Heating oil tanks can last for decades, but like anything else, they eventually need to be replaced. Life spans vary depending on the humidity in the environment, the thickness of the tank’s wall and other factors. When tanks do fail, it’s hard to see it coming, because they generally erode from the inside out.
That’s why it’s a good idea to have them checked periodically by a professional since cleaning up a tank leak can be incredibly expensive.
Today’s heating oil tanks come in a range of sizes and shapes. The heating oil pros at Broco Energy® can help you find the most suitable heating oil tank and get it installed quickly and correctly.
Two numbers are vital to know: the capacity of the tank (measured in gallons) and the dimensions of the tank (depth, width, and height). Newer tanks usually have the capacity listed on the nameplate. With an older tank, you’ll have to calculate the dimensions to estimate the capacity.
Although aboveground heating oil tank sizes can include everything from 288, 340, 420, 500, 550, 675 and 1,000 gallons, the most common size for a residential heating oil tank is 275 gallons. The shape of the tank can be either vertical (called a 275V) or horizontal (275H). It’s important to note, however, that a 275-gallon tank cannot hold that much fuel. Some space—usually 15-20%–must be left free to compensate for air and debris inside the heating oil tank.
In cold climates like ours, few heating oil tanks are kept outdoors because heating oil can thicken and gel in extreme cold. Although additives and kerosene blends (also known as winter blends), can slow gelling, the better solution is to locate your heating oil tank indoors, typically in the basement.
A general industry rule-of-thumb is that one or two-bedroom homes typically require a 275-gallon heating oil tank; three- or four- bedroom homes need a 300 to 500-gallon tank.
Available space. Some homes cannot accommodate larger heating oil tanks; you’ll need to have your space measured before deciding on your replacement tank.
Current and future family size. As your family grows, so does your fuel consumption.
Lifestyle. Do you spend long vacations away from home? Do you have elderly relatives living with you who need a warmer house? These are among the factors that will affect how frequent your heating oil delivery will be– and how big a heating oil tank you should get.
As a full-service heating oil company, Broco Energy® can assure you that you’ll save a lot of headaches — and avoid equipment issues down the line — if you bring in certified professionals to replace your heating oil tank.
Not only can we offer you a wide selection of heating oil tanks and the knowledge to install them correctly and efficiently, our installers are also experienced in the best ways to transfer your existing fuel and dispose of the old tank.
Our reliable team of heating oil professionals will work with you from the beginning to ensure that you have the right size for your heating needs, your heating system and the size of your home.
Once your tank is selected, our expert installation team will adhere to all industry regulations, guidelines and codes to handle a proper heating oil tank installation that’s safe and efficient.
Check with Broco Energy® to make sure that your heating oil tank is properly inspected and maintained. You will also need to upgrade at the right time—before you run into an expensive issue that could have been avoided.
Are you ready for a new heating oil tank? See if you’re in the Broco Energy® service area, and then contact us to get started.
Whether it’s a high-efficiency boiler or furnace, a plentiful supply of hot water, temperature-precise cooking stoves, or emergency whole-house generators, you can rely on all of these benefits in your propane home in the same way people do in homes supplied with natural gas.
However, there are some key differences between these two popular home heating fuels.
Consumer surveys have shown that people like heating their homes and water with propane because they know they will have a dependable supply available whenever they need it. Having a propane tank on their property gives them the ability to store a plentiful amount that’s always ready for immediate use.
Natural gas customers don’t get that type of security. It seems as if every winter, there are stories about interruptions in natural gas service somewhere in the country because of pipeline problems. These problems are caused by extremely cold weather, accidents, or deterioration.
Propane has a distinct edge over traditional natural gas because of the way it’s transported and stored. After propane gets compressed into a liquid, becoming what’s called liquid petroleum gas (LPG), all of it gets stored inside large tanks until Broco Energy® makes a delivery to your home.
Liquid propane changes to gas before it leaves the on-site storage tank, getting released slowly and safely through pressure regulators. Compare that to the delivery system of natural gas. If an underground natural gas pipeline gets damaged—or other problems occur—hundreds and even thousands of customers may lose their supply until the gas utility completes repairs.
Serious environmental issues have been raised about methane leaks coming from the processing of natural gas. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas and the main component of natural gas. In its original form, propane is not a greenhouse gas and it’s considered a “green” fuel because of its low carbon content. It does not contain any methane gas.
