The P. Gagnon & Son Blog

Propane vs. Oil Heating

Whichever you use, P. Gagnon & Son has you covered!

home fuel delivery maine You have a lot of options when it comes to the energy sources you use in your home. That gives you the freedom to make choices based on what works best for your family’s needs as well as your budget.

However, all those choices may be overwhelming. If you’re facing having to make this decision, you may have a little analysis paralysis. P. Gagnon & Son is here to help! We’ll go over the options you have and show you some of the key features of each, which may help you bring our needs and priorities into sharper focus, helping you to more easily make your decision on an energy source for your home.

Propane

More and more folks here in the Seacoast Region are discovering the advantages that propane can bring to their homes. With reliable propane delivery from P. Gagnon & Son, you can enjoy the comfort and security propane offers.

  • Propane-powered equipment is more efficient than equipment using other fuels.
  • Propane is an environmentally friendly fuel, being named as an alternative fuel by the U.S. Government.
  • Propane heating systems usually need less maintenance and can last longer than other heating systems.
  • With propane being nontoxic and nonpoisonous, you don’t have to worry about it polluting groundwater or soil if there’s a leak. This fact makes it safe to bury propane tanks out of sight.
  • Not only can propane be used for home heating, but it is also a fantastic power source for appliances like ranges, dishwashers, laundry machines, fireplaces, and water heaters. A propane whole-house backup generator keeps your home running even when the electricity goes out.
  • Propane is easy and safe to transport because it gets compressed into a liquid. If you’ve ever exchanged or refilled a portable gas cylinder for your grill, then you know how that works.
  • When you buy propane, you’re not only getting a clean-burning energy source for your home or business. You’re also doing your part to help America become more energy independent because virtually all of our propane supply is domestically produced.

Heating oil

Heating oil is one of the more common energy sources for home heating. However, much has changed in heating oil in the last few decades with the introduction of ultra-low sulfur heating oil (ULSHO) and biodiesel blends. Our dependable heating oil delivery and our premium fuel, which is a blend of ULSHO and up to 5% biodiesels, making it cleaner burning, as well as our UltraGuard additive that protects your heating oil tank from corrosion while helping your heating system run more efficiently.
Other advantages of heating oil include:

  • Heating oil has a high-BTU output and gets your home warm faster than any other energy source for heating.
  • Oil-fired heating systems tend to cost the least.
  • Between ULSHO, biodiesels, and high-efficiency heating systems, your heating costs can be low.

Natural gas

Natural gas offers many similar benefits as propane, without having to schedule deliveries. However, there are some disadvantages.

  • To enjoy the benefits of natural gas, you need to live in a neighborhood where a natural gas utility has gas lines. If those gas lines don’t run from the street to your home, adding them can cost thousands of dollars on top of running gas lines inside your home.
  • You are at the mercy of a natural gas utility and its dubious infrastructure. With propane, your gas supply is stored at your home in your propane tank.
  • Unlike propane, natural gas contains methane, a greenhouse gas, which means emissions from natural gas are not environmentally friendly like propane.
  • Propane has twice the BTUs of natural gas, making it a more efficient and cost-effective energy source.

Electricity

While electricity is excellent for many things, we still have not reached the point where it can completely replace other forms of energy.

  • Electricity is not as environmentally friendly as its proponents claim. More than 60% of the U.S. electrical supply is created by coal-fired power plants. In fact, electricity generation is second only to transportation when it comes to the creation of greenhouse gases.
  • Electric heating systems not only take longer to raise the temperature to a comfortable level, but also have difficulty maintaining that warmth—meaning it has to run more frequently and for longer periods than propane or heating oil. In other words, using electricity for home heating could send your energy costs through the roof.

Become a P. Gagnon & Son customer for the most reliable heating oil and propane delivery in the Seacoast region!