Tips For Buying And Storing Residential LP Gas
Many homeowners use liquid (petroleum) propane, or LP gas, to heat their homes. If you are one of those homeowners that uses this type of liquid gas to heat your home, you may run into a lot of problems with storing it or keeping enough on hand. Here are some tips that will make it easier to have enough fuel for the entire winter.
Start Buying Cylinders of LP Gas in Mid Spring
Some homes use residential LP gas for cooling as well as heating. Buying it during summer or fall does not increase the likelihood that you can get a better price per tank then. The low sales dip for this type of fuel is mid-spring, when homes do not need heat or air conditioning because the weather is warm enough without being too warm.
This is also the time when LP gas companies start stockpiling cylinders of the stuff to meet summer, fall, and winter demands. The cylinders sit around waiting to be bought. You are actually doing the gas company a favor by buying the cylinders at this time so that they have more room to stockpile more cylinders.
Continue to Buy a Few Cylinders Whenever You Can
If you have some idea of how many tanks/cylinders of LP gas you used in the past year, make it your goal to buy and store about one and one-half times that number. This ensures that you will have enough cylinders of gas to keep you for the coming year, and hopefully, a little extra. By spreading out your purchase of cylinders over the coming months, you can manage your fuel budget better than you would if you suddenly ran out of fuel and needed an emergency delivery in the middle of winter.
Store Your Cylinders in a Cool Place
It helps to store your gas cylinders in a cool place, such as a basement or temperature-controlled storage unit. (Most storage proprietors will not allow you to store combustibles, so attempt to find a basement to use first.) You could also install an air conditioning system in your garage and store your cylinders that way, but that is probably a little more expense that what you had intended.
By keeping the cylinders in a cool place, you prevent the possibility of a tank springing a leak. This type of gas is pressurized liquid gas, which is formed as a liquid under very cold temperatures. Keeping the tanks cool and out of direct sunlight keeps the gas inside at an acceptable storage temperature. For more information, contact a company like Gas Production CO Inc.
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