Michiganders familiar with oil-heated homes will tell you it’s a remarkably safe way to stay warm during our cold Midwestern winters. First, it’s important to remember that heating oil cannot explode. Before it can ignite, heating oil must be vaporized at a temperature above 140 degrees. This means that heating oil is not a fire hazard because it can’t burn in its liquid state.
Additionally, a heating oil system poses a very low risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. In the unlikely event of a malfunction, the built-in safety devices in the unit will typically turn the system off. And there will be visual signs that there is an issue. This helps to make sure that no issues become serious safety problems for you and your family.
A common reason for people losing their heat is running out of heating oil. It’s always best to start the heating season off with a full tank of heating oil. With a full tank, you won’t have to worry about being caught off guard by a sudden drop in temperature, which causes you to use more fuel than normal.
Your Michigan heating oil company does not want you to run out! If you notice your heating oil tank level has reached the ¼ level, please contact your company so they can get a heating oil delivery to you as soon as possible.
If there’s a winter storm coming, your heating oil company will usually accelerate their delivery schedule to fit extra deliveries in ahead of time. However, they typically can only do that for automatic delivery customers. If you don’t get automatic deliveries, please consider that choice. This vastly reduces the chance of running out of oil.
If your heat stops working and you’ve made sure it is related to your house only—not a wide-scale power outage– your next step should be to check to see if the power switches to your heating oil system have been accidentally turned off.
If that’s the case, simply turn the electrical switches back to the “on” position and your problem should be solved. There is a power switch found on the side of the heating system or on a wall nearby. Farther away, there is an emergency switch with a red cover plate that is labeled. People will sometimes turn this switch off by mistake.
If your power switches are not the problem, check your circuit breaker box to see if all circuit switches are still in the “on” position. Flipping the proper switch to “on” again may be all you need to get your system running again.
However, a circuit breaker rarely ever trips for no reason. If this happens once and never happens again, it may be just a fluke. But if this happens more than once, call for service, as this could mean a serious problem.
Make sure your thermostat is set above room temperature and to HEAT. Check to see if you need new batteries too. Remember, it is the thermostat’s job to send a signal to your boiler or furnace to call for heat. But this signal may be interrupted if the wiring of the thermostat has begun to deteriorate. A build-up of dust inside your thermostat is another common reason why your thermostat is not running correctly.
If you have a warm-air heating oil furnace, change or clean the filter on a regular basis during the heating season. A filter clogged with dust compromises efficiency and can even cause your furnace to shut down.
If you have a hot water heating oil boiler, its automatic filling system should keep the proper water level.
And of course, you should always schedule professional preventive maintenance with a heating oil expert, so you don’t have to worry about your heating system breaking down during the winter. Regular service also improves efficiency, helping you to conserve fuel.
If you’ve checked everything, including making sure you have enough oil in your tank, you can try pressing the red reset button on the oil burner. The reset button is a safety control that shuts the burner down if a problem is detected.
If your system doesn’t start after you push the reset button the first time, do not push it again. Pushing this button more than once can flood your system with heating oil, resulting in a costly repair. If the burner starts but stops again after a couple of minutes, you should call for a proper diagnosis of the problem.
If you’re losing your heat too many times, you should consider replacing your old heating oil system with a new, high-efficiency model.
