Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I called AmeriGas and FerrellGas on 11/19. First, both people I spoke to acted like it was a HUGE inconvenience to give me any information. If this is what I can expect as customer service from these places, I'd rather pay higher prices.
AmeriGas (the Smithfield office) quoted me $450 for installation and the first fill-up of propane (100 gallons on the 120 gallon tank). After asking twice, she said that this broke down to $270 for the installation and $180 for the gas, or $1.80 per gallon. This is a promotional rate for new customers only. The rental fee for the tank if we don't refill entirely within a year is $87 plus tax.
Amerigas (Garner). The lady I spoke with was very nice and helpful. Quoted me $425 for installation and first fill-up of 100 gallons of propane. They will send people out periodically to top off the tank and bill us. Refills are currently billed at $2.149 per gallon. Tank rental fee is waived if they deliver 50 gallons or more of gas in a 12 month period. Looks like the plus of buying from Garner rather than Smithfield office is 1) nicer people, 2) $25 cheaper installation, 3) only have to refill half a tank to avoid rental fee.
Unfortunately when I called the Garner Amerigas location, they told me I had t ocall the Smithfield office. I still don't know who to go with, as I'm obviously not going with anyone who has lousy customer service before I even become a customer. You'd think in this economy that most places would be happy to get new customers. I'd love to go the route of buying our own tank and getting it filled ourselves, but we don't have a pick-up truck. Sigh.
Can you get by with a smaller tank? If you are only hooking up the gas logs for occasional use, would a 30lb tank do? Sure, you'd need to fill it up once or twice a winter, depending what your definition of "occasional' is. You could transport that size tank in a car. Or maybe 2 of the BBQ size tanks (15lb?)and swap them out when one runs out. Not sure if the connections on those tanks are appropriate for a fireplace. We are in the same boat (gas logs, no propane tank) so I'll be interested in what you find out.
Can you get by with a smaller tank? If you are only hooking up the gas logs for occasional use, would a 30lb tank do? Sure, you'd need to fill it up once or twice a winter, depending what your definition of "occasional' is. You could transport that size tank in a car. Or maybe 2 of the BBQ size tanks (15lb?)and swap them out when one runs out. Not sure if the connections on those tanks are appropriate for a fireplace. We are in the same boat (gas logs, no propane tank) so I'll be interested in what you find out.
We decided to buy a tank. We're going to rent a pick-up for a few hours, which will still cost considerably less than the "installation" fees charged by the gas companies. We have new construction, so installation for us consists of putting the tank next to the house and making the connection. Everything else was done by the builder, and the log people will come out and set up the logs for free within 60 days from closing. I think we're going to go with the 125 gallon tank, and we're going to pour a little concrete slab for it to sit on.
We decided to buy a tank. We're going to rent a pick-up for a few hours, which will still cost considerably less than the "installation" fees charged by the gas companies. We have new construction, so installation for us consists of putting the tank next to the house and making the connection. Everything else was done by the builder, and the log people will come out and set up the logs for free within 60 days from closing. I think we're going to go with the 125 gallon tank, and we're going to pour a little concrete slab for it to sit on.
Will the gas companies come out to fill a tank that small? How small will they go?
It looks like Tractor Supply has a 100# tank for $124.99. It apparently only holds 23 gallons, but we're only using it for our gas fireplaces, so this should be sufficient. Also, it weight less than 200 pounds when full, so we can move it around. I don't know if the gas companies will come out and fill a tank that small. Probably not. But if we ever want to go the route of the really large tank, we can have one of them come out with one at any time. For now, this will save us money and still leave our options open for the future. If we find that we're not using the fireplaces very often, our initial investment will be much smaller than if we had gone with a service, and we won't be stuck with rental fees. If we find that we're using it a lot, we'll convert the smaller tank to use with our gas grill and pick a service to come out with the bigger tank.
It looks like Tractor Supply has a 100# tank for $124.99. It apparently only holds 23 gallons. Also, it weight less than 200 pounds when full, so we can move it around.
I think that propane weighs 4 lbs/gallon, so a 23 lb tank would hold about 100 lbs of propane. Not sure how much the tank weighs, but that may be doable for me to wrestle that out of a pickup truck and roll it to the side yard. I have a drainage culvert at the street, so I'd just back the truck down into the culvert and roll the tank out the back onto the grass, same way I did my riding mower.
I did some research and it looks like TR Lee will come out and deliver to the 100# tanks. It appears there is a delivery fee of around $15. Just make sure they aren't also charging you a premium on the gas, as some people have complained about. If you go this route, remember that you can negotiate with these guys.
Being one of the only unregulated commodities still around propane dealers will continue to price gouge whomever they can. Unless you are a large usage customer there will always be higher pricing and surcharges for limited usage. Its the American way unfortunately. We use less than 100 gals per year and just filled up for $3.29 / gal through Energy United. We could get an initial lower price through other dealers if we decided to take their Bait & Switch offers. Of course that savings would get erased with the installation of the new tank that they require. Our neighbor owns there own tank and their issues are the same as anyone who leases a tank. They continually have difficulty getting a fill up and then they end up paying as much with the addition delivery fees and surcharges. Until regulation and propane are tied together the consumer which is ALL of us will get the short end. After all it is the American Way.
To update, we decided not to go with a supplier, and instead purchased a small tank. We got a 100 pound tank and a bag of cement to make a little platform. The tank, cement and all connector stuff cost us about $150 total. We got the tank filled at the gas station and it lasted just over a month of us using the fireplace every day for at least a few hours. We just refilled it for $57.65 after tax, which ends up being about $2.50 per gallon. We figure we saved all the installation fees and the cost of the tank is less than two years worth of rental fees, which we'd end up paying, since we'll only use the fireplaces for another month or so.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
