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When we bought this house we thought about emergencies...
bad weather (HAM radio and cell phones that gives us local alerts)
home phone line goes out/ cell phone drops service... covered
electric goes off... 2 generators.
BUT never did it cross our mind about not getting propane delivered before we ran out. I check the level at the tank WEEKLY for that reason.
Two days ago I called in for a delivery. We were at 31 % and using 4% each day due to how cold it is with the windchill. We usually use 10% / wk. during the winter. This was 15% in a week. Today Hubby checked the propane. 25%... furnace will not run at below 20%. He called to see if the propane was coming in today.
IT'S NOT. They have several with NO propane and they are trying to get them filled first. I do not have an issue with that at all.... BUT they did warn us that if they can't get to us by tomorrow (they hope to) that it would be MONDAY so we will be out.
We took a deep breath... thought about if this was a blizzard, we could be in the same position. What do we have to keep the pipes from freezing and us warm enough plus our water heater and cook stove is propane.
Hubby went to the barn.
He found the 2 kerosene heaters with good wicks. E had 5 gallons of kerosene that he was not going to use so passed it to us. Hubby turned off the propane heater in the pump house and put a kerosene heater in there. The odor will not matter since it's where we won't be. He is also going after 5 more gallons of kerosene (and a gallon of milk).
He found 2 gas buddy heaters we used to use on the old farm in the bedroom and front room. Those are now in the house with 2 grill propane tanks(both full) to run them.
The canning stove in the barn is on a full grill propane tank and the grill's tank is half full. I have electric roaster, electric skillet, crock pot, and air fryer plus microwave. Hubby brought in the camping stove and it's fuel. We will be reheating leftovers today and tomorrow I will fry potatoes and make sausage gravy that can be reheated in microwave or over the camping stove.
I found the old electric heater in a north loft and brought it down. Turned the lights on in the grow cart which will warm that area by 10 degrees.
Right now we have some sunshine so it's feels warmer than it actually is. Furnace is down to 65. At bedtime we will turn it down to 60.
It made us really think about if this was a blizzard we wouldn't get propane for a week or more... so rethinking back up for the propane is now something to be dealing with.
Meantime.... I have Mother's thick cable sweater on. Hubby is wearing his insulated vest in the house over a heavy fleece shirt and tee shirt. We have thermos which we might be using for PJs tonight.
We will be okay for the short term.
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Great that you already had other heaters! Best wishes!
ReplyDeleteWell at least you know now and will be able to make a back up plan.
ReplyDeleteSo glad you will be ok for the short term. Sounds like you have lots of options. But I hope they are able to deliver the propane tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteIt is so cold here, and tonight's wind chill will be below zero. Brrr.
Did you get a larger propane tank or were thinking about that or getting a second tank. It seems like I remember that, or maybe it was someone else. It sounds like you can make it for a bit without the fill. Hopefully, you can get the refill soon.
ReplyDeleteThankfully you do not have any small children or sick elderly in your home. When the power goes out here and we have to heat we close off our living room and heat with the fireplace. It will heat the one room. We also have a small wood stove that we can bring in and run the pipe up the chimney. I hope they get to you tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious what your preparedness will be. Fill at 50%? There's always more to think about.
ReplyDeleteWow, by my count you guys located SIX heaters tucked away in various places. The two of you are the very definition of Boy Scouts.
ReplyDeleteWe are preparing for a storm here. They are saying we may get up to 2 feet of snow. The electric company said be prepared to lose power. We have the generator ready and gas for it. Our propane tanks are filled for our Mr. Heater buddy and our camping stove. We have plenty of water and food. Our hurricane lamps and oil are ready to be filled. Flashlights are ready with spare batteries. Shovels are ready as is the snow blower. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteI’ve used so much propane this year/month! (NW Minnesota, it’s scary. I built a new cabin so it’s so hard to judge! I’m on a keep fill program with a new company out there and thank god I called to ask to check it sooner. It had been filled 12/21, when they then went for the fill it was almost empty! On 1/21. Can’t believe what would have happened if we’d run out and the pipes froze. Will try and figure out what’s going on in the spring. It’s a smaller I thought well insulated cabin. Electric including air conditioning was very reasonable this summer. Leak? Problem with new furnace? Will investigate.
ReplyDeleteoh I hope you got it delivered. We had to use heaters when our furnace quit last month. So glad we had them.
ReplyDeleteThinking of you...hope you are staying warm, and I hope your propane was delivered.
ReplyDeleteHoping you are fairing ok. It's no joke to be unprepared for a blizzard in the country. We are on propane also and on a keep-full contract. We also have a kerosene heater, have electric heaters and a generator. We don't want to lose electricity as that runs the well and we need to water cattle. We also saved up and had a new furnace and AC installed a year ago. While our old one worked fine, it was over almost 30 years old and this new has saved us money right away in utility and LP charges.
ReplyDeleteOff to read how it all went...