Whether you have a single sea vessel or manage an entire fleet, understanding the different types of marine fuel is crucial. It affects your bottom line, your vessel’s performance and your business’s environmental impact.
At Tasha Fuel & Propane, we proudly deliver premium marine fuel to marinas and vessels in Bourne and throughout the Upper Cape. In this article, we’ll discuss the different kinds of fuel for personal and commercial sea vessels. By the end of this read, you’ll be well-equipped to make informed decisions about marine fuel for your business.
While some vessels run on liquified natural gas, and many small boats use E10 or gasoline, the vast majority of commercial vessels use fuel oil. Here are some of the options that marine customers in our region use:
If you are looking to significantly lower the carbon footprint of your seaborne fleet, you can consider biofuel-blended fuel oil, a revolutionary option in the marine fuel industry. Like the Bioheat® heat fuel that Tasha delivers to oil-heated homes throughout the Cape and Southeastern Massachusetts, these fuels blend traditional petroleum fuel oil with renewable biofuel derived from plant oils, used cooking grease, animal fats and other organic feedstocks.
The resulting fuel has a much lower emissions impact.
For Massachusetts businesses that want to ensure the highest marine fuel quality and the most reliable delivery service, Tasha Fuels & Propane is the top choice. Tasha’s team of experts carefully selects premium fuel products to meet our high standards. Our drivers have decades of experience serving marinas and sea vessels in this region, and we have trucks that are uniquely designed to access your marine vessels where they are docked. You can rest assured that our team will reach you promptly and deliver your fuel in a safe and environmentally responsible way.
Are you looking for a dependable marine fuel supplier on the Upper Cape or in Southeastern Massachusetts? Contact Tasha today.
For so many households in Southeastern Massachusetts and the Upper Cape, propane is a year-round energy source. But that doesn’t mean their home propane usage is uniform every month and every season.
After all, if you have a propane furnace or boiler, your fuel consumption will be especially high in the winter. But if you need propane for a pool heater, you might need extra fuel in the warmer months. A propane water heater’s consumption will be pretty constant across the calendar.
How can you keep track of your propane levels? At Tasha Fuels & Propane, we fill up home propane tanks and portable propane cylinders. Here are some tips for checking your propane levels — and making sure you never run out!
You can find your gauge on top of your stationary propane tank. There’s a small dome lid covering it. Lift this dome, and you’ll find a gauge that looks like a car’s speedometer with numbers from 5 to 95. The needle points to a number indicating the current percentage fill of the tank, not the number of gallons inside.
At Tasha, we advise our “Will-Call” customers to reach out to us when their tank gauge is around 30%. Even better, you can try our FREE automatic propane delivery service. Our state-of-the-art computerized system will keep track of your fuel levels using your customer history and current weather conditions. Then, our diligent, locally-based team will deliver propane right when you need it. It’s stress-free and fee-free, and it frees you from propane run-outs!
Unlike stationary propane tanks, portable propane cylinders like your grill’s 20-pound tank typically don’t have gauges. However, there are several simple ways you can check your cylinder’s propane levels.
When it’s time to get more propane for your grill tank, you can always turn to the team at Tasha Fuels & Propane. You can come to our service station (1412 Route 28A, Cataumet, MA 02534) to re-fill your propane cylinder. It’s much more affordable than a grill tank exchange!
Are you looking for a dependable propane provider in Cotuit or elsewhere on Cape Cod? Become a Tasha customer today!
Some of the fuels that we sell and deliver in Mashpee and across the Upper Cape are more seasonal in nature. For example, heating oil usage spikes in the winter because households need it for their boilers and furnaces.
Diesel fuel isn’t seasonal, though. Regardless of the time of year, businesses, fleet managers, work sites and municipalities turn to the Tasha Fuels & Propane team for on-road and off-road diesel. We offer several ways to get the diesel your business needs. Here’s a rundown of your fueling options.
There are two different designations of diesel, although they are essentially the same product.
On-road and off-road diesel are the same distillate of crude oil and function in equipment the same way. All diesel today is ultra-low-sulfur. So, why two different products? It has to do with the differing ways these fuels are used and how they are taxed.