Propane is kept as a liquid under pressure for safe transport and is handled by highly trained professionals using equipment and techniques that are regulated by authorities at federal, state, and local levels.
If something goes wrong with a natural gas pipeline, the situation can turn tragic. We witnessed this four years ago when excessive pressure in natural gas lines caused explosions and fires to occur in dozens of homes within the Merrimack Valley.
Propane also has a much narrower range of flammability (minimum and maximum burn temperatures) than natural gas; propane will not ignite when combined with air unless the ignition source reaches at least 920°F.
The Broco Energy® team of expert licensed propane service technicians and drivers know the area well. We serve the Reading and North Reading area, along with surrounding communities in Massachusetts and up to New Hampshire.
Many of our customers enroll in our FREE automatic delivery program. This allows us to stay on top of your fuel needs and be in touch when it’s time to schedule a delivery long before your tank gets too low. We find that this is a tried-and-true method of minimizing the risk of a run-out.
You’ll never have to think about how much fuel is in your tank. You’ll also get a better price-per-gallon.
Please contact us to become a Broco Energy® customer and then schedule a propane delivery.
Heating oil comes from crude oil, which is refined to remove impurities. It’s then separated into different “fractions.”
The lighter fractions of crude oil eventually become propane, butane, and petrochemicals while heavier fractions are used to produce gasoline, kerosene, jet fuel, diesel fuel, and No. 2 home heating oil. (Diesel fuel and No. 2 fuel oil are virtually the same, in terms of their chemical composition).
Even heavier fractions become No. 4 or No. 6 heating oils. This is used for commercial and industrial buildings, schools, and hospitals.
In recent years, there have been significant strides in the refining of heating oil that make it much cleaner and increasingly greener. Notably, most of the sulfur content has been removed, Here is why this is important.
Heating oil is also being blended with 100% renewable biofuel made from plants and other organic matter. This reduces the fuel’s carbon emissions.
We only deliver Bioheat fuel to our heating oil customers. This is a clean alternative to conventional heating oil that also produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions than natural gas.
Bioheat fuel is a blend of biodiesel and traditional petroleum-based heating oil. Biodiesel, which is made from vegetable oils, animal fats and other renewable materials, is considered a biogenic fuel that reduces carbon output 100%. That’s because the combustion of biofuels and other biogenic energy sources actually recycle carbon dioxide emissions through renewable plant materials and other biomass feedstocks. That’s why you’ll be hearing a lot about net-zero carbon emissions in the years ahead.
With a solid partnership in place with REG, our trusted supplier, we expect to keep increasing our blend levels – eventually to B100 to all of our residential customers in New England.
We have already upgraded our facilities to increase blending capacity, including extra storage tanks to accommodate 150,000 gallons of B100 heated storage that will be blended into 200,000 gallons of heating oil storage and 50,000 gallons of diesel storage.
Our supplier, REG, is an international producer of cleaner fuels and North America’s largest producer of biodiesel. REG utilizes an integrated procurement, distribution, and logistics network to operate 12 biorefineries in the U.S. and Europe. In 2020, REG produced 519 million gallons of cleaner fuel, delivering 4.2 million metric tons of carbon reduction. REG is meeting the growing global demand for lower-carbon fuels and helping Broco Energy® to do our part to assure a more sustainable future.
Contact Broco Energy® today for your residential or commercial heating oil service needs.
On October 5, OPEC announced it was slashing production by two million barrels a day. Within just three days, our suppliers increased the cost of heating oil by 70 cents per gallon. That’s right, 70 cents per gallon.
This is not just impacting heating oil. Expect natural gas, electricity, gasoline and propane to move higher too. Of course, this is not simply about supply and demand. We’ve learned that when prices move this far this fast, you can always see the impact of Wall Street firms that jump to take advantage of the momentum to make a quick buck. (Or should we say millions of bucks?) It frustrates the heck out of us.
Of course, things can turn around just as quickly. We saw prices spike in spring only to drop by over a dollar in summer. There are just too many variables to know where things will go from here.
Here are a few things to bear in mind:
I will try to keep you informed as events unfold. There are many things we can’t control, but we will always prioritize our existing customers over new ones. We will go the extra mile to keep you safe and warm. And we will be there when you need us.
Updated 2/23/22
Dear Valued Customer,
Once again, we’re seeing energy prices surge across the board. We know how painful that can be for our customers. It’s painful for us, as well.
