Homeowners have a variety of home heating fuels to choose from. Natural gas is the most popular choice in Carbon County, used by 2,698,438 or 51.75% of homes. The 2nd most popular choice for Carbon County homeowners is electricity, used by 1,275,546 homes (24.46%). The remaining homes are heated with heating oil (786,449), propane (256,098), wood (122,435), and other fuels (139,486).

Carbon County Primary Home Heating Fuel Popularity by Number of Households

Fuel	Carbon County Households	% of Households
Natural Gas	2.6M	51.75%
Electricity	1.2M	24.46%
Heating Oil	786,449	15.08%
Propane	256,098	4.91%
Wood	122,435	2.35%
Coal	51,531	0.99%
Other Fuels	50,506	0.97%
No Fuel	33,356	0.64%
Solar	4,093	0.08%

Natural gas (51.75)

Electricity (24.46)

Heating oil (15.08)

Propane (4.91)

Wood (2.35)

Coal (0.99)

Other fuels (0.97)

No fuel (0.64)

Solar (0.08)

#2 Heating Oil (Fuel Oil) Use in Carbon County

Heating oil has become less popular in Carbon County. In the 9 years since 2013, the number of heating oil homes fell from 963,754 to 786,449, a 18.40% drop.

Carbon County Heating Oil Households (2011 - 2022)

Year	Heating Oil Households
2011	1.0M
2012	1.0M
2013	963,754
2014	930,735
2015	899,276
2016	864,952
2017	843,020
2018	828,104
2019	814,213
2020	811,086
2021	790,823
2022	786,449

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Carbon County

Between 2013 and today, the number of homes using propane as the primary space heating fuel rose from 185,329 to 256,098.

Between 2013 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel rose from 2,533,121 to 2,698,438.

Electricity use for home heating in Carbon County

Electric space heating systems are becoming more popular in Carbon County. Since 2013, the number of homes heating with electricity rose from 1,025,696 to 1,275,546, a 24.36% increase.

Solar use for home heating in Carbon County

Solar is the most environmentally friendly of all space heating fuels. With an “active” solar heating system, liquid is circulated between solar panels on a home’s roof and a heat energy storage tank in the basement.

Currently, 4,093 homes in Carbon County are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 222.28% increase from 2013, when only 1,270 homes had installed active solar heating.

Carbon County Heating Oil Trends

Last year, Carbon County homeowners purchased a total of 6 million gallons of heating oil.

Short Term Trends

Carbon County’s overall heating oil use varies from year to year, primarily depending on how cold each winter is. As the temperature outside gets colder, homes’ heating systems need to burn more and more oil to keep homes warm. Last winter in Carbon County, the average outside temperature was 4.7° F warmer than the prior winter's average outside temperature.

Carbon County Average Winter Temperature

Heating Season	Average Temperature
Winter 2022 - 2023	41.3° F
Winter 2021 - 2022	36.6° F

Carbon County Homeowner’s Guide to Selecting an Oil Company

For Carbon County homeowners heating with oil, selecting which of the 63 heating oil companies that serve Carbon County is an important decision.

Full Service Oil Companies: Homeowners willing to pay a premium for a “set-it-and-forget-it” heating system choose one of the 25 “full-service” oil companies that serve Carbon County. Full service companies such as Wisser Coal & Fuel Oil or DeSousa Oil & Service Corp offer automatic fuel delivery and furnace repair under a single roof.

Discount Oil Companies: Also known by the names “COD Fuel Companies” or “Cash Heating Oil Companies”, these companies are for the budget-conscious Carbon County homeowner. In return for better prices, you monitor the oil level in your tank and place an order when you run low on oil. Examples of cash heating oil companies that serve Carbon County include Vision Mechanical Group and Jeffs HVAC.

Carbon County Heating Oil Company Fast Facts

Heating Oil Companies Serving Carbon County: 63 companies

Average Number Of Carbon County Homes Served Per Company: 154 homes

Average Gallons Delivered per Carbon County Oil Company: 99,569 gallons per year

Carbon County Heating Oil Delivery Overview

9,721 households in Carbon County heat their homes with fuel oil. This makes oil delivery essential when Carbon County thermometers drop as low as 42.5° F each winter.

42% of Carbon County Households Rely On Heating Oil Delivery Each Winter

Carbon County Households	Carbon County Heating Oil Households
22,962	9,721

378 Carbon County Oil Companies Go the Distance

With 6 million gallons of heating oil delivered to Carbon County homeowners during the winter of 2023, the Carbon County community relies on its 378 oil companies to keep warm.

Oil delivery is a two step process: First, an oil truck picks up oil at the nearest bulk fuel terminal. In the case of Carbon County, two of the closest terminals are Lucknow in Fullerton, PA and Spmt in Fullerton, PA. Then, the truck delivers the #2 heating oil to homes and businesses in Carbon County.