Date	Average Oil Price
11/21/2024	$3.290
11/20/2024	$3.290
11/19/2024	$3.290
11/18/2024	$3.290
11/17/2024	$3.290
11/16/2024	$3.290
11/15/2024	$3.290
11/14/2024	$3.290
11/13/2024	$3.290
11/12/2024	$3.290
11/11/2024	$3.290
11/10/2024	$3.290
11/09/2024	$3.290
11/08/2024	$3.290
11/07/2024	$3.290
11/06/2024	$3.290
11/05/2024	$3.290
11/04/2024	$3.290
11/03/2024	$3.290
11/02/2024	$3.290
11/01/2024	$3.290
10/31/2024	$3.290
10/30/2024	$3.017
10/29/2024	$2.880
10/28/2024	$2.880
10/27/2024	$2.880
10/26/2024	$2.880
10/25/2024	$2.880
10/24/2024	$2.880
10/23/2024	$2.880

Propane vs. Natural Gas vs. Heating Oil: Rensselaer County Home Heating Fuel Comparison

Homeowners have a variety of home heating fuels to choose from. Natural gas is the most popular choice in Rensselaer County, used by 4,593,346 or 59.99% of homes. The 2nd most popular choice for Rensselaer County homeowners is heating oil, used by 1,379,410 homes (18.02%). The remaining homes are heated with electricity (1,040,155), propane (371,184), no fuel (127,077), and other fuels (245,918).

Rensselaer County Primary Home Heating Fuel Popularity by Number of Households

Fuel	Rensselaer County Households	% of Households
Natural Gas	4.5M	60.0%
Heating Oil	1.3M	18.0%
Electricity	1.0M	13.6%
Propane	371,184	4.8%
No Fuel	127,077	1.7%
Wood	117,324	1.5%
Other Fuels	102,644	1.3%
Coal	17,488	0.2%
Solar	8,462	0.1%

Natural gas (60.0%)

Heating oil (18.0%)

Electricity (13.6%)

Propane (4.8%)

No fuel (1.7%)

Wood (1.5%)

Other fuels (1.3%)

Coal (0.2%)

Solar (0.1%)

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

Heating oil has become less popular in Rensselaer County. In the 5 years since 2017, the number of heating oil homes fell from 1,663,074 to 1,379,410, a 17.06% drop.

Rensselaer County Heating Oil Households (2011 - 2022)

Year	Heating Oil Households
2011	2.1M
2012	2.0M
2013	1.9M
2014	1.9M
2015	1.8M
2016	1.7M
2017	1.6M
2018	1.5M
2019	1.5M
2020	1.4M
2021	1.4M
2022	1.3M

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

Between 2017 and today, the number of homes using propane as the primary space heating fuel rose from 274,348 to 371,184.

Between 2017 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel rose from 4,228,093 to 4,593,346.

Electricity use for home heating in Rensselaer County

Electric space heating systems are becoming more popular in Rensselaer County. Since 2017, the number of homes heating with electricity rose from 820,554 to 1,040,155, a 26.76% increase.

Solar use for home heating in Rensselaer 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, 8,462 homes in Rensselaer County are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 102.49% increase from 2017, when only 4,179 homes had installed active solar heating.

Rensselaer County Heating Oil Trends

Last year, Rensselaer County homeowners purchased a total of 7 million gallons of heating oil.

Short Term Trends

Rensselaer 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 Rensselaer County, the average outside temperature was 5.0° F warmer than the prior winter's average outside temperature.

Rensselaer County Average Winter Temperature

Heating Season	Average Temperature
Winter 2023 - 2024	41.3° F
Winter 2022 - 2023	36.3° F

Rensselaer County Homeowner’s Guide to Selecting an Oil Company

For Rensselaer County homeowners heating with oil, selecting which of the 41 heating oil companies that serve Rensselaer 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 265 “full-service” oil companies that serve Rensselaer County. Full service companies such as Morse Fuels LLC or Family Danz Fuel Services LLC 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 Rensselaer 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 Rensselaer County include Kokosa Oil Inc and MainCare Express.

Rensselaer County Heating Oil Company Fast Facts

Heating Oil Companies Serving Rensselaer County: 41 companies

Average Number Of Rensselaer County Homes Served Per Company: 332 homes

Average Gallons Delivered per Rensselaer County Oil Company: 160,040 gallons per year

Rensselaer County Heating Oil Delivery Overview

Approximately 13,616 households in Rensselaer County heat their homes with fuel oil. This makes oil delivery essential, especially when Rensselaer County temperatures drop as low as 42.5° F each winter.

19% of Rensselaer County Households Rely On Heating Oil Delivery Each Winter

Rensselaer County Households	Rensselaer County Heating Oil Households
68,614	13,616

413 Rensselaer County Oil Companies Go the Distance

With 7 million gallons of heating oil delivered to Rensselaer County homeowners during the winter of 2023, the Rensselaer County community relies on its 413 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 Rensselaer County, two of the closest terminals are Apex in Rensselaer, NY and Buckeye in Rensselaer, NY. Then, the truck delivers the #2 heating oil to homes and businesses in Rensselaer County.