Understanding Pricing for Propane Heating Fuel

When someone buys rural property and plans to have a house built there, the household members must make a decision about the source of home heat they'll rely on. They may like the idea of a wood stove, but they'll still want a backup source for when the fire dies. That might be electric baseboards, an oil furnace, or a liquefied petroleum gas furnace. They can buy heating oil and LPG, commonly called propane, from an organization like River Country Cooperative.

Rural Heating Opportunities

In Minnesota and Wisconsin, propane furnaces are much more common than residential oil heat is. The property owners may be leaning toward electric heat because of some myths they believe about propane. Since electricity for heat is significantly more expensive than LPG, they should understand the real advantages of that form of fuel. In this part of the country, winters can be long and very cold, and having to pay a lot more for heat is frustrating.

Understanding Propane Gas Pricing

People may have heard that propane is expensive, especially if they are aware of the price spike that happened during one of the coldest Midwestern winters on record in January 2014. Propane sometimes costs more than natural gas, but rural homeowners typically don't have the option of natural gas. The price of LPG may be more comparable to heating oil, and nearly always cheaper than electricity. Early 2014 was an unusual situation when a shortage of the fuel occurred in tandem with bitterly cold temperatures.

Payment Options With a Cooperative

In addition, customers of an organization like River Country Cooperative have the option to lock in a price before the heating season starts. They can do so by paying for the season's expected fuel use upfront. People who cannot afford this have another convenient option that's not decimating to the household budget. As with municipal utility companies, this type of organization offers the opportunity to pay in even monthly installments throughout the year. The price is set by considering the customer's previous annual usage or the annual usage for a similar home in the immediate area.