Gasoline has risen more than a dollar more per gallon vs. a year ago. Natural gas prices have skyrocketed more than 150%. Crude oil prices have climbed above $100 per barrel, a level we haven’t seen in seven years.
The cost of electricity has not been spared either. Higher natural gas prices result in price hikes for wholesale electricity because of heavy reliance on natural gas-fired power plants.
What’s more, wholesale propane prices have hit their highest weekly average levels since February 2014. Read more about the factors that are driving today’s energy market.
People sometimes misunderstand how negatively all this impacts us, as well. We don’t make more money when prices rise like this; we make less. Think of it this way: it’s like when the cost of coffee, milk, or oranges rises. It’s not the local grocery that is profiting. (That’s left to the Wall Street investors.) Our customers have a harder time paying their bills. They reduce expenditures. We need to tap into our lines of credit more. Our phones light up with questions. So the sooner energy prices drop, the happier we’ll be.
In the meantime, please talk to us about things we can offer to help you reduce your energy costs, or handle payments more easily. And if you are having trouble with your bills, please call us. We can generally work with you if you reach out before you fall behind.
We’ve been in business for many years and have deep roots in the community. We have secure access to supplies. We are doing everything possible to ensure we can deliver — even if other companies cannot — no matter the cost or difficulty we face.
We thank you for your understanding and we appreciate your loyalty. As we’ve done quite a few times in the past, we will get through these tough times by all working together.
When you’re a Broco Energy® customer, you’ll find many ways to save on our professional service and top-notch products.
First, we proudly give back to the communities we serve in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and beyond. Broco Energy®, a veteran-owned business, offers discounts that apply to:
Read more about our discounts and other special programs.
We also offer a per-gallon discount for cash payments at the time of delivery as well as a lower price for customers enrolled in our automatic delivery program.
Automatic-delivery customers have less to think about in between deliveries, so they save time and worry. Because this delivery system is designed to prevent run-outs, customers also avoid the potential of paying emergency burner start-up charges. We combine average annual usage with our daily monitoring of the outdoor temperature so we can be sure to schedule a delivery before a customer is anywhere near having a run-out. We do not charge extra for our automatic delivery service.
We sell, install, maintain and repair water heaters, heating-oil tanks and boilers. We also offer furnace repair and maintenance.
Plus, we provide round-the-clock oil burner services and tank repairs as well as generator maintenance and generator repairs.
When a boiler needs repairs a few years in a row, it’s probably a good idea to research your upgrade options. And if your boiler is more than 15 years old, you are missing out on highly efficient new technologies that can really save you a lot of money! Convenient appointments with our expert installers are easier to come by right now because of the mild weather.
We repair furnaces throughout our service area. A furnace that’s running properly will not emit any odors. If you notice unusual or unexpected odors coming from your furnace, it is likely overdue for a tune-up or repairs. If you’re a Broco Energy® customer and you notice smoky odors, a dusty or burning smell, or electrical or mechanical smells, call us right away for service.
A good portion of your household’s energy expenses every month goes toward heating water. With that in mind, it’s important that you have the right water heater for your needs, and that you regularly schedule water-heater maintenance.
You want your water heater to operate as efficiently as possible. This will keep your water heating bills down and will extend the life of your system. We sell and install a range of water-heater types, so contact us to help you decide which one is best. Or, if you are not in need of an upgrade, contact us when you need water heater repair.
We recommend cleaning your oil burner once a year. When you call for burner services, here is what typically is done.
Our burner service contract includes a burner cleaning and covers the repair or replacement of covered parts listed in the contract. For a list of covered parts, please contact us today.
Are you interested in saving money as a Broco Energy® customer? Sign up to become a customer today!
As a family-owned and operated company, we remain dedicated to our origins—including the delivery of competitively priced heating oil and reliable 24-hour heating oil equipment and repair services. Still, as our customers’ needs have evolved, our products and services—along with our service area– have expanded accordingly.
We encourage homeowners to use our ZIP Code locator to find out if your Massachusetts or New Hampshire home is in our service area, for residential heating oil or propane service.
Our fleet of well-maintained trucks can provide both scheduled and emergency service. If you have an emergency, we’ll be there for you, any time of the day or night.
Now covering all of New England and beyond, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, Broco Energy®’s team has the experience, expertise, and equipment to meet your commercial needs.
