Oilheat America, the leading source for information on the benefits of using heating oil for space and hot water heating, has expanded its public outreach efforts by launching new Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google+ pages. Internet-connected computer and mobile device users can visit and follow or subscribe to these pages by clicking the social media icons at OilheatAmerica.com.

As with OilheatAmerica.com, social media updates will focus on Oilheat’s core attributes: Safe, Efficient, Clean, Abundant and Independent while including information on Bioheat®, the new “oilheat” containing a renewable biodiesel blend.
Oilheat America’s social media pages will be updated with links to information found on the Oilheat America website. These updates will then be shared by followers and subscribers, as well as social media users who find them via friends’ timelines or boosted (sponsored) posts.

Built to be friendly and accessible to the widest possible audience, the new social media platforms will connect Oilheat America with consumers, business owners, policymakers and anyone else who is interested in heating oil. Oilheat America looks to leverage the power of social media to spread knowledge of heating oil and to strengthen ongoing dialogues with the individuals who use it and the organizations that buy, sell and distribute it.

Oilheat America was re-launched by NORA in January of 2015 and has shown spirited activity with three and a half thousand visitors to date.

Oilheat America is sponsored by the National Oilheat Research Alliance (NORA). NORA  was authorized by Congress in 2000 to generate funding allowing the Oilheating industry to provide more efficient and more reliable heat and hot water to American consumers. NORA’s efforts focus on Consumer Education, Professional Education, Energy Efficiency & Safety, and Research.

For more information about NORA and its programs or services, call 703-340-1660 or visit the web site, NORAweb.org.

When finalized, landmark move for 20 percent biodiesel in heating oil expected to accelerate America’s transformation to Bioheat®

The move is a significant leap forward in the industry effort to boost the percentage of cleaner burning biodiesel that homeowners and building managers use in oilheat equipment common to the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.

The updated ASTM D396 Standard Specification for Fuel Oils, containing the new grade for blends of 6 to 20 percent biodiesel, will be finalized and published by ASTM for public use after the usual ASTM review and editing process. It is expected by February 2015.

The mixture of biodiesel and heating oil is marketed as Bioheat® fuel, a registered trademark.

“The fuel oil industry is reinventing itself as a 21st century fuel by moving to higher blends of low carbon biodiesel and near-zero sulfur levels across the board,” said John Huber, president of the National Oilheat Research Alliance.

The Bioheat renaissance gives oilheat dealers, mostly small, family-owned businesses, the ability to provide their customers with a desirable new product, according to Huber.

“Bioheat gives consumers the choice to use a clean, domestically produced fuel without having to invest in an expensive natural gas system,” said Paul Nazzaro, who leads the National Biodiesel Board’s Bioheat outreach program. “Setting these performance specs for increased biodiesel levels is hugely significant, because it opens the door for innovation in the heating oil industry and will allow more consumers to enjoy the full benefits of this fuel in their homes and businesses.”

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[ezcol_1half_end]Nazzaro added that environmentally speaking, a 20 percent blend of biodiesel puts Bioheat on par with natural gas, the biggest competitor to oilheat, while higher biodiesel levels up to 100 percent biodiesel could reduce the carbon footprint of Bioheat up to 80 percent compared to traditional fuel oil.

The passage of 5 percent biodiesel into the No. 1 and No. 2 grades of ASTM D396 occurred in 2008. During the last six years, the Bioheat Technical Steering Committee, comprised of industry technical experts and led by NORA and NBB, developed a tremendous amount of data that formed the basis for the ballot. The vote to pass the ballot came last week at the semi-annual meeting of the ASTM Committee D02 on Petroleum Products.

“The technical data with this ballot for the new B6-B20 grade verified what we have known for years-B20 made with high quality biodiesel works well,” said Seth Obetz, president of Pennsylvania-based Bioheat distributor Worley and Obetz. “We have been marketing high quality B20 for 14 years and our customers see fewer problems with B20 than with conventional heating oil.”

Wholesale fuel provider Amerigreen reported at the ASTM meeting that it has more than 100,000 B20 customers. The company said that number is growing because Bioheat customers see less maintenance than with conventional fuel oil.

The NBB and NORA have invested millions of dollars in Bioheat research, outreach and education through funding provided by oilheat dealers, biodiesel producers and the soybean checkoff program.

Made from a diverse mix of sustainable resources, biodiesel is an Advanced Biofuel as designated by the Environmental Protection Agency.

For more, visit Bioheatonline.com and Biodiesel.org

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About ASTM International
ASTM International, formerly known as the American Society for Testing and Materials, is a globally recognized leader in the development and delivery of international voluntary consensus standards. Today, some 12,000 ASTM standards are used around the world to improve product quality, enhance safety, facilitate market access and trade, and build consumer confidence. Working in an open and transparent process and using ASTM’s a dvanced electronic infrastructure, ASTM members deliver the test methods, specifications, guides and practices that support industries and governments worldwide. Learn more at ASTM.org.