The snow has arrived and your heaters are continuously running, keeping your home comfortable and warm. Since you heat your home with heating oil, you are well aware of the fact that a skilled technician has to come and deliver your oil to make sure that your home stays this comfortable even when it is frigid cold outside. However, when scheduling a heating oil delivery, there are some things that you can do to make sure that you help your technician and in some cases, even yourself.
If you don’t shovel a path to your fill pipe, some heating oil companies will not fill your tank. They will see that there is no available path to your pipes, especially under extremely unfavorable conditions, and they will keep driving. This is the busiest time of year for these companies and many scheduled appointment do not allow the time necessary to clear a path. Most homeowners don’t even think about what a heating oil company has to do in order to make sure that they fill your tank safely. In the following article by WTNH News 8, they discuss how some heating oil companies may not deliver if your don’t clear a path for them:
Oil delivery drivers appreciate a clear path
Bill Mitchell’s job is tough enough in this cold weather and but when he comes across a yard like the one he dealt with in Colchester it adds to the frigid challenge.
No pathway was cleared for him to the intake pipe and he had to trudge through two feet of snow all the way across the front yard.
“It was about a hundred foot pull,” says Mitchell who says that delivery was very difficult.
The homeowner who had been away on business last week didn’t get to clear a path which Mitchell and other drivers with Mohegan Oil out of Mystic would appreciate.
“It would be nice,” says Mitchell. “It would be nice.”
He almost left without making the delivery because he couldn’t make it through the front yard before the homeowner helped.
This article clearly states the importance of shoveling a path prior to your heating oil delivery. Fuel delivery companies in Westwood,NJ claim that this ensures the safety of your delivery and their drivers. As this article mentions, some heating oil companies will not deliver your oil if you haven’t made the effort to prepare for it. They want to keep their drivers as safe as possible. It is dangerous to have their techs struggle through two feet of snow with a 150 ft. pull. This means that you will have to reschedule a delivery if the delivery driver sees that you have not prepared your home for the scheduled delivery. If your heating oil tank is low, this could mean that you run out of heating oil which leads to other issues that you do not want to experience.
Heating oil delivery companies are extremely busy during this time of year. Many claim that, not only do you need to shovel a path, but that homeowners need to make sure that their pipes need to be accessible. These companies do not have the time to dig out pipes. If you schedule a delivery, it is advisable to not only clear a path but to also dig out your pipes. In the following article by WCSH 6, discusses the importance of preparing for a delivery:
Rough winter makes oil deliveries more challenging
They’ve been working some very long hours and not only is it difficult maneuvering through narrow streets, they’re also finding when they get to a home the fill pipe delivery area is buried in snow.
Some companies are sending out two-man crews to help clear the way, but many drivers are on their own. Dale Brown of Dale’s Cash Fuel said as busy as he is he can’t spend time digging out pipes.
It’s humanly impossible to wade through this snow at every stop”, he said.
The message is clear. If you want your tank filled, clear the way.
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Due to the onset of the extreme winter weather, oil companies are busier than ever. Time is of essence and they want to be sure to make all of their appointments. They do not want their clients to run out of heating oil. Clearing a path is a big job but if the gate to your fill pipe is snowed in or if your pipes are buried in snow, it makes the job even harder. Unfortunately, many oil companies do not have the time to be able to fill your tank along with the expectation of clearing a path and digging out your pipes. It is best to make sure that everything is clear and accessible before your delivery takes place.
Another aspect that some homeowners do not consider is the fact that not only do they have to clear a path and make their fill pipe accessible ahead of time, but if they have a gate, the tech needs to be able to easily open it. When there are two feet of icy snow, it makes it difficult to open the gate which gives your heating oil technician another obstacle to contend with. In the following article by The Hour, they discuss this in further detail:
Oil companies urge customers to clear paths for deliveries
“The last thing we want is for a customer to run out of fuel due to us not being able to get to them on a timely manner,” Dominick said.
Dominick said his drivers have also had to contend with gates being plowed shut by snow, house numbers hidden under buried mailboxes and fill pipes that are covered in snow.
The bottom line is that if you want to have your heating oil delivered on time and in the safest manner, you need to prepare for it. By shoveling your driveway, clearing a path to your fill pipe, clearly displaying your house numbers to delivery drivers, making your gates easy to open, and making your fill pipe easily accessible, you have set up your delivery for success. The effort is necessary because as mentioned earlier, some oil companies will not deliver. If you are low on fuel, this means that you might run out of fuel. No one wants to run out of fuel in the middle of the winter.
Charity Oil offers the best heating oil prices in Orange County, NJ. This Westwood, NJ fuel delivery company is known for high-quality oil while giving back to the community. We help support charities such as the Wounded Warrior Project, Make A Wish Foundation, and the American Cancer Society. By ordering your next heating oil purchase from Charity Oil, five cents of every gallon of fuel will be donated help charities like these. Charity Oil only partners with reputable, licensed dealers who provide top-notch service and discount prices. This provides an easy way for customers to support charities each time they order fuel. At the same time, Charity Oil’s system helps people find affordable fuel suppliers that they can trust.
To get started with your online fuel order, please click here. This will begin the registration process. The best part is that you can order your home heating oil online, 24/7! Contact us today or give us a call at (845) 470-1000 if you have any questions.