On-road diesel is undyed and can be used in road vehicles like buses and trucks. This product is subject to taxes and surcharges associated with transportation fuel. Consequently, on-road diesel tends to be considerably pricier than off-road diesel.
Conversely, off-road diesel is dyed red and not exempt from the taxes that road diesel is subject to. You can only use it in non-highway functions, like powering construction and farm equipment, forklifts and generators. If you are found using dyed off-road diesel in a road vehicle, you will face significant fines.
Many fleet managers in our region prefer to have their drivers go to a pump at a service station. Tasha Fuels & Propane has a gas station (S & P Loud Fuel Gas Station, 1412 Route 28A, Cataumet, MA 02534) where drivers can fill up with on-road diesel and purchase other premium fuels.
However, there are some downsides to using a service station pump for your diesel needs:
At Tasha, we offer on-site delivery of bulk on-road and off-road diesel fuel. Businesses and job sites with safe storage tanks can receive regular fuel deliveries from us. This enables them to have one vendor for their diesel, fuel up at their site and save money and time in the process.
We’ve been a fixture on the Upper Cape and across Southeastern Massachusetts since 1994. We have deep roots in the towns we serve. That means we are genuinely committed to the success of our commercial clients. Whatever your fuel needs, our delivery team will work to meet them. We can arrange a customized diesel delivery schedule — and we’re always available if you have an emergency fuel request.
Become a customer today and see how at Tasha, you aren’t just a number — you’re a neighbor!
Temperatures have plunged in Bourne and throughout the Upper Cape and Southeastern Massachusetts. As such, boilers and furnaces throughout this region have come on, and people’s heating oil consumption has reached the highest levels in months.
This is the time of the year when the Tasha Fuels & Propane team moves into high gear. Our recognizable heating oil delivery trucks are on the road virtually every hour of the day or night, getting people the fuel they need to stay warm.
It’s also the time when we get lots of questions about heating oil pricing. We can offer some answers about why heating oil’s price changes — and how you can save some money in these icy months.
Petroleum-based heating oil is a distillate of crude oil. It’s similar in properties to off-road diesel fuel. Like diesel, heating oil won’t combust in its liquid state. Your heating system’s burner needs to vaporize it and heat it to an extremely high temperature so it can ignite.
The heating oil that Tasha delivers is known as Bioheat Plus® fuel. It’s a combination of ultra-low-sulfur heating oil and biodiesel, which comes from recycled and organic ingredients like used cooking oil, animal fats, plant oil, biomass and even algae. Bioheat Plus fuel is much better for the planet — significantly lowering carbon, sulfur oxide, mercury and particulate matter emissions — as well as your heating equipment. Bioheat Plus fuel leaves fewer deposits in your heat exchanger, lowering the amount of maintenance you need to do.
As a product of crude oil, heating oil’s price can be affected by global oil markets. These markets have seen a fair amount of turmoil in recent years, including pandemic-related refinery stoppages, supply chain disruptions, military conflicts and OPEC production cuts. Market speculation on Wall Street doesn’t help the situation either.
Of course, supply and demand have a major impact, too. The Northeast U.S. consumes about 90% of the heating oil in this country. So, when demand increases in this region, as it does when there’s a blizzard or cold snap, prices can go up.
Finally, there are simple operational expenses like transportation, storage, distribution, etc. that increase fuel costs. At Tasha Fuels & Propane, we work hard to keep our operating costs low (the only part of the process we can really affect) and pass the savings on to our customers.
There are some ways you can reduce your heating oil spending this season.
To sign up for Automatic Delivery and claim your heating oil discount, contact the Tasha team today.
With the threat of climate change at the front of our customers’ minds, Tasha Fuels and Propane is conscious of how important it is to help Upper Cape households stay warm and safe while maintaining low emissions.
Happily, the propane that we deliver is eco-friendly, and it is getting greener every year.
Conventional propane has been listed as an alternative fuel in the 1990 Clean Air Act and the Energy Policy Act of 1992, and we are seeing amazing advances in renewable propane, which takes low-emission energy to a whole new level!
Conventional propane is a co-product of natural gas extraction and oil refining. No new wells need to be drilled to produce it.
But what is propane’s environmental impact? Let’s begin with its carbon intensity, or the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) generated to produce a given amount of energy. Conventional propane’s carbon intensity (CI) is lower than gasoline, diesel and traditional heating oil. It’s also lower than Massachusetts’ grid electricity, which is heavily reliant on natural gas for generation.
