadian pellets, but it will most likely flood the US market with low cost wood. Throw on China Yuan sinking and their slow down, one would expect pellet prices to come in line. I have not purchased yet. Waiting. Not my primary heat source either. FYI.. lumber commodity prices for the past 12 months below.

Wood doesnt seem very low cost to buy up here, so wouldnt expect to see a cheap market flood happen.

 

[slls]

Wood doesnt seem very low cost to buy up here, so wouldnt expect to see a cheap market flood happen.

I thought the Canadian government owned most of the forests, they seem to in NB.

 

[maple1]

There is more % private ownership in NS than in NB.

Also, it would be the provincial government that owns Crown land, and not the federal government. Although Queen Liz is technically the root of both - another whole ball of worms...