There are only so many ways to have money in your pocket. A few of the common ways are to earn it, to inherit it, or to spend less of it so you keep it in your pocket. We find coupons or deals on products we need to buy. burning money on heating bills Sometimes we will buy in NH where there are no taxes. We will travel for a bargain. Most times travelling for a deal or searching for a deal or waiting for a deal, is worth it, especially if the savings is substantial and the quality is equal.
Let’s talk about your home heating. Fuel can be expensive! How do we use less fuel so we pay less each month in heating season? It can be daunting to get a monthly bill for $300, $400, or more. Yikes! So do we turn our heat down to use less fuel? Yes we do! But be reasonable. On a cold evening there is nothing we can do to stop that boiler or furnace from burning fuel and burning a hole in your pocket.
Here are some ways to use less fuel if you have a: forced hot air furnace, water boiler, or a steam boiler fueled by any fossil fuel, i.e., gas, propane, or oil.
A set-back thermostat is a must. You do not need your home to be cozy warm when you are out of the house or when you are sleeping. Even during the day, on a weekend you might not need the heat to be at that cozy evening temperature. You can set the thermostat and forget it. If you, for whatever reason, want to adjust the temperature you have the option to override the auto setting. It’s a no-brainer! Don’t wait. Papalia has set-back thermostats in each truck for you.
Insufficient home insulation can be the cause of unusually large fuel bills. Papalia recommends your local insulation contractor for a home inspection or you can schedule a free Mass Save Audit and may even get a rebate on insulation or things like light bulbs.
Today’s boilers and furnaces are efficient. Updating to more technical, more efficient, and more green equipment will save money on fuel and repair bills. We are pleased to have a Trane Comfort Specialist on our that can visit your home for an evaluation.
Q: What else can I do to save money on fuel costs?
A: Do you have a water boiler that is fueled by gas or oil? Is your system older but in pretty good shape? Do you want to be more green? You want to be efficient! You want to spend less on fuel! YES, YES, YES, YES, YES!!
Here is a “do not” and a “do” for your evaluation.
Do not do this: There is a documented case of a homeowner (who we will call Bob) who secretly dug a trench from his house to the street sewer. He tapped into the top of the sewer and ran this pipe to his boiler. Bob buried the pipe and grew some grass and his neighbors never knew what he had done. Bob was able to use this gas (mostly methane) to fuel his boiler for for many years until he was caught, fined, and shunned by his neighbors…
Although, we can admire the ingenuity, will, and thriftiness of Bob, we can all agree that being shunned is not an option.
Do this: For all of the homeowners with water boilers fueled by gas or oil there is an option to use less fuel.
Ingenuity and technology is ever changing. When I was younger I remember thinking that power windows or intermittent wipers were a crazy new technology for a car. ‘What will they think of next?’ I said to myself. Well, over the years manufacturers have come up with even bigger ideas like, heated seats, cooled seats, warmed steering wheels, keyless start and now you can wave your foot under the rear bumper so the back door automatically opens if your hands are full.
Beckett has been busy as well. They have used ingenuity and technology to come up with a device to use less fuel. They have won awards for this product. (This device cannot be used on warm air heating systems.) A simple explanation of how it works is the Beckett AquaSmart becomes the brain of the boiler, Instant Knockout it memorizes boiler run times and overrides the main boiler temperature control (which now becomes a back-up hi-limit safety control). The AquaSmart collects boiler run time data and uses the information to run the boiler less which ultimately uses less fuel. The end result is that you save money on fuel.
Go to to see more and even use an online calculator to see the savings you would receive if you had your own AquaSmart installed. Call Papalia Plumbing & Heating to have yours installed today.
Thank you, Jim Papalia, President
