The best time to refill your heating oil tank is when the gauge reads a quarter. Short answer: call for oil when the gauge reads a quarter tank. Not an eighth, and not when the burner starts sputtering.
Why refill your heating oil tank at a quarter
A typical home oil tank holds 275 gallons, so a quarter tank is roughly 70 gallons. In mild weather that is weeks of heat. In a cold snap it goes much faster, and that is also when everyone else is calling for a delivery. A quarter tank gives you a cushion for both.
Running the tank dry is worse than it sounds. The burner can pull in air and the sludge that settles at the bottom of the tank, and it may take a service call to bleed the line and restart the system, on top of the delivery.
How to read the gauge
Most tanks have a float gauge on top: a clear plastic vial with a disc inside and marks for full, three quarters, half and one quarter. Check it once a week in winter. Floats can stick, so if the disc has not moved in a couple of weeks while the heat has been running, do not trust it. Give us a call.
Plan around your delivery days
We deliver on set days in each town. You can find yours on our areas we serve page. Call a day or two ahead of your route day, and call earlier than usual before a storm or a holiday weekend.
Or stop checking altogether
On automatic delivery we track your usage and schedule the fill for you, so the gauge is our problem. If you do run out, we offer emergency and after-hours delivery, but it is a lot more pleasant not to need it.
You can order home heating oil online or call (203) 265-4328.
Whichever you choose, it is easier to refill your heating oil tank before it gets low than to get the system going again after it runs out.