Propane is also methane-free, unlike natural gas. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that is over 80 times more powerful at trapping heat in the atmosphere than CO2 over a 20-year period. Moreover, conventional propane contains virtually no particulate matter, a known carcinogen.
Today’s propane-fired equipment is exceptionally efficient, meaning that you’ll use less fuel to stay comfortable while minimizing the emissions coming from your home.
Propane boilers and furnaces have energy efficiency ratings that can exceed 98%. Modern propane propane water heaters can warm up water about twice as fast as electric models. Tankless water heaters generate virtually unlimited hot water on demand while using even less fuel. Propane clothes dryers have considerably shorter cycles than electric products.
While conventional propane is already green, renewable propane promises an even more environmentally friendly future.
Renewable propane is chemically identical to conventional propane, so that you can use it in gas-fired equipment without modification. However, renewable propane is made from organic and recycled feedstocks, including used cooking oil, animal fats, woody biomass, municipal waste and plant oils.
When produced from domestic, non-rendered, used cooking oil, renewable propane’s overall CI score is roughly one-quarter that of conventional propane — and 16% of the CI of America’s average grid electricity. And other feedstocks and innovative blends are on track to take that CI even lower.
Renewable propane isn’t widely used in homes yet, but its production is steadily increasing. By 2027, U.S. production capacity for renewable propane and other innovative blends could reach 277 million gallons!
From our home base in Falmouth and throughout the Upper Cape and Southeastern Massachusetts, Tasha’s team delivers premium propane at a fair price. Our no-fee automatic delivery service frees you from checking a tank gauge and ensures you never run out of this vital, eco-friendly fuel.
Don’t settle for subpar propane delivery service. Reach out to Tasha Fuels and Propane to become a customer.
Heating oil is an excellent way to keep your Cape Cod home comfortable and safe through the most frigid weeks of winter. Heating oil generates a lot of heat (138,500 Btu per gallon), and oil-fired furnaces and boilers are more fuel-efficient than ever before.
Still, knowing how much fuel is in your heating oil tank is crucial. The team at Tasha Fuels & Propane can help!
Fuel companies don’t fill heating oil tanks to 100 percent. We need to leave room for the fuel inside to expand safely. Your tank has something called a vent alarm. This device extends about 6 inches down into the tank. It’s right under your vent pipe. When we pump heating oil into the tank, air is forced out, causing the vent alarm to whistle. The whistling stops once the oil level tank rises to the point where it’s touching the vent alarm. Then, our delivery driver stops pumping.
So, a 275-gallon heating oil tank will hold about 240 to 250 gallons of fuel.
Having a properly sized heating oil tank in your home ensures that you don’t need to arrange heating oil deliveries too often. It also reduces the likelihood of a no-heat emergency in the winter due to a surprise runout.
Here are some factors we use to determine the ideal size of heating oil tank for your home:
The most common size of heating oil tank for single-family homes is 275 gallons. At Tasha, we carry sizes ranging from 130-gallon to 400-gallon models. Our tanks come with single- or double-walled construction. If your tank is reaching the end of its service life (around 15 to 20 years), talk to us about arranging a top-of-the-line replacement.
When was the last time you checked your heating oil levels? With winter breathing down our necks, now is a good time to check your gauge.
Your gauge is a glass or plastic vial situated on top of the tank. It has markings similar to your car’s gas meter — F, ¾, ½ and ¼. You should see a marker floating in the vial. Its position tells you how full your oil tank is. If the float is at or near the bottom of the vial (or you can’t see it at all), your tank is empty or close to it. You need to arrange a heating oil delivery right away.
Of course, you can avoid checking a tank gauge altogether with Tasha’s automatic delivery service.
When you enroll in our no-fee automatic heating oil delivery schedule, our team handles your planning. We use your customer profile and current weather patterns to know right when you’ll need a fill-up. Then, we reserve your delivery appointment well in advance. There’s no stress and no risk of running out in the winter.
Households in Falmouth, Bourne, Mashpee, Osterville, Marion and other Southeastern Massachusetts and Upper Cape communities trust our team with their home heating. Reach out today to become a Tasha customer.
