Propane pricing and other questions

[Obvious_man]

My first real post here.

For those of you who didn't read my introduction....SWMBO and I are from Washington state. Moved here because of the Navy.  I'm working for the city of Memphis and mandated to live in Shelby county.  We're looking at housing now.  The current one that catches our interest has propane heating and propane hot water. We'd also probably put in a gas stove and run a line for the grill. It's on about 5 acres.

My question;  On the average, how much does propane cost? And, how does it get paid for?  I heard some horror stories a couple of years ago about propane pricing getting outrageous and just need some assurance.

 

Long term,, we're also gonna want to cover the patio with something so I can grill or smoke when it rains. Anybody in the trades here?

 

Livestock. Chickens, goats, miniature horses, anyone here with experience?  If we get this place, we're gonna have lots of questions!

 

Bueller?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

[Shorty]

Right now you can still get chicks from Tractor Supply Co.  I'm not sure how long they keep them, but they sell them every year.  For goats, you might try talking to some of the local farmers market people that deal in meat and see if they have any good connections for them.

[Ronald_55]

I rent a rank from Holston Gases up in E TN. I think $65 a year fee for the 300 lb (I think, been awhile) . I used to have 2 100lb tanks, but no one would fill then around here unless I drove them in in a properly secured truck. Holston fills this one whenever I call for a small trip fee plus gas cost.  

Could I do better on price..maybe. Has Houston Gases been around forever and is 2 miles from my house..yes.

I used to have such a hard time getting tanks filled that it is worth it to me to avoid the hassle. That being said we only run propane logs off ours. A yearly topoff is good. I usually do the spring sale they do each year. A friend has propane heat, water heater and such, so he bought a tank and shops prices every time. 

[Obvious_man]

Thanks for the quick replies and please keep them coming!  The propane tank is buried underground and comes with the property.  What’s the average cost per gallon right now?  I’ll hit uhaul tomorrow but anything must be cheaper then them. It could be had for under 2.00 per gallon in super duper remote western Washington.  I used to sell it, (retail), for 3.10 per gallon. I’m just trying to factor it in to get an idea.  I heard horror stories from a couple of years ago about 6.00 per gallon or more in this (general) end of the world. We’re gonna make an offer on the place tomorrow so, wish us luck!

[MacGyver]

My in laws pay around $45/month on a contract to get their 300 gallon tank topped off.  They don’t heat with it, but have a gas hot water heater, a gas fireplace, and a gas stove.

[owejia]

Heating costs shouldn't be too bad in Shelby county, relative mild winters etc. Five acres , chickens, goats , pigs  remember the smell. Fencing ,feed shelter Minature horses, donkeys, unless you breed them to sell a bottomless money pit Feet have to be trimmed, mane trimmed and hay fed during winter. Minature cattle maybe if you want yard ornaments. All depends on what you want them for, hobby or just because you want them. Nothing wrong with that. With livestock you need to be able to do most of your own vet work Would also want to know how long propane tank has been buried and what precautions were taken to prevent rust snd corrosion.

[gregintenn]

When we used propane (years ago) it was $0.99 in the summer and $4.00 in the winter.

[peejman]

My parents in Chattanooga have a buried tank and get it refilled once or twice a year. They use it for supplemental heat (dual fuel heat pump), hot water, cooktop, and grill. 

Always get it filled in the summer when prices are low. Only in the winter when necessary, which isn't often. Prices are supply/demand and tend to shoot up in times of crisis, just like gasoline. Not an issue if you're reasonably prepared. 

While the Memphis area doesn't usually get real cold, ice storms will cripple the infrastructure for days at a time. 

[A.J. Holst]

8 minutes ago, gregintenn said:

When we used propane (years ago) it was $0.99 in the summer and $4.00 in the winter.

My friends at Suburban charge $50 annual tank rental and mid $4s for winter flll up.

Edited September 5, 2018 by Gotthegoods

[Jeb48]

Check who owns the tank. When we bought our place 3 years ago we were told the 500 gallon tank that was buried out back was leased. When we didn't respond quick enough after closing, took us a couple of months to move, they came out and disconnected it from the house without leaving a note or anything. We move in and wonder why the demand hot water didn't work. Luckily the heater displayed a code that I could look up online and it said no gas. Called the LP company to tell them I had a problem and they said they knew what the problem was and would be out in a couple hours to fix it. The fellow admitted when he came out that he had just disconnected the tank the week before since I hadn't paid the yearly lease bill.

We use LP for backup heat to the heat pump, highly recommended in this climate, hot water and fireplace. The lease kills the price but it is a good back up. We fill up once a year in the Summer and it was $2.40/gallon last month. Yearly lease is $164. They tried to charge us another $91 minimum charge when I didn't call them soon enough for a summer fill but dropped that when I called and complained. We use 100-140 gallons/year and they said minimum was suppose to be one tank full but if I put it on automatic yearly refill they would wave that. This was the first we even heard of a minimum usage fee. They offered to sell me the tank when we first contact them, don't remember what they wanted but it might have paid off in the long run since we could shop for cheaper supplier, but now they are respresponsiblele if there is a leak.

[Omega]

31 minutes ago, Jeb48 said:

but now they are respresponsiblele if there is a leak.

And responsible for testing the tank and replacing if required no?

