We are in the heart of winter, and with these cold temperatures, you might consider these extra measures to help keep your home warm and safe.
Make sure you have fuel and consider a back-up heat source or generator.
- Automatic Delivery: Being on automatic delivery means we will not let you run out of fuel. We can track the temperature and “degree days” to ensure you do not run out of fuel.
- Will Call: If you are a will-call customer, it’s up to you to check your tank and order fuel before you run out. In ordinary times, we need up to a week to schedule your delivery. We will run nights and weekends if we have to during cold snaps to be sure nobody goes cold, but we would rather deliver to you during normal business hours and save you the emergency delivery fee. Systems with propane fuel can take additional time to restart since we need to pressure test the line to ensure there is no gas leak. In the end, if you are will-call, keep an eye on the forecast and call us at a ¼ tank, not when you are on empty.
- Back up heat/power – having a backup heat or power source is great insurance when it comes to extremely cold weather or winter storms. A back up generator is a popular choice for those concerned about power outages, and a woodstove can be a good backup or supplement heat source.
How to avoid frozen pipes and burst water lines.
If your heating system fails, or you have poorly insulated water pipes, you may need to take these extra measures to keep your pipes from freezing up.
- Keep air circulating – especially in areas where cold persists and pipes are exposed, such as crawl spaces of behind cupboard doors. Run a fan to help the warm air get into these spaces.
- Keep water moving – if your pipes are prone to freezing, keep water valves open just enough to allow a steady drip. This should only be necessary with plumbing that runs along exterior walls.
General advice: Here is a link to a FEMA website that covers winter storm readiness in a very thorough and well-organized way. https://www.ready.gov/winter-weather
