Propane

[Dave Fritz]

Our propane contract actually went down. Something we're not used to.

[Alan Lightstone]

My local propane company, Clearwater Gas, sent a notice that they are ditching the propane business. Pity, they've been very good.

So I'm expecting a huge increase in costs.

[Warren Lake]

fought one once and got my price cut in half. Then did it for others one of them a lawyer who had battled with them and go no where. Any time I hired him after he would not give me a bill. Finally at one point moved a whole group of us to another company that was honerable. We are all still with them. I dont do lock in price, its a commodity so the price is up and down. In 2003 the first company tried to charge me .87 and after battle it was .47.

[John Ziebron]

I buy my propane from a family owned business with 3 locations in SE Michigan. They do a lot for the local communities they're in and have the best price of anyone that can deliver to me. I always go with their prebuy and this year, to my surprise, it dropped 20 cents from last year.

[Dave Fritz]

Your lucky John, our little local company got bought out by a bigger one. It is a cooperative but it seems as cooperatives get larger, the expenses rise too with layers of bureaucracy. Individual input and contact suffers. They're no longer in the little town, rather in the city some miles away.

[Jack Frederick]

Like so many others businesses propane has changed tremendously. I did a great deal of business with LP companies across New England beginning in the late 90’s. At that time and up through about ‘06 most of the business was with “full Service” companies, meaning they had a display room for equipment and sold what they liked and could service. The service side was the best as their techs were trained on handling any issues with the equipment. They did not want problems so they absolutely sold the best most reliable heating/cooking equipment. There were many multi-generational businesses. In the mid-‘00’s things really began to change. Many owners aged out and sold which is natural, but the big change was that the majors, Ferrell, Suburban, Amerigas and others became “gas” companies. Their business is gas and everything else, staff, sales, inventory (other than gas) and service depts are overhead and to be avoided. They serviced their tanks and associated gear, but no longer provided the sales and service. It is a natural progression in business I guess, but I miss the dynamic of those individual business owners.