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Propane vs. Natural Gas vs. Heating Oil: Oneida Home Heating Fuel Comparison

Households have a host of fuels that can be used when it comes to heating. Natural Gas is the most popular choice in Oneida, used by 4,725,574 or 61% of families. The next most popular primary heating fuel for Oneida homeowners is Electricity, used by 1,365,710 homes (18%). The rest of the homes are heated with Heating Oil (14%), Propane (5%), Other (1%), and Wood (1%).

Oneida County Residential Primary Home Heating Fuel (in Number of Households)

YearNatural GasPropaneElectricityOilWoodSolarOther
20254,725,574377,9221,365,7101,103,32392,05416,434100,232
20244,679,558370,9101,292,8681,143,78396,14715,25997,524
20234,581,041402,3351,263,7001,212,850100,01511,208104,369
20224,542,443400,9691,190,8801,279,26099,08011,314103,810
20214,489,009388,3111,118,0151,293,770108,2028,85898,952
20204,504,504353,9441,014,7301,343,665111,1068,77889,024
20194,519,999319,576911,4451,393,560114,0118,69779,096
20184,397,917308,020890,5541,459,976120,1596,02282,621
20174,339,349294,973867,9251,496,843122,0885,98877,386
20164,227,422273,838860,8561,540,787126,8906,53579,479
20154,202,413265,224808,3701,649,860141,0163,12078,999
20144,186,666258,775770,5771,752,656145,0122,57376,963
20134,074,510259,367764,4001,802,442148,4222,52581,841
20124,044,389237,738775,3901,901,118155,6032,16861,429
20114,014,222222,634707,0161,979,067143,2872,72863,609
20103,961,085227,607676,2622,068,004143,2421,82361,664

Heating Oil (Fuel Oil) Use in Oneida

Number two heating oil has become less frequently used in Oneida. In the 8 years since 2017, the number of households using oil decreased from 1,496,843 to 1,103,323, a 26% drop.

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Oneida

Between 2017 and today, the number of households using propane as the primary space heating fuel increased from 294,973 to 377,922, a 28% change. Comparing 2017 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel ramped up from 4,339,349 to 4,725,574, a 9% change.

Electricity use for home heating in Oneida

Electric heat pump systems for home heating are more popular in Oneida. Since 2017, the number of homes heating with electricity rose from 867,925 to 1,365,710, a 57% change.

Adoption of solar home heating systems in Oneida

Out of all fuels, solar is the safest for the environment. With an “active” solar heating system, liquid flows between solar panels on a home’s roof and a heat energy storage tank (similar to a hot water heater) in the basement. Now, 16,434 homes in Oneida are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 174% gain from 2017, when 5,988 homes had active solar heating.

Oneida County Heating Oil Trends

Last year, Oneida County homeowners purchased a total of 4 million gallons of heating oil.

Short Term Trends

Oneida’s overall number two heating oil use changes each year depending on winter temperatures. As the temperature outside gets more chilly, homes’ HVAC systems need to burn more and more number two heating oil to maintain a constant interior temperature. Last winter, the average outside temperature in Oneida was 28.1°F, which was 5.4°F colder than the prior winter's average outside temperature.

Oneida County Average Winter Temperature

Heating SeasonAverage Temperature
2024 - 202528.1° F
2023 - 202433.5° F

Oneida County Homeowner’s Guide to Selecting an Oil Company

For Oneida homes heating with fuel oil, selecting which of the 15 heating oil companies that serve Oneida is an important decision.

Full Service Oil Companies: Homeowners who are willing to pay a premium for a “set-it-and-forget-it” heating system pick one of the 117 “full-service” oil companies that serve Oneida. Full service companies such as Thermo Petroleum Products Inc or Broedel Fuel Group LLC offer homeowners annual contracts which consist of a combined package of both automatic number two heating oil delivery and heating system repair. With an automatic heating oil delivery contract, the company tracks your home’s number two heating oil consumption and makes deliveries when your tank is running low. The customer does not need to monitor the level of the oil tank or place individual orders.

Discount Oil Companies: Often called “COD Fuel” or “Cash Heating Oil” companies, discount oil companies are for families who are looking to save money. With discount oil companies, in exchange for lower prices, you monitor the fuel oil level in your tank, and you place an oil order when the oil gauge dips below a quarter tank. A few of the 2 Oneida cash heating oil companies serving Oneida include Conservative Petroleum LLC and Jennison Fuels LLC.

Oneida Oil Company Statistics: Heating oil Companies Serving Oneida: 15 companies .
Average Number of Oneida Houses Served per Number Two Heating Oil company : 73555

Oneida Heating Oil Delivery Overview

1,103,323 households in Oneida heat their homes with fuel oil. This makes oil delivery essential, especially when Oneida temperatures drop as low as 22.4° F each winter. 14.2% of Oneida homes depend on oil delivery each winter.

7% of Oneida County Households Rely On Heating Oil Delivery Each Winter

Oneida County HouseholdsOneida County Heating Oil Households
15.6M1.1M

295 Oneida Number Two Heating Oil Companies You Can Bank On

With 664,748,714 gallons of number two heating oil delivered to Oneida houses last winter, the Oneida community depends on its 295 oil companies to keep their oil tanks full. Oil delivery is a two step process: First, an oil truck picks up oil at the nearest bulk fuel terminal (also known as a “rack”). In the case of Oneida, two of the closest terminals are Sprague in Bridgeport, CT and N.h.term in New Haven, CT. Then, the truck delivers the fuel oil to residences and companies throughout Oneida and the surrounding vicinity.