Edited September 6, 2018 by Omega
Forgot to snip

[enfield]

GOATS:

They don't eat grass - they're browsers like deer,.  They like weeds, flowers, tomato plants, briars, leaves, bark, kudzu, etc.  You'll have to mow their pasture! They will eat hay and commercial feed.  They need a rain shelter, as they detest getting wet ( a carport with tarps for windscreens works well).  If you get an intact billy, you'll need to keep him penned separate from the does or he'll run them ragged.

Edited September 6, 2018 by enfield

[Jeb48]

On 9/5/2018 at 10:38 PM, Omega said:

And responsible for testing the tank and replacing if required no?

I assume they are responsible for replacing, not sure about the testing beyond sniff tests and me reporting anything unusual. My tank is only 10 years old and the internet says they have a life of 20-40 years.

[Raoul]

I thought tanks were date stamped for about a 7 year life span.

[Omega]

I've read, no experience, that they are good for 12 years or so, then they have to be recertified, then every 5 years.  I was looking to get a larger tank to keep at my hunting location, to use instead of the regular ones on my travel trailer, but most used ones I found were older and didn't want to mess with the recertification. 

[peejman]

11 hours ago, Raoul said:

I thought tanks were date stamped for about a 7 year life span.

20lb grill tanks are, but can be tested and recertified. Bigger residential tanks have different requirements. 

[bersaguy]

On the propane part, my mothers big home was operated on propane. Cooking, water heater and a space heater in every room and she had a 500 gallon tank in the back yard. She did business with the people that had placed the tank before they bought the house and call them and had them put them on a Keep Full program. Once a month a truck would come by and top off the tank and the bill was never over $100.00 but she would mail a check for $100.00 and told them to credit the overage to her account. When she passed away my youngest brother and sister in law where living there also and when they called about the gas with winter coming on they were told that the account had a $4745.00 credit so my brother told them to keep it on the program it was on but to begin using the credit until it was consumed.

The house burned a year later due to old wiring and the gas company sent them a check for the remaining balance.

[Obvious_man]

Looks like we’re not gonna get this particular house. We made an offer. Got blown off for one made a day later. On to the next one I guess.

[owejia]

Good hunting. Sure the right one will show up. Surveyor was at adjoining property yesterday laying out a 1 acre tract with my decease neighbors house. Had a reverse mortgage on it . They were asking $42 thousand for 2 bdrm built on concrete slab, aluminum siding. Two car garage  and a couple of other small outbuildings on 3.6 acre overgrown wooded lot with an old dry pond that was used as a illegal dump. Will be landlocked if they sell house off. Debating if need to buy  wooded lot, would have to fill in or clean illegal dump. If buying acreage always check for illegal dumps etc.

[Ronald_55]

1 hour ago, owejia said:

Good hunting. Sure the right one will show up. Surveyor was at adjoining property yesterday laying out a 1 acre tract with my decease neighbors house. Had a reverse mortgage on it . They were asking $42 thousand for 2 bdrm built on concrete slab, aluminum siding. Two car garage  and a couple of other small outbuildings on 3.6 acre overgrown wooded lot with an old dry pond that was used as a illegal dump. Will be landlocked if they sell house off. Debating if need to buy  wooded lot, would have to fill in or clean illegal dump. If buying acreage always check for illegal dumps etc.

Could you not make the owner responsible for cleaning up the dump as a sale requirement or make them set aside so much money toward you doing it? I have heard of that before.

 

If that 3.6 acres/2br was close to me 42k would be a steal. 

[bersaguy]

They leak tested my mothers tank a couple times. They have a way of pumping out what ever is in the tank and reading the amount. Then they do a vaccum test by sucking out all in the tank and putting a vaccum gauge on the tank and watching it for 30 minutes. If it holds a full vaccum they refill the tank with what they took out and then top it off on the keep fill order. Of course that is all gone since house burned and brother sold the land to new owners.

[Obvious_man]

Made an offer on another.  Got it!  No propane, the place has gas and electric.

and, 

 

poison ivy.....

 

i have round up. And 2.4.D.  I’m a grandpa, as is my bride.  So we’re not worried about kids.  But the goats question rises to the surface again.  This actually seems to be the best option. Build a shelter and let them roam.  It’s 2.5 acres. And there isn’t much at the ground level that’s worth saving.

What other options are there?

[peejman]

Be absolutely certain of who and where your neighbors are before letting goats roam. I'd also confirm you're legally allowed to do that. 

[Ronald_55]

10 hours ago, Obvious_man said:

Made an offer on another.  Got it!  No propane, the place has gas and electric.

and, 

 

poison ivy.....

Congrats!

You are good then. My place has poison oak, poison sumach, grape vines, ivy... lol. 

On a serious note, if you see the base root, the best way is to burn that root out with a hot long-term fire. Dig around it and use a bag of brickets topped with kindling and then larger pieces of wood. So far sprays and such have only killed out the vine for me, not the root. 

 

Edited September 11, 2018 by Ronald_55
Forgot..

[Obvious_man]

10 hours ago, Ronald_55 said:

Congrats!

You are good then. My place has poison oak, poison sumach, grape vines, ivy... lol. 

On a serious note, if you see the base root, the best way is to burn that root out with a hot long-term fire. Dig around it and use a bag of brickets topped with kindling and then larger pieces of wood. So far sprays and such have only killed out the vine for me, not the root. 

 

Some of it is right on the foundation.  I’m just a tad reluctant to start a fire that close.  Short of that, I’m prepared to go full schorched earth.