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Bob LaFlamme
Crowley Fuel's, Bob LaFlamme has more than 29 years of experience working in the home heating industry. Throughout that time, Bob has accumulated a lot of knowledge about how to heat your home, how best to conserve energy and how to reduce the cost of buying oil.
Bob isn't just interested in selling you oil - he also wants to give you the information you need to become a better consumer.



Have a topic you'd like to see Bob cover in his blog? Send him an Email and watch for his answer here.

REMEMBER THE PAST, PLAN FOR THE FUTURE!

6/27/2018

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Originally published February 22, 2018

Christmas of 2017 into the New Year of 2018 was a holiday season to put in the record books.
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The extreme and prolonged cold caused some serious problems for Oil and Propane companies across the New England states, the most critical of which was not having enough personnel and trucks to deliver to all of their customers.  Due to the large demand for home heating fuels, the supply became very tight.  Demand was also increased because of service  that needed to be done immediately.

If you are an automatic delivery customer of Crowley Fuel  and Tasse Fuel you can feel confident that “we have your best interest in mind.”  It is because of our commitment, that you didn’t experience any interruption in your comfort.  If you had a service problem, you received prompt and professional service.

I know that most of you would rather forget this heating season and the cold snap that we experienced in December and January, however, there is an important lesson to be learned from having lived through it, if you call for your oil. Although we had a few automatics get close to empty, most of our emergency calls were from will call customers and people with supplemental heating systems, like wood stoves and pellet stoves. These customers either had forgotten to watch their oil tank gauge or had frozen pipes in areas away from the stoves that were satisfying thermostats. (Please see what can be done to avoid these emergency calls and extra expenses below.)

I am happy to say that our company was able to respond in a timely fashion to all of our customers who called us during that cold spell.  Jeff Tasse, the owner of our company, took hundreds of night and weekend calls and our staff worked overtime to get the fuel and service to our customers in their time of need.  It was an excellent team effort by the employees of Tasse Fuel and Crowley Fuel.

If you had a heating related issue that you would like to share, we would appreciate hearing from you.

These are the reasons to become a Tasse/Crowley automatic delivery customer:
  • It costs less!  The extra fees for same day delivery or run outs add to your costs, when you are a will call customer.
  • You can spread out your payments on one of our budget programs.
  • It is less disruptive to our schedule and we can respond to more customers.
  • If you have a steep driveway, we will flag it for deliveries before storms when possible.
  • Peace of Mind!  We will worry about your next delivery, not you.

We received many calls from people who were not our customers during that time but were unable to help all of them. If you are not a Tasse/Crowley customer you should give some thought to becoming a Tasse Fuel or Crowley Fuel automatic delivery customer and rest assured that you will get the best service available in the area.

​Bob


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Crowley fuel web portal now available

6/27/2018

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Originally published February 28, 2018

Crowley Fuel Customers!  If you haven’t yet heard, we now have a web portal available for you to access your account thanks to our merger with Tasse Fuel.

If you can read this email then you can take advantage of this great new service.  It’s as easy as going to the Crowley Fuel website and clicking on the Crowley & Tasse / Web Portal.

If you have not already created an online account click there and start setting up to access your account and more.  All you will need beyond your basic information is your account number.  You can find your account number at the top right of an invoice or right under the ticket number of a delivery ticket.  If all else fails, call our office during business hours (8 AM to 5 PM).
  • Once you have created your account you can:
  • Check your service and delivery history
  • Check the status of your next delivery (for automatic delivery customers)
  • Order a delivery of oil, propane, or wood pellets
  • Check your account balance and history
  • Pay your bill online

If you are not a Crowley Fuel customer, you should be! There are so many advantages and access to your account is a big one!

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"buyer beware" code violations

6/27/2018

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Originally posted January, 2018

Answers to "Buyer Beware" Code Violations

We had a fair response to our recent quiz about codes violations (See “Buyer Beware” blog, dated December 16, 2016). There were four brave customers who tested their knowledge of Massachusetts oil tank installation codes. One of them came very close to identifying all of the violations, but due to the poor quality of the pictures provided, was unable to see all of them. We gave all of our contestants the 10-cent discount for taking the time to respond.
 
Here are the seven violations or problems that we identified:
 
Oil Tank Leak - The biggest problem with these old oil tanks is that there is a large wet spot on the bottom of the tank on the right, which would indicate that the oil tank is leaking. This is not a code violation, but putting oil into a tank that is suspected of having a leak could lead to a whole host of problems. This is the reason that we inspect oil tanks before delivering to a new customer. The tank on the left also has a wet spot near the bottom, but it was determined to be a slight seeping from around the nipple. We did put oil into that tank with good results thus far.
 
No Vent Alarm (Otherwise Known as a Whistle) - When you look at the picture of the pipes at the top of the tank, the pipes in the foreground (or closest to you) are the vent pipes. It is acceptable for them to be manifolded (or connected together). What is missing are vent alarms, which should be installed into the top of the tanks with the vent pipes coming out from them. Some vent alarms are red, and some are silver, and there are even some that you cannot see that fit into the pipe at the top of the tank. Both tanks must have vent alarms, because it is the best way to ensure that the tank is sealed and that you are actually filling the oil tank and not the cellar. The vent alarm will make a whistling sound as the air escapes past it during the filling process, and when the oil comes up to the level of the whistle, the whistling stops. At this point, the alert deliverer of the oil shuts off the valve to stop the flow of oil. It does not happen automatically like when you are filling the tank on your car with gasoline. Most companies have a “no whistle, no fill policy,” meaning that if the deliverer doesn’t hear a whistle, they must shut off the flow of oil immediately and investigate the cause. How did the previous oil company fill these tanks without overfilling in the past you ask? Deliverers with good hearing and good luck! It is possible to fill a tank by listening and feeling the air escaping from the vent pipe and shutting off the valve when the foam from the oil starts to bubble in the pipe.
 
