| Refining petroleum or crude oil produces | | | | being highest during the winter. This is |
| heating oil. Residential use for heating | | | | because consumption of heating oil rises as |
| accounts for most heating oil consumption; | | | | it becomes colder. Extremely harsh weather |
| close to 8 percent of American homes use | | | | conditions may also have an adverse impact on |
| heating oil.Like gasoline and diesel prices, | | | | supply routes. Thus, if a part of the |
| heating oil prices depend to a large extent | | | | country experiences an unusually mild winter, |
| on the supply and price of crude oil. If | | | | heating oil prices may be reasonable. |
| there is too much crude oil available in the | | | | However, if winter is harsh, prices can rise |
| marketplace, oil prices, including heating | | | | quite dramatically. Another reason for |
| oil prices, fall. A crude oil supply | | | | higher heating oil costs is the high cost of |
| shortage, alone or combined with increased | | | | transportation to more remote homes.Many oil |
| demand for crude oil products, drives heating | | | | suppliers offer fixed price schemes to help |
| oil prices up. Local market factors also | | | | consumers control the costs of using heating |
| affect the price of heating oil. If a | | | | oil. Installing better insulation can also |
| heating oil supplier sets its prices too | | | | keep heating costs down. For lower-income |
| high, consumers may switch to another | | | | families, there are some federal, state and |
| supplier. When enough revenues are lost from | | | | supplier-supported programs to make heating |
| customers who leave, the supplier will be | | | | oil more affordable. Some consumers try and |
| under pressure bring prices more in line with | | | | avoid seasonal increases in heating oil |
| those offered by competitors.Heating oil | | | | prices by filling their tanks during the |
| prices tend to go up seasonally, with prices | | | | summer months, when prices are lower. |