If you manage a fleet of delivery trucks, service vans, taxis, shuttles or other commercial vehicles, you know that keeping them fueled isn’t always simple. Arranging commercial gasoline for even a modestly sized fleet can eat up plenty of hours for a manager.
With fuel prices constantly fluctuating, you might find yourself tracking the rates on all the pumps around you. You are likely losing working hours each day while your drivers line up for fuel. And how much of your own time is spent reconciling and reimbursing receipts?
On the Upper Cape and throughout Southeastern Massachusetts, Tasha Fuels & Propane helps commercial clients maximize their gasoline efficiency with our dependable delivery services and fair pricing. Here are some ways you can improve your fleet fuel economy.
Optimizing your vehicles’ routes for delivery and transportation driving can markedly improve your miles-per-gallon and lower your annual gasoline usage. By reviewing your drivers’ routes, you can help them avoid areas with:
We all want our fleet drivers to remain safe on the road for their security and the well-being of people in the communities you serve. But safe driving also does wonders for your fuel economy.
When your drivers avoid frequent acceleration, hard braking, inefficient gear shifting and overuse of four-wheel-drive and cruise control, your fleet’s gasoline consumption will decrease.
High-quality commercial gasoline is easier on engines, which reduces your maintenance costs and the chance of breakdowns. At Tasha, we proudly offer ultra-low-sulfur Shell-brand unleaded, mid-grade and ethanol-free gasoline products. Our customers appreciate how our gasoline supports superior engine performance.
Tired of all the lost time that comes with filling up at the pump? Tasha Fuels & Propane can help with our convenient on-site gasoline delivery service. When you have gasoline storage at your business, lot or depot, your drivers can fill up quickly and safely without needing to go to a station.
Even better, you can stop reconciling expenses from different fuel vendors. All your gasoline will come from one trustworthy partner — one that’s committed to your success!
Another benefit of arranging on-site commercial gasoline deliveries is that you can put all the planning in our hands. Tasha’s team is experienced at fueling vehicle fleets in Bourne, Cotuit, Falmouth, Marion, Mashpee, Mattapoisett, Osterville, Wareham and countless other towns. We’ll look at your operations and develop a fuel delivery plan that ensures you never run out of gasoline. Also, our delivery schedule will ensure that you use your gasoline well before it expires.
For over three decades, Tasha’s team has delivered fuel, equipment services and peace of mind to homes and businesses in Massachusetts. With us, you aren’t just a number — you’re a neighbor. If you trust us with your commercial gasoline needs, we’ll always be here when you need us.
Let’s improve your fleet fueling processes together. Join the growing roster of Tasha customers.
When it comes to heating our homes, warming our water, cooking our food and drying our clothes, we want to ensure the energy we use isn’t negatively impacting our planet or the air quality in our homes. At Tasha Fuels & Propane, we proudly provide propane delivery and home comfort services to homes on the Upper Cape and throughout Southeastern Massachusetts.
The propane we deliver is eco-friendly, efficient and safe for your home.
Propane is not a greenhouse gas. In fact, it was designated as an alternative fuel in the 1990 Clean Air Act and the Energy Policy Act of 1992. Propane’s carbon intensity is lower than that of fuel oil, gasoline, and grid electricity. (More on that later.)
It also emits virtually no particulate matter, or microscopic solids or liquid droplets people can inhale and exacerbate illness. Moreover, propane contains no methane, a potent greenhouse gas that is the primary component of natural gas.
Electric heating, hot water systems, stoves and clothes dryers are only as eco-friendly as the electricity powering them. Unfortunately, Massachusetts has one of the least environmentally friendly grids in the region. Its carbon intensity score is well above the national average and nearly twice as high as propane’s. The grid relies heavily on natural gas for generation.
Electric equipment is often less efficient than propane counterparts. Today’s propane furnaces have efficiency rates as high as 98.5%, and propane water heaters have recovery rates twice as fast as electric water heaters.
You might have heard some discussion lately about the safety and environmental impact of “gas stoves.” There was even chatter in the wake of some air quality and health studies about whether cooking with gas should be banned. Firstly, there is no movement right now to confiscate gas stoves. Moreover, much of the controversy regarding stoves doesn’t pertain to propane. Consider these facts:
Whatever kind of stove you have, the most important way to preserve good air quality in your kitchen is to invest in a quality ventilation hood and fan or open windows to ensure proper airflow.