We deliver bulk quantities of fuel from 400 gallons to more than 100,000 gallons directly to your location. We will work with you to identify, maintain or build the most cost-effective methods associated with bulk-fuel purchases.
Our fleet provides fueling for commercial/industrial operations including the following:
And if your commercial operation requires on-site emergency fueling, we are here for you. We are FEMA-certified and ready for any emergency situation with qualified personnel. For details, please go here.
We offer clean energy options like propane and Bioheat® fuel, a blend of biodiesel and ultra-low sulfur heating oil. For scheduled service, the petroleum products we deliver include:
At Broco Energy®, we stand by our commitment to providing homes and commercial operations, as well as municipalities and government-contracted efforts. with the fuel they need, no matter what.
We respond to your fuel needs with experience and expertise. Our team has the equipment necessary to get the job done, and we’re ready to establish the most cost-effective way for you to purchase your fuel—no exceptions!
As a veteran-owned business, Broco is also dedicated to give back to those who serve us and our community. We proudly offer discounts to the following:
Learn more about how Broco Energy® can make a difference in serving your fuel needs. Contact us today.
June 1 marked the official beginning of the Atlantic hurricane season and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) forecasts above-average hurricane activity this year.
The outlook for the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, which lasts until November 30, predicts a 65% chance of an above-normal season, a 25% chance of a near-normal season and a 10% chance of a below-normal season. An average season is classified as three major hurricanes.
According to NOAA, there is a likely range of 14 to 21 named storms; these are storms with winds of 39 mph or higher. Out of these projected storms, as many as 10 could become hurricanes—classified as winds of 74 mph or higher. What we have to worry about the most, however, is that there is a chance of 3-6 major hurricanes. These fall into the category of either 3, 4 or 5; with winds of 111 mph or higher.
Please go here if you would like to read more about the 2022 Atlantic Hurricane Season Outlook from NOAA.
The reason Broco Energy® pays close attention to hurricane season projections like this is due to the fact we are certified for emergency response–including emergency fuel delivery–by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as well as the Coast Guard. We are also contracted as the emergency fuel provider for the Massachusetts Energy Marketers Association (MEMA).
Taking advantage of partnerships that we have established throughout the country, our Priority 1 emergency-response team can be found on the scene wherever we’re needed, providing immediate emergency fuel deliveries until the trucks we’ve deployed arrive on site.
Qualified to respond to all levels of emergencies, our team is made up of experienced fuel-truck drivers and fuel logistics coordinators. We can handle extreme weather events and other high-pressure situations, offering critical fuel support when it’s needed most.
Disaster relief means more than just oil trucks and supplies. Our response includes manpower and logistics coordinators who will send oil tanks, conduct remote monitoring and schedule emergency fuel service and deliveries as needed throughout the duration of the incident.
In 2017, Broco Energy® was activated to assist and provide relief efforts for FEMA in Florida during Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. That was the beginning of our national Priority 1 emergency-response team.
We left from Boston with six oil tank trucks loaded with diesel and gasoline to provide fuel for priority facilities on a 24-hour basis. We stationed our trucks at local hospitals for generator refueling and at designated fueling points to assist the Urban Search & Rescue Task Force.
Today, the Priority 1 emergency-response team at Broco Energy® remains ready to respond to and assist any community hit by power outages after natural or manmade disasters with emergency fueling and Priority 1 delivery service–every day of the year.
Broco Energy®’s Priority 1 emergency-response team offers emergency response to anyone. If you have an immediate need, call our 24-hour disaster-response hotline at 781-246-1130.
You can read more about our emergency fuel services and other disaster relief efforts here.
Massachusetts is leading the way on the evolution toward a green, renewable fuel oil—and Broco Energy® is proud to be doing our part with deliveries of high-quality Bioheat® fuel.
This is a clean alternative to conventional heating oil that produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions than natural gas.
With a solid partnership in place with REG, we expect to keep increasing our blend levels – eventually to B100 to all of our residential customers in New England.
We have already upgraded our facilities to increase blending capacity, including extra storage tanks to accommodate 150,000 gallons of B100 heated storage that will be blended into 200,000 gallons of heating oil storage and 50,000 gallons of diesel storage.
Our trusted supplier, REG, is an international producer of cleaner fuels and North America’s largest producer of biodiesel. REG utilizes an integrated procurement, distribution and logistics network to operate 12 biorefineries in the U.S. and Europe. In 2020, REG produced 519 million gallons of cleaner fuel, delivering 4.2 million metric tons of carbon reduction. REG is meeting the growing global demand for lower-carbon fuels and helping Broco Energy® to do our part to assure a more sustainable future.
