Most of us are looking forward to hunkering down for some quality time with family and friends in our cozy New Jersey home over the next few weeks.

But what if in the midst of the holiday frenzy of food prep, last minute shopping and eggnog drinking you forget to check your heating oil levels…and discover, one cold December morning, that you are out of fuel?

Let’s face it: running out of home heating oil in the middle of an NJ winter is no fun – but it is especially challenging when it happens during the holidays. On the plus side, running out of home heating oil will probably not harm your furnace or boiler, since your equipment has an emergency switch that will automatically turn off the burner when there is no oil in the tank.

Then there’s the minus side.

Besides the discomfort and potential risks of being in a dangerously cold house, a heating oil runout can jam up filters and fuel lines with sediment from the bottom of your oil tank. That means you will probably need an emergency heating system service call, a system reset, and a new filter. Frozen pipes are also a major concern, with potential for thousands of dollars in flood damage.

What to do if you run out of heating oil

If you read your heating gauge and confirm that you are indeed out of heating oil, take the following steps right away:

• Do what you can to retain the heat you already have in your house: close curtains, block under-door drafts, hang blankets over doorways, etc.
• If you have other heating equipment such as fireplace or electric heater, use them. NEVER use outdoor equipment (barbecues, outdoor stoves, etc.) indoors – carbon monoxide build up can be extremely dangerous or even deadly.
• Contact us ASAP for an emergency delivery.

Preventing a heating oil runout

When it comes to fuel runouts, prevention is always best. You can avoid running out of home heating oil if you:

• Choose Auto Delivery – let us worry about managing your heating oil deliveries.
• Monitor your fuel gauge regularly, especially during a cold snap.
• Order when your tank is no less than 25 percent full (sooner if it is really cold) – don’t wait until the last minute; instant deliveries are not always possible.
• Secure your oil tank to prevent theft.

If you run out of heating oil this winter or during the holiday season, don’t panic – contact the pros at Fredericks Fuel. Our experts can restart your burner, take care of any problems that arise and refill your tank to keep your family safe and warm in your home. Fredericks – serving our NJ neighbors since 1878!