No Fusible Valves at Oil Tanks - When you look at the bottom of the oil tanks you see valves there, but they are gate valves and not the required fusible valves. Fusible valves are designed to shut off the flow of oil when the temperature near them gets over 165 degrees. This prevents the tank’s oil from coming out and feeding a fire and giving firefighters a reason to visit. You can identify these brass valves by the small silver wheel that can be manually turned off and removed. The most common manufacturer of these valves is a company called Firomatic. You can see one of these valves in the picture just before the oil filter. You should also see one of these valves at the other end of the oil line at or near your oil burner.
 
Unsleeved Oil Line - You can see a coil of copper tubing in the pictures at the bottom of the tanks after the oil filter. This is the oil line, which runs along the floor to the oil burner. It is required that all copper oil line that comes into contact with the earth, stone or cement be encased in a non-metallic sleeve. This sleeve protects the oil line from corrosives that will, over time, cause it to leak. There are alternatives to sleeving an oil line. One is an anti-siphon or OSV valve, which is installed right after the oil filter and will close if a leak develops in the oil line. The other way is to run the oil line overhead without coming into contact with the floor or cement walls. You are eligible to receive pollution coverage from your homeowner’s insurance company if your oil line complies with this code. Many insurance companies are beginning to require it as a condition of their continued coverage.
 
Fill Pipes Improperly Installed - The larger pipes coming from the top of each tank and manifolded in the background are the fill pipes. Current oil burner codes require that the fill pipes be equal to or smaller than the vent pipes, so an equal amount of air can escape and not pressurize the tank when filling. Another thing that is wrong with the way these fill pipes were installed is that there is no way to ensure that each tank gets filled. More oil could have gone into one tank than the other. The installer could have used one fill pipe for each tank or installed one fill pipe to the first tank and a larger crossover pipe into the top of the second tank. This would have saved on one vent alarm and the piping from it.
 
I hope this quiz was interesting and helpful to those who spent the time to look it over and read our answers. You can expect that I will blog when I encounter another situation that customers should know about.

Bob

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Carbon Monoxide and smoke detectors

6/27/2018

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Originally published January, 2018

What You Should Know About Carbon Monoxide and Smoke Detectors When You Heat With Oil

You probably can’t tell from my picture on the Crowley Fuel website, but I am old enough to remember life before smoke detectors. When they became available I rushed right out and bought them, and I am probably on my sixth or seventh set now. For the safety of yourself and your family, you should have properly-installed smoke and carbon dioxide detectors, and you should always heed the alarms from your safety devices, and leave the building when they go off.
 
Over the years we have received many calls from concerned customers whose carbon monoxide detectors have started beeping. If this is happening to you, and there is a fairly long interval between the beeps, I suggest that you check the date stamped on the bottom. You may find that the CO detector is seven-years old and past its safe and useful life. If the unit is installed in a kitchen or close to a gas or oil-fired appliance, it may also be at the end of its useful life. This happens because the unit is constantly reading low levels of CO, which will use its life up faster. The end-of-life and low-battery alarms are often the same on most CO detectors, so changing the batteries may solve the problem.

Massachusetts codes require that homes must have smoke detectors on every level and CO detectors on every habitable level. For new construction and renovated homes, it is now required to have a smoke detector in every bedroom as well as in the hallways.

Combination units that have both smoke and CO detectors are the best, but don’t buy the cheapest ones! They must talk to tell you what is going on. The voice emitted from the alarm will say smoke (fire) or CO. Whichever message you hear, you must get out of the house. When you call 911, you can let emergency responders know whether it’s a fire or a CO leak. This will help them determine which equipment to bring.

Here are some important things to know:

  • CO detectors with a digital read-out with a reset are the best
  • Be sure that your detectors will speak to you and tell you what the problem is
  • Follow the manufacturers’ specifications when installing your detectors

Most local fire departments will be happy to come into your home and help you figure out where to place your CO and smoke detectors. They love to come in before there is a problem!

Following state codes and having the correct detectors is a very small price to pay for protecting your family and property. Be Safe!

I would like to thank Chief Brad Gannon of the North Brookfield Fire Department for his help in putting this blog together.

Bob

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Crowley Fuel
8 Mill St.
​North Brookfield, MA 01535
508-867-6740

Office Hours: Mon-Fri 8am - 4:30pm 
Phone: 508-867-6740
Fax: 508-867-6871

© 2017 Crowley Fuel Company, Inc.
8 Mill Street - PO Box 55
North Brookfield, MA 01535
​
​Serving the Central Massachusetts area including Brookfield, East Brookfield, West Brookfield, North Brookfield, Gilbertville, Hardwick, New Braintree, Oakham, Rutland, Fiskdale, Sturbridge, Ware, Warren, West Warren, Leicester, Spencer and Charlton, MA.

Contact Us

Crowley Fuel 508-867-6740
8 Mill St - PO Box 55
North Brookfield, MA 01535

​Owned & Operated By:
Tasse Fuel 508-765-0841 
​
37 Hook St.
​Southbridge MA 01550
  • Home
    • Technician Protocal covid-19
    • Corona Virus plan of action
    • Credit and delivery terms
    • Bob's Fuel for Thought Blog >
      • Archives 2018
      • Archives 2017
      • Archives 2016
      • Archives 2015
      • Archives 2014
    • Multi Fuel Discount
    • Go Green
  • Service
    • Natural Gas service
    • Service Contract
  • Oil Delivery
    • How to read an Oil gauge
    • Bioheat
    • Kerosene
    • Contracts
  • Propane Delivery & Service