Propane delivery yesterday, 1000 gallons at 2.99/gal, contracted price from a coop that costs 30/year to join. Tank was so low needle didn't even register! New delivery co to take advantage of the coop pricing/contract. They have no prior usage data except we use over 2000/gal/yr! Could have been a disaster for our house and barn, with the -20* F temps we've been seeing and will continue to see at night for the near future. Driver said we could have run out last night or today! We count on auto delivery, part of the coop pricing deal, and we have always used auto delivery since we're away a lot at random times. We used to use oil fired hydronic baseboard heat throughout the house and didn't have the barn back then, Old oil furnace was from the 70's and needed to die because of lack of efficiency, etc. When we added a 30x30' and 10x15' addition and mudroom we super insulated the new addition with closed cell foam and tore out the baseboard on first floor and ran radiant above the floor in a click lock above sub-floor track system. We added two Buderus GB-142 condensing gas boilers, one in the barn and one in the house. The barn has radiant in concrete floor throughout the 'garage' level, and under floor, (cheaper install for new construction) for apartment above.
The propane fired furnaces are quiet, require virtually no maintenance, and vent and draw combustion air from outside; which eliminates the issues with older style oil boilers sucking air for combustion from the inside of the dwelling.
Anyway, the 1000gallon tank installed outside next to the B&S 20KW auto run/once week ~self test generator, which we purchased from our original installer/propane tank and service supplier, LEAKED for probably a couple of weeks until our GC/builder confirmed the smell at the barn as propane. (Everything was new at the time so lots of off-gassing of materials, so we were not sure what the odor was). We immediately called for a repair on the owned by us tank. Turns out about an hour later the propane truck shows up and FILLS the tank! We thought he had come to repair the leak; he didn't know there was a leak, and filled it full! Next day the guy shows up to check out the install and tells us the tank needs to be drained COMPLETELY! FRIG!:mur::duh:
I was planning on going to Maine to ski with my son and his BF, so I told my wife if I saw a big fireball in the rearview I wouldn't be coming home!
They drained and fixed the tank and the tank company/installer/supplier eventually paid a certain guestimated amount of credit for the lost gas- which I'll never know if I lost or broke even on.:confused3:
BUT, being in VT and it's harsh winter climate has me thinking about what else I can do to mitigate a real shortage where there maybe NO more propane and I won't have any heat source except two mini-split heat pumps and my 2 Buderus solar water collectors. Not a good situation. I do have a small Jotul wood stove and a wood fireplace insert that could be put to use, possibly in case of a real emergency or long term propane 'shortage' or crisis/emergency.
Thanks for reading my long post, hope it helps in some way for others figuring out what to do/not to do.
