Propane prices

[danrclem]

Propane runs $1.50 to $1.70 a gallon around here, depending on who you buy it from and how much you buy. Some say it might reach $1.80 before the end of the heating season. At $1.70 per gallon, that's about $18.40 per MBTU. Natural gas is still a lot cheaper at $7.00 to $8.00 per MBTU, but you also have to add in the pipeline service charges and other monthly assessments that almost double that for many residential amd small commercial customers.

Wood saves me about $500 a year on my natural gas heating bill. Take a look at this chart I prepared for alternative fuel cost equivalents:

This measures alternative fuel costs per hour at various rates, and I doubt you will find it published anywhere. It does not include any special service charges that you have to add in to figure yourt true fuel cost.

Regardless, wood heat is still surprisingly cheap if you burn it correctly.

That's a good chart that you have there Doc. It looks like natural gas is the only thing that would even compare to burning wood. My brother buys some of his wood and I told him the other day that buying wood for $150.00 a cord would still be a lot cheaper than burning propane. Even if you buy wood though there is a little bit of work and mess to it but it'd still be worth it.

 

[KsWoodsMan]

I'll be calling around on Monday to find out our local price. Our 100# cooking bottle is ready to be refilled. The little bit of holiday cooking we do finished it off.

 

[Mntn Man]

We sell right now for $1.47 for a min of 200 gals if you aren't out. If less or we make a special trip add $.20. Dryer propane is $1.31.

You'd be surpised how much wood a guy can scrounge selling propane and fuel.:greenchainsaw:

 

[retired redneck]

I got a letter from my propane co. saying do to farmers drying grain i now have to wait till my tank reads 20% and call for gas [yea right ] then they raise the price....

 

[Wood Doctor]

I got a letter from my propane co. saying do to farmers drying grain i now have to wait till my tank reads 20% and call for gas [yea right ] then they raise the price....

Same story here. Grain driers using propane really play havoc with this market. I admire anyone trying to reduce propane consumption by heating with wood. The real problem that I see is trying to figure out the true cost of wood heat. It varies from area to area and person to person, all depending on supply conditions, species available, and equipment used to gather and burn.

However, even if you doubled the cost of wood shown in the table, it's cost competitive to alternative fuels, provided you are willing to make the physical effort required to get the smoke up the chimney. The major problem is that most houses are not designed for wood heat.

 

[Suz]

I don't know what it works out per gallon, but my local propane dealer quoted $65. (plus tax) for a 100# bottle. Another said it was $75 for the 100#

(I use the propane/Reddy heater to take the chill out of my garage/workshop when needed.)

 

[KsWoodsMan]

Well , of course it went up. 6 months ago it was $1.40 a gallon and $10 fill charge. The price this morning ranged from $2.40 to $3.00 a gallon plus fill.

I'm glad I don't rely in it for heat.

 

[rmotoman]

I bought 250 gal. about 2 months ago. It was 1.49 per gal.

The first winter used only propane and it cost about $2000 to heat our home. The next winter I put a corn stove in the basement. Used about $1000 in propane and $500 in corn. This winter I got the outdoor wood furnace going at Thanksgiving so will need less corn and no propane for heat. Now I only use propane for heating water.

 

[HardyOWB]

$1.99 per gallon in western New York. Started the OWB 2 weeks ago when it really started getting cold. No more money for the gas man from me.:greenchainsaw:

 

[danrclem]

I don't know what it works out per gallon, but my local propane dealer quoted $65. (plus tax) for a 100# bottle. Another said it was $75 for the 100#

(I use the propane/Reddy heater to take the chill out of my garage/workshop when needed.)

The National Propane Gas Association says that propane weighs 4.24 lbs. per gal. so a 100 lb. cylinder would have about 23.58 gal. in it. If it cost $65.00 to fill the tank then it would be about $2.75 per gal.

 

[olyman]

I got a letter from my propane co. saying do to farmers drying grain i now have to wait till my tank reads 20% and call for gas [yea right ] then they raise the price....

and they arent ripoffs!!!righttttt grrrrrrrrr

 

[olyman]

The National Propane Gas Association says that propane weighs 4.24 lbs. per gal. so a 100 lb. cylinder would have about 23.58 gal. in it. If it cost $65.00 to fill the tank then it would be about $2.75 per gal.

thanks dan--always wondered about that

 

[Wood Doctor]

thanks dan--always wondered about that

Yeah, but around here they are advertising $1.45 a gallon. At this point, I do not know who to believe and neither does anyone else.

 

[danrclem]

Yeah, but around here they are advertising $1.45 a gallon. At this point, I do not know who to believe and neither does anyone else.

About the $2.75 a gallon? I had my camper filled up with propane last summer and if I remember correctly it was somewhere around $2.50 or $2.60 a gallon. I'm sure that they charge a premium for smaller tanks.

I'm also thinking that I paid about $11.00 for a 20 lb. grill tank to be filled last summer. That would be about 4.72 gal. if they put a full 20 lbs. of propane in the tank and that would make it about $2.33 a gal. Hmmmmm, there's something weawy weawy scwewy going on with these pwices. Maybe I didn't pay $2.50 or $2.60 for my camper propane but I know that it was over $2.00 a gal. If I remember I'll call tomorrow but I'm pretty sure that the prices will be higher than last summer.

 

[Hlakegollum]

Just paid $202 for 69 gallons, so I guess about $3 per gallon. Good thing is it will last me all winter, heat only runs when I can't burn.

 

[germy01]

I just had 157 gallons delivered at 2.39 a gallon. That is up about 85 cents from this past fall.

 

[Patrick62]

Bottle filling station

I work at a hardware store, and we do propane.
Your basic 20lb tank holds 4.3 gallons, about $12 or so ($2.75/gal)

We do have a $5 minimum (reasonable) for when someone comes in with those little cute 5lb bottles that hold just about a gallon. . .

Recently I got a furnace from a mobile home rigged into the shop. Kind of nice, when the place is cold, if I get the power going (off the grid), I have instant heat! while I get the wood burning...

 

[olyman]

I work at a hardware store, and we do propane.
Your basic 20lb tank holds 4.3 gallons, about $12 or so ($2.75/gal)

We do have a $5 minimum (reasonable) for when someone comes in with those little cute 5lb bottles that hold just about a gallon. . .

Recently I got a furnace from a mobile home rigged into the shop. Kind of nice, when the place is cold, if I get the power going (off the grid), I have instant heat! while I get the wood burning...

your honest------the places that have tanks filled,and you exchange--are only putting 18 lbs in them,and charge 20--nice rip if you can get it--i refill my own--from the larger tank--

 

[legendman]

Paying 3.94 a gal in eastern Connecticut, only use it for a cook stove.
They won't be filling their tank at my house anymore, when its empty they can pick it up.
Also get nailed $56 a year for rental and also have to pay property tax on the tank.

 

[olyman]

Paying 3.94 a gal in eastern Connecticut, only use it for a cook stove.
They won't be filling their tank at my house anymore, when its empty they can pick it up.
Also get nailed $56 a year for rental and also have to pay property tax on the tank.

get your own tank--then can buy from whomever you want,whenever you want--prefer in spring when prices drop--even two 100 lb tanks would last a while on the stove only--