Winters hit hard—and heating a home with residential heating oil in NYC can take a serious bite out of your budget. Most brownstones, single-family homes, and small multi-family buildings across the five boroughs still rely on No. 2 heating oil, now blended with cleaner Bioheat® fuel, to stay warm. The upside? A few smart efficiency habits can cut your heating costs by 10–20%, even in the coldest months.
Our local energy experts at Energo share these 7 proven tips—tailored for Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, the Bronx, Staten Island and beyond—to help you save oil and money.
Lowering your thermostat even a few degrees is one of the simplest ways to reduce your heating oil use. Energy experts in NYC note that dropping the temperature by 7–10°F for at least 8 hours a day—typically overnight or when you’re away—can cut annual heating costs by up to 10%. A daytime setting around 68°F works well for most NYC homes, especially older brownstones and pre-war apartments that retain heat longer than you’d expect.
A programmable or smart thermostat makes this effortless. With scheduling, your home automatically cools down when you don’t need full heat and warms back up before you wake or return home. Smart models fine-tune these patterns over time, preventing unnecessary heating and reducing overall fuel consumption.
In short: automating small temperature changes throughout the day is one of the most reliable, low-effort ways to lower your heating oil bill.
A surprising amount of heat is lost through small gaps around windows, doors, floorboards, and pipe penetrations—especially in older NYC homes and brownstones. When warm air escapes, your heating system has to run longer to maintain the set temperature, burning more heating oil in the process.
The U.S. Department of Energy reports that air sealing and basic insulation upgrades can reduce heating and cooling costs by 10–20%. Start by checking for drafts around common trouble spots: window frames, door thresholds, baseboards, and areas where plumbing enters walls. Simple fixes like weatherstripping, caulking, or adding spray foam can make an immediate difference.
If your home has minimal attic or wall insulation—common in pre-war buildings—adding insulation is one of the highest-impact upgrades you can make. These improvements effectively “trap” heat indoors, helping every gallon of oil work harder and keeping your home warmer with far less fuel.
When your burner or boiler is clean and properly calibrated, it needs far less fuel to produce the same amount of heat. An annual tune-up clears out soot, replaces filters, adjusts the burner for optimal combustion, and ensures every component is working efficiently. These steps alone can improve system efficiency by 10% or more, which directly reduces how much heating oil you burn throughout the winter.
Regular maintenance also helps catch small issues—like nozzle clogs, failing ignitors, or worn components—before they turn into expensive breakdowns. Energo’s NYC residential service agreements include these preventative check-ups year-round, helping your system run cleaner, last longer, and use less fuel.
Bottom line: a well-maintained heating system burns smarter, not harder. Prevention always costs less than an emergency repair—and it pays you back in lower heating oil bills all season long.
Automatic heating oil delivery takes the guesswork—and the stress—out of keeping your NYC home warm. When you enroll in automatic delivery, Energo tracks your historical fuel usage, real-time weather patterns, and tank size to predict when you’ll need a refill. We schedule deliveries proactively, long before your tank gets low, so you never have to check a gauge or worry about running out during a cold snap.
Adding a smart tank monitor gives you even more protection. These wireless sensors send real-time fuel levels to your phone and directly to Energo, triggering alerts as your tank approaches a set threshold. It’s a simple, reliable safeguard that eliminates surprises and makes fuel management effortless.
Together, automatic delivery and tank monitoring help you avoid frozen pipes, emergency deliveries, and mid-winter outages. You also get priority service during peak-season demand—something NYC homeowners especially appreciate when storms hit.
In short: it’s hands-off, worry-free heating. A steady fuel supply, smarter scheduling, and 24/7 visibility—all included at no additional cost when you’re an automatic delivery customer.
Heating oil prices rise and fall with weather, supply, and global market conditions—often spiking just when New Yorkers need heat the most. Energo’s fixed-price plans take that volatility out of the equation. By locking in a set per-gallon rate for the season, you’re protected from sudden winter price jumps and can plan your heating costs with confidence.
If you prefer predictable monthly payments, a budget billing plan spreads your estimated annual heating costs evenly over 12 months. Instead of facing a large bill in January or February, you pay a steady amount all year long, making winter budgeting much easier.
These programs aren’t designed to chase the absolute lowest per-gallon price—they’re built to reduce financial uncertainty. For many NYC homeowners, the real savings come from avoiding emergency fills, eliminating mid-season price shocks, and relying on consistent, on-time deliveries.
In short: fixed pricing and budget billing turn unpredictable winter bills into manageable, predictable expenses.
Today’s No. 2 heating oil in New York City is far cleaner than it used to be. By law, every gallon delivered in NYC must now be ultra-low sulfur heating oil blended with renewable biodiesel—a cleaner, high-performance fuel known as Bioheat®.
Bioheat burns significantly cleaner than traditional heating oil. The State of New York notes that biodiesel blends can reduce greenhouse gases by up to 90% and cut particulate pollution to a fraction of what older fuels produced. For homeowners, that translates into tangible benefits:
Less soot buildup
Less corrosion inside the boiler
Better heat transfer
Higher overall efficiency
Because Bioheat is a drop-in fuel, it works seamlessly in existing oil-fired systems—no retrofits, upgrades, or special equipment needed. It simply helps your system run cleaner and more efficiently with every delivery.
Despite being a more sustainable fuel, Bioheat pricing typically stays in line with standard heating oil, thanks to state-level incentives and supply requirements. Most NYC homeowners have already been receiving Bioheat for years without realizing it—and enjoying its performance benefits the whole time.
In short: Bioheat supports cleaner air, better system health, and more efficient heating. It’s one of the easiest ways to improve your home’s fuel economy without changing a single piece of equipment.
Good timing makes a real difference in how much you spend on heating oil. The best strategy is to fill your tank before winter hits its peak—typically in late October or early November—when demand is lower and prices are often more stable. Starting the season with a full tank gives you a cushion before the first cold snap.
Energo experts recommend scheduling a refill when your tank reaches about 25%, especially as winter storms approach. Ordering early helps you avoid emergency deliveries, last-minute fees, and potential price surges during severe weather. It also ensures you’re not stuck waiting during the busiest days of the season.
Keeping an eye on the extended forecast also helps. If a major cold front or blizzard is coming, booking your delivery ahead of time protects you from delays and ensures steady heat when demand spikes across the city.
Ultimately, smart fuel planning—ordering ahead of storms, avoiding low tank levels, and topping off before peak season—keeps your heating costs predictable and your home comfortable all winter long.
For NYC homeowners, brownstone owners, and small building managers, combining these strategies—lowering your thermostat, sealing drafts, keeping your system tuned, using automatic delivery with tank monitoring, and heating your home with clean Bioheat fuel—can make a noticeable dent in your winter heating costs.
If you’re ready to take control of your heating oil bill, Energo is here to help. We deliver reliable residential heating oil, automatic delivery, real-time tank monitoring, and year-round service agreements across all five NYC boroughs and Westchester. Our local team is always on call to keep your home warm, efficient, and prepared for whatever winter brings.
Ready to start saving? Contact Energo today for a free quote or an energy-saving consultation. We’ll help you secure reliable delivery, smart pricing options, and expert support all season long.
If you need emergency HVAC service or a residential oil delivery, our team is available 365 days a year. Contact us whenever you need us.
Call: 718.435.2200
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