Learn more about our firm commitment to heating homes and hauling fuel cleanly by checking out this PDF and video below:
We know you are concerned about the shocking increase in heating fuel prices. We are too. This situation reflects the sad reality that heating oil prices–along with propane, natural gas and electricity prices–have all surged to unprecedented levels as a result of the Ukraine war and its ripple effects.
We have no way of knowing how long this situation will continue or whether prices will rise or fall. While we can’t control global oil prices, we can spread out your payments on our Budget Program. With prices so high and the cost of a single delivery so big, it feels like it is an essential action for our customers to take this year.
We will calculate your monthly payments based on how much fuel you typically use in a year, multiplied by the projected heating fuel prices listed on the commodities exchanges.
Your payments will then be divided into much smaller, easier to handle monthly amounts. You only pay your one monthly bill, even if you get two deliveries in one month.
If you have a growing balance, you never pay any finance charges. Plus, it does not cost anything to enroll in the Budget Program.
The most crucial benefit of this program is that it shields you from fluctuations in fuel billing. You avoid getting hit with several large delivery bills right before and after the holidays. When we divide your payments evenly over 12 months, your winter expenses are virtually cut in half.
Our monthly payment plan also removes uncertainty from your household spending. You don’t have to worry about how much your next delivery invoice will cost — you pay the same amount each month for your fuel.
Finally, if the actual cost of the fuel you use is higher or lower than what we estimated, we’ll adjust your plan accordingly. You will only pay the cost of the fuel you received at the market price on the days it was delivered — not a dime more.
We hope you’ll take advantage of this program. Almost every customer who participates likes it much better than paying in full for each delivery, especially with fuel prices so high.
Find out more about our Budget Program and then contact us to request enrollment.
Many of you have been our customers for years. It is frustrating to have to charge you so much for your fuel. Unfortunately, we are boxed in by the prices our suppliers charge us. Rest assured we are doing our best to help you navigate through these difficult times.
We greatly appreciate your understanding and remain committed to taking the best care of your family, no matter what happens with the price of heating fuel.
Remarkably versatile, safe, and efficient, propane is ideal for heating homes and powering multiple appliances, including water heaters, stoves/cooktops, generators, fireplaces, outdoor grills, space heaters, clothes dryers, and more. For many people in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, propane is a single fuel solution.
Of course, when you rely on propane to heat your home and power your appliances, you need to rely on a dependable propane supplier.
The Broco Energy® team of expert licensed propane service technicians and drivers know the area well. We serve the North Reading and Merrimack Valley area, along with surrounding communities in Massachusetts and up to New Hampshire.
Many of our customers enroll in our FREE automatic delivery program. This allows us to stay on top of your fuel needs and be in touch when it’s time to schedule a delivery long before you run out. We find that this is a tried-and-true method of minimizing the risk of a run-out.
You’ll never have to think about how much fuel is in your tank. You’ll also get a better price per gallon.
Automatic-delivery customers also benefit from the convenience of our monthly payment plan. Here’s how our Budget Program works. We calculate your propane usage based on the prior year. Then we charge you a predetermined, monthly amount—automatically billed using a credit card, a debit card or ACH.
We divide your estimated annual fuel costs into 12 equal monthly payments—beginning in June. You don’t use more fuel. You only pay for the propane you actually receive, at the price on the day of the delivery. That way, you won’t get hit with three or four giant bills next winter. You also won’t need to worry that a much-needed delivery is due to arrive at the very worst time, such as when you just paid for a surprise car repair bill.
As a veteran-owned business, we are proud to give back to those who serve us in Andover, Haverhill, Newburyport, and beyond. We offer discounts to veterans, firefighters, police officers, teachers, municipal workers, emergency workers, and senior citizens. We also offer a discount on the gallon for cash payments at delivery.
You should always remember that propane has a remarkable safety record, due in large part to the stringent codes and regulations developed by the propane industry and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). And close to home, the Broco Energy® team always complies with state regulations that require periodic testing and training. This is all done to ensure your safety. It is always a good idea to learn more about propane and proper safety procedures. We invite you to view our propane safety videos on our website.
Please contact us to learn more about our propane services or join our family of customers today.
