How long will my heating oil last?
Gallons in the tank, divided by gallons burned a day. Enter what you have, pick a burn rate that matches the weather, and get days of heat remaining plus the date that lands on. All math runs in your browser.
100 gallons of heating oil lasts about 20 days at a typical winter burn rate of 5 gallons a day, about 40 days at a mild 2.5 gallons a day, and about 12.5 days in a cold snap at 8 gallons a day. Your own rate depends on the house and the weather.
Only have a stick or gauge reading in inches? Convert it to gallons with your tank's chart first.
Presets are typical for a 2,000 sq ft oil-heated home. Your real rate may differ.
days
Enter your gallons to calculate.
Pick an honest burn rate
The presets bracket a typical 2,000 sq ft oil-heated home: about 2.5 gallons a day in mild fall or spring weather, about 5 on a typical winter day, and about 8 in a cold snap. A bigger, draftier, or colder house runs higher; a small tight one runs lower.
For your own number, run two delivery slips through the heating oil usage calculator. Gallons delivered divided by days between fills is your real rate, and the custom field here takes it as is.
Days of heat left, at a glance
| Gallons in the tank | 2.5 gal/day (mild) | 5 gal/day (typical winter) | 8 gal/day (cold snap) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 20 days | 10 days | 6.3 days |
| 100 | 40 days | 20 days | 12.5 days |
| 150 | 60 days | 30 days | 18.8 days |
| 200 | 80 days | 40 days | 25 days |
| 240 | 96 days | 48 days | 30 days |
Each cell is the gallons divided by the daily rate. The three rates are this calculator's own presets, not measured consumption: a real house varies with the weather, the thermostat and the building. The 240 row is a realistic full fill on a 275 gallon tank.
Common questions
How long will 100 gallons of heating oil last?
About 20 days at a typical winter rate of 5 gallons a day, about 40 days at a mild 2.5 gallons a day, and about 12.5 days in a cold snap at 8 gallons a day. Those are the preset rates in the calculator above; for your own number, run two delivery slips through the heating oil usage calculator.
Is a quarter tank really the point to reorder?
In winter, yes. At cold-weather burn rates the last quarter does not buy many days, and delivery trucks book out fastest exactly when everyone is burning hard. Ordering at a quarter leaves you a few days to get on the delivery schedule.
What happens if I run out of heating oil?
A run-out can pull the sludge at the tank bottom into the fuel line and clog the filter, and after the delivery the burner usually needs to be primed and restarted. That restart is a job for a licensed technician, not a homeowner. Most oil companies can send the technician along with the emergency delivery.
Do these preset rates fit my house?
They fit a typical 2,000 sq ft oil-heated home. Yours may run higher or lower with size, insulation, and thermostat habits. For your real number, use the delivery history mode of the heating oil usage calculator with two delivery slips, then enter it here as a custom rate.
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