If you’re at all concerned that you could be using propane equipment more efficiently or safely, do not hesitate to reach out to the Tasha team. Our trained, experienced technicians can look at your propane products and provide advice and maintenance. We can also help you upgrade your heating and hot water systems.
Our team members are always here to help. Please contact us any time.
Did you know that diesel fuel comes in multiple colors? It’s true, and the color of the fuel you receive tells you a lot about how it should be used — and how much it will cost.
You see, off-road diesel is dyed red, while diesel for road use contains no dye. (Its coloration is yellowish-clear.) At Tasha Fuels and Propane, we proudly provide diesel to commercial customers on the Upper Cape and across Southeastern Massachusetts.
Diesel fuel is a distillate of crude oil, although an increasing amount comes from biomass. While it’s used in vehicle engines and other combustion equipment, diesel is denser than gasoline. It’s also less flammable. Gasoline will combust after coming into contact with a spark. By contrast, diesel requires compression and intense heat to combust. If you dropped a lit match into a pail filled with diesel, the flame would go out like you dropped it in water.
Physically, there is no difference between the on- and off-road diesel (except for their colors). But they are used for different purposes.
Road diesel powers cars, buses, trucks and other vehicles that travel on roadways. Off-road diesel powers farm and construction equipment, forklifts, trains, water vessels, power generators and heavy machinery.
Road diesel is subject to taxes and surcharges, making it more expensive than off-road diesel. If you are found to be using red-dyed off-road diesel in a road vehicle, you will need to pay a significant financial penalty.
Essentially, traditional heating oil is the same product as off-road diesel. Both products can be used in an oil-fired heating system. (So can road diesel, in a pinch.)
It’s worth noting that all traditional heating oil and diesel is now ultra-low sulfur. This minuscule sulfur content is much better for the environment, air quality and equipment wear and tear. Additionally, the premium Bioheat® fuel that Tasha heating oil customers enjoy contains organic biodiesel to improve its environmental performance and overall efficiency.
Another benefit of diesel over gasoline is its extended shelf life. Diesel fuel can last over 12 months, while gasoline deteriorates after three to six months.
If you need on-road or off-road diesel in the Tasha service area, our team of experts can deliver the fuel directly to your fleet of vehicles or place of business. This is a great way to ensure you always have the fuel you need, and our prices are always competitive.
You can also drop by our gas station in Cataumet, where we sell gas, diesel, propane, racing fuels and lubricants. It’s your one-stop, full-service fuel destination!
Our team of seasoned professionals can help you get the most for your energy dollar. Reach out to us today to become a Tasha Fuels & Propane customer.
It’s about time to put another gorgeous Cape Cod summer in the history books. No doubt your central ac or ductless mini-split air conditioning system has been serving you well in these toasty months, but soon it will be time to power down for the summer. That would be right around when you’re busting out your favorite fall cardigan and ordering your first pumpkin-spiced latte.
But there’s something else you should take care of before the leaves start to turn — scheduling an end-of-the-summer A/C tune-up.
At Tasha Fuels & Propane, we recommend that homeowners schedule routine maintenance every year. An annual tune-up from a Tasha HVAC technician pays dividends in energy savings and system health. Regular service ensures that your system:
The late summer and early fall are excellent times to arrange an A/C tune-up. Our HVAC team will have more availability before the cold weather arrives. And you don’t need to worry about your maintenance “wearing off.” The cleaning, calibration and fixes our team does will be in place when you turn your equipment back on next summer!
We understand that A/C equipment is a big, important investment. Cooling systems are expensive, and during the hottest weeks of the year, a working A/C is essential for your family’s comfort and safety. Here are other ways to show your cooling systems some TLC:
With summer ending, frosty weather is right around the corner on the Upper Cape. If your furnace or boiler hasn’t received a tune-up this year, we recommend getting it done in the fall. Like with A/C service, heating system service will save you energy in the winter.
With three decades dedicated to keeping families comfortable in Southeastern Massachusetts, the Tasha team has the experience and commitment to handle every aspect of your HVAC equipment. Schedule your comprehensive service today.