Homeowners have a variety of home heating fuels to choose from. Heating oil is the most popular choice in Cheshire County, used by 224,725 or 41.34% of homes. The 2nd most popular choice for Cheshire County homeowners is natural gas, used by 117,536 homes (21.62%). The remaining homes are heated with propane (100,624), electricity (57,780), wood (35,074), and other fuels (16,939).

Cheshire County Primary Home Heating Fuel Popularity by Number of Households

Fuel	Cheshire County Households	% of Households
Heating Oil	224,725	41.34%
Natural Gas	117,536	21.62%
Propane	100,624	18.51%
Electricity	57,780	10.63%
Wood	35,074	6.45%
Other Fuels	10,355	1.90%
No Fuel	5,272	0.97%
Solar	690	0.13%
Coal	622	0.11%

Heating oil (41.34)

Natural gas (21.62)

Propane (18.51)

Electricity (10.63)

Wood (6.45)

Other fuels (1.90)

No fuel (0.97)

Solar (0.13)

Coal (0.11)

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

Heating oil has become less popular in Cheshire County. In the 2 years since 2020, the number of heating oil homes fell from 232,901 to 224,725, a 3.51% drop.

Cheshire County Heating Oil Households (2011 - 2022)

Year	Heating Oil Households
2011	262,755
2012	257,827
2013	251,497
2014	245,025
2015	241,293
2016	236,690
2017	234,647
2018	233,209
2019	233,052
2020	232,901
2021	228,197
2022	224,725

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

Between 2020 and today, the number of homes using propane as the primary space heating fuel rose from 91,078 to 100,624.

Between 2020 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel rose from 111,034 to 117,536.

Electricity use for home heating in Cheshire County

Electric space heating systems are becoming more popular in Cheshire County. Since 2020, the number of homes heating with electricity rose from 53,539 to 57,780, a 7.92% increase.

Solar use for home heating in Cheshire 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, 690 homes in Cheshire County are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 6.63% decrease from 2020, when only 739 homes had installed active solar heating.

Cheshire County Heating Oil Trends

Last year, Cheshire County homeowners purchased a total of 15 million gallons of heating oil.

Short Term Trends

Cheshire 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 Cheshire County, the average outside temperature was 14.7° F warmer than the prior winter's average outside temperature.

Cheshire County Average Winter Temperature

Heating Season	Average Temperature
Winter 2022 - 2023	37.9° F
Winter 2021 - 2022	23.2° F

Cheshire County Homeowner’s Guide to Selecting an Oil Company

For Cheshire County homeowners heating with oil, selecting which of the 15 heating oil companies that serve Cheshire 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 47 “full-service” oil companies that serve Cheshire County. Full service companies such as Reds of Jaffrey or Discount Oil Of Keene 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 Cheshire 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 Cheshire County include Patten Energy and Davis Oil Company.

Cheshire County Heating Oil Company Fast Facts

Heating Oil Companies Serving Cheshire County: 15 companies

Average Number Of Cheshire County Homes Served Per Company: 1,140 homes

Average Gallons Delivered per Cheshire County Oil Company: 1,012,316 gallons per year

Cheshire County Heating Oil Delivery Overview

17,108 households in Cheshire County heat their homes with fuel oil. This makes oil delivery essential when Cheshire County thermometers drop as low as 42.5° F each winter.

57% of Cheshire County Households Rely On Heating Oil Delivery Each Winter

Cheshire County Households	Cheshire County Heating Oil Households
29,589	17,108

236 Cheshire County Oil Companies Go the Distance

With 15 million gallons of heating oil delivered to Cheshire County homeowners during the winter of 2023, the Cheshire County community relies on its 236 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 Cheshire County, two of the closest terminals are Sti in Springfield, MA and Sprague in Springfield, MA. Then, the truck delivers the #2 heating oil to homes and businesses in Cheshire County.