Dear Friends,
Like you, I cannot remember a time quite like the one we are living in. Social distancing. Quarantine. Flattening the curve. These are phrases we are all familiar with now. As glimmers of hope appear on the horizon, my deepest hope is that you are well and that you have not lost someone close to you.
Some propane companies in our area have temporarily halted service, but not Allied. I am happy to report that despite the pandemic, we are fully on the job. Our three locations are open for business, and our employees, working from our offices and from their homes, are providing our customers with the same high level of service that you are accustomed to.
With an increased emphasis on personal safety, we have adopted a number of protocols designed to limit health risks. These include gloves, masks, and booties for our technicians, safe social distancing, and limited interaction with our customers.
When you are spending so much more time at home, you are ‘using’ your house more, so you will tend to use more propane. All of that makes this a good time to consider automatic delivery to eliminate any risk of running out.
No matter what issue you may encounter while you are at home or even after this is all behind us, Allied is here for you and ready to help. While we have changed the way we handle some things, our commitment to servicing your home comfort and business needs is stronger than ever.
Stay safe and be well!
Warmly,
Dustin Kaiser
Senior Vice President
Please take a few minutes to complete our survey. In an effort to better meet the needs of our customers, we’d like to know how you use propane. We’d also like to know how we are doing.
Please complete the survey online at AlliedPropaneService.com/survey. It only takes a few minutes to enter, and you’ll automatically be entered to win a Camp Chef portable grill! But don’t wait — the deadline for the giveaway is August 31. One winner from each branch will be selected!
We strongly disagree with proposed legislation that would mandate that all homes and businesses in California use only electricity. About half of the electricity produced by California is generated in plants powered by natural gas, which is 95% methane — a greenhouse gas with 84 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide over a 20-year period.
The process of generating electricity is also very inefficient. Propane, on the other hand, is easy to transport and generates energy on the spot, with no loss of power along the way. It is a cleaner-burning fuel than other options, including natural gas. Propane is a critical component in creating a carbon-responsible future, so please protect your right to choose it today. Tell elected officials that energy choice should be your right.
Having your morning shower run ice cold may not be the worst thing that can happen to you, but it’s still not a pleasant experience. A few months ago, Mary W., who had an electric water heater, noticed that she was having the cold-shower problem more and more often.
“My electric bills were getting higher too,” Mary said. “I figured something must be wrong with the electric water heater because I didn’t have this problem before.”
We checked out her water heater and found it was mechanically sound. After talking with Mary for a few minutes, we discovered the reason that her hot water kept disappearing.
Mary told us that her son Michael and his wife Rosie had recently moved in because Michael had been laid off from his job.
the problem
Mary’s electric water heater could only “recover” 40 gallons of hot water each hour—not very much since a 4-minute shower can use as much as 20 gallons of hot water. As a solution, we installed a propane water heater, which heats nearly twice the amount of water per hour than an electric water heater—and does it at a much lower cost.
If you’ve been running out of hot water or you’re looking at high utility bills every month, the solution to your problem may be propane. Call us and we’ll be glad to discuss your options in water heaters—including tankless units that qualify for a 30% tax credit.
When customers take the time to tell us how much they appreciate our going the extra mile for them, it makes our day. It means you understand what we mean by the full service difference.
You may not realize it, but a lot goes on behind the scenes at a heating fuel company, and the way a dealer does business separates the good ones from the bad.
Unfortunately, there will always be some companies willing to cut corners on service.
Here are some good reasons you can put your trust in us.
- always there for you We have a system in place to provide priority emergency service, including nights and weekends, for customers whose heating equipment breaks down.
- training and more training We invest in extensive ongoing training for our employees. This ensures that when we do work for you, we get the job done right the first time. Our training program also ensures that you get accurate information and a courteous response from members of our office staff.
- trustworthy employees We insist on a drug-free work environment. We never want you to worry about the trustworthiness of someone who is doing work in or around your home.
- convenient payment options We understand that heating bills can be a big burden, so we offer flexible payment options, for qualified customers, to lighten your financial load during the winter.
Anyone who has put their home on the market in the past few years knows how difficult it can be to close the deal. If you’re planning on selling your home soon, let us know. We may be able to offer solutions to problems that can hold up the sale or closing.
We’ll be glad to do an evaluation of the heating system, which includes an analysis of its service history and documentation of the amount of fuel in the fuel tank.
We also recommend that you have a tune-up done on your system. With a tune-up we can restore your system to peak efficiency and correct any problems before you reach the home inspection stage.
If you’re not ready to sell your home, we can help you boost energy efficiency and save money by installing a new heating system.
Ben G. recently added an in-law suite to his home to accommodate Johanna, his mother-in-law. “She needed to sell her home because it had become too hard to maintain,” Ben says. “We were glad to have her, but she always felt cold and kept turning the thermostat up.”
Ben didn’t realize it at first, but this change in his household caused his fuel use to increase dramatically. Fortunately, while making an automatic delivery at the home, our driver noticed that the fuel tank was nearly empty. After speaking with Ben and finding out about his new situation, he alerted our office and we updated Ben’s records.
Every year families make changes in their household that, in many cases, affect their fuel use.
This was vitally important because in order to accurately schedule automatic deliveries, we need to know:
- the size of your home and its insulation
- the efficiency of your heating system
- the size of your fuel tank
- the number of people in your home
With this data, we calculate your K-factor, or burn rate. (We also track degree-days, an indicator of how cold the weather has been—because this affects fuel use too.) If your heating needs change, due to a new family member or building on an addition to your home, your K-factor changes too.
So when there’s something new going on at your house that makes you use more (or less) fuel, tell us. We’ll update your information to ensure that you’ll always have enough fuel.
Refiners add an unpleasant ‘rotten egg’ smell to propane to alert you to leaks. So what should you do if you smell propane? Here are some tips:
- Extinguish any flames and do not use lights, appliances or telephones.
- Leave the area immediately.
- Turn off the main supply valve on your propane tank if it is safe to do so.
- Call Allied and the local fire department from a neighbor’s home or from a safe distance.
- Don’t return to the site of the gas leak until you are told it is safe to do so.
- Don’t use any propane appliances until we have done a complete check of your entire system to ensure that there are no leaks.
Q: How do I read my propane tank gauge?
A: The gauge on your tank measures how full your tank is as a percentage. Because space is set aside in your tank to allow for expansion and contraction based on changes in temperature, your tank should never read more than 80% full. How fast you use propane is based on how many propane appliances in your home, and the Btu rating for each appliance. You can eliminate the task of having to read your gauge by enrolling in automatic delivery. When you do, we will install a wireless monitor on your tank that tells us when it’s time to make a delivery. If you prefer to call us for deliveries, please be sure to do so before your tank level reaches the 25% mark.
Can you imagine stepping into the shower not having to worry about running out of hot water? With a high-efficiency propane water heater from Rinnai, you get the best of both worlds: a money-saving water heater and a virtually endless supply of perfectly heated water. Act now and you can take advantage of a $300 federal tax credit for choosing this energy-efficient hot water option.
Rinnai tankless water heaters free up space, thanks to their innovative and efficient design, and they cost considerably less to operate than electric water heaters. With everyone spending more time inside these days, you need a water heater that will last longer, perform better and cost you less to operate.
Don’t wait until your old, inefficient water heater fails without warning. Be proactive and upgrade for efficiency and savings with Allied and Rinnai. Contact us today for a free estimate.