Order oilDirect from the company
Pricing not available
We couldn't find a price when we last checked. Call or visit their website for a quote.
Pioneer Oil and Propane is a family heating-fuel company in central Massachusetts that says it has been delivering heating oil since 1957. Beyond oil and propane delivery, it says it services, repairs and installs boilers, tanks, air conditioning, ductless mini-splits and water heaters, and it advertises 24/7 emergency service. Its website names Sturbridge as its service area. The written reviews are older, running from 2011 to 2017 on HomeAdvisor and Angi, where it holds 4.7 stars from 17 ratings. Delivery customers wrote mostly about reliability and price. A 2014 propane customer said the company shows up when it says it will, leaves a coupon toward the next delivery, and had the lowest per-gallon price they could find. A 2013 reviewer on automatic fill said they had never had a problem getting filled and liked a discount for paying within a week. A 2011 customer of five or six years called them dependable and easy to reach. Installation reviews are more mixed. In 2017 a homeowner described a quick installation and help meeting MassSave program requirements. A detailed 2015 account of a new oil burner, tank and hot water system lists a series of problems: a worker connected two pipes wrongly and caused a leak, leaking joints on the hot water tank, reversed thermostats, a control unit not set for the indirect water heater, and a flue too close to wood joists that failed the fire department's inspection. The same customer wrote that the owner paid for the water damage, reversed the repair bills, and that the company responded quickly to each issue, and said they were very happy with the finished system. The Better Business Bureau lists it as accredited with an A+ grade.
The cost is apart of the maintenance, everything is included. To do regular maintenance it took 45 minutes. They explained what they were doing and if they ran into some issues. They're good at explaining what's involved with the maintenance and how they're going about doing it and what they check for it. There were two guys that came out.
The process from quote through installation was exceptional. Joe G was extremely responsive, and was very helpful in meeting requirements of the MassSave program. The installation went quickly, and all personnel were professional and courteous. Pricing and service package were very competitive.
The owner and customer service manager were both very responsive to issues raised during the installation of the system. They did everything they could to make sure I was a satisfied customer. The reason I could not give they company A's in the areas of quality and professionalism was the number of issues that needed to be raise during the installation and items they did not check out prior to leaving after the installation. <br /> This company was chosen to install the system was because their quote was the most feasible placement of the oil burner, oil tank, vent system, and hot water tank received. Their price was comparable to other quotes. <br /> This new system was purchased using a zero interest loan sponsored by the local electrical utility. Work was started after a credit check was run and an initial deposit was paid for items not not covered by the loan. The lead installer was knowledgeable and made me comfortable as the work started. We reviewed the work that needed to be done and work commenced. A team of four people began the install. <br /> The first "issue" arose when they began to connect the hot water tank using 1/2" copper pipe. The previous system was connected to the house with 3/4". When this was brought this to the attention of the lead installer he was quick to call the office and get the needed materials and the water system was attached as requested with 3/4" pipe. <br /> During the process of connecting the new heating system to existing piping, one of the workers incorrectly connected two pipes together and cause a water leak which damaged some materials in storage shelves. The owner was quick to compensate for the damaged materials. <br /> At the end of the second day of installation the system was checked out and the workers left. <br /> Soon after the workers left we discovered there was no hot water. The new system had a locked water mixing valve above the hot water tank. It was set to 70 degrees. I could have called the company, but chose to look up how to unlock the mixing valve and adjust to supply hot water to the house. I was able to adjust the mixing valve which allowed the tank to supply hot water to the house. <br /> The installed heating system was a two zone system. Later that first evening one set of rooms were getting cold while the other set of rooms were getting hot. Upon further examination I determined the thermostats were reversed. After switching the two thermostat connections at the oil burner the room temperatures returned to desired temperatures. <br /> When the hot water tank was first pressurized no water leaks was observed, however, during the next few days, a number of leaking joints were identified. A different employee install the plumbing of the hot water tank. It took another employee to arrive and take apart and reconnect the connections to stop all the leaks. I was told that the pipes were not adequately tightened at the first install. To the company's credit response time to my report of leaks was fast. <br /> Two bills were received from the company for parts and labor to fix the water tank leaks. I called the owner of the company and the charges were reversed. <br /> A few days later I noticed the circulator pump to the hot water tank was running and the boiler temperature was low. The house was not calling for heat. After some research I found that the boiler control unit was not set for an indirect water heater. So as long as the house did not call for heat, the oil burner did not turn on to supply heat to the hot water storage tank. The position of a switch in the control unit needed to be changed. Once changed the burner turned on supplying heat to the hot water storage tank. <br /> The exhaust for the oil burner is out the side of the house using a power vent system. A few days after the install, I realized that the venting fan was running for an extended period of time (approximately 11 minutes) after the oil burner shut off. After reading the manufacturer literature, manufacturer recommends the vent fan to run for a period of 3 to 5 minutes after the oil burner shuts off. The run time of the vent fan was reduced from 11 minutes down to the 3 to 5 minute period as the manufacture recommends. <br /> The oil burner purchased included a control unit that can be adjusted to provide increased energy efficiency. This feature was discovered as part of reading the control unit manual to solve the water heater - oil burner problem (see above). The company left the system where the control unit did not provide any added efficiency. After experimenting with the efficiency setting, a "good" trade-off has been reached between oil burner responsiveness and the house need for heat. <br /> A few weeks after the install, the fire department came out the inspect the system. The system failed the inspection. The oil burner exhaust flue was within 18" of combustible materials. Board needed to be installed above the flue pipe where the wood floor joists were withing the 18" of the flue pipe. The company was quick to respond to the situation. <br /> I am extremely happy with the new heating system, power vent, and hot water storage tank. I would have preferred not to have raised the issues and work thru the problems I had to with the install and start-up of the system. It is important to me to be associated with a company that will work thru issues and problems to satisfy the customer. <br />
The owner and customer service manager were both very responsive to issues raised during the installation of the system. They did everything they could to make sure I was a satisfied customer. The reason I could not give they company A's in the areas of quality and professionalism was the number of issues that needed to be raise during the installation and items they did not check out prior to leaving after the installation. This company was chosen to install the system was because their quote was the most feasible placement of the oil burner, oil tank, vent system, and hot water tank received. Their price was comparable to other quotes. This new system was purchased using a zero interest loan sponsored by the local electrical utility. Work was started after a credit check was run and an initial deposit was paid for items not not covered by the loan. The lead installer was knowledgeable and made me comfortable as the work started. We reviewed the work that needed to be done and work commenced. A team of four people began the install. The first "issue" arose when they began to connect the hot water tank using 1/2" copper pipe. The previous system was connected to the house with 3/4". When this was brought this to the attention of the lead installer he was quick to call the office and get the needed materials and the water system was attached as requested with 3/4" pipe. During the process of connecting the new heating system to existing piping, one of the workers incorrectly connected two pipes together and cause a water leak which damaged some materials in storage shelves. The owner was quick to compensate for the damaged materials. At the end of the second day of installation the system was checked out and the workers left. Soon after the workers left we discovered there was no hot water. The new system had a locked water mixing valve above the hot water tank. It was set to 70 degrees. I could have called the company, but chose to look up how to unlock the mixing valve and adjust to supply hot water to the house. I was able to adjust the mixing valve which allowed the tank to supply hot water to the house. The installed heating system was a two zone system. Later that first evening one set of rooms were getting cold while the other set of rooms were getting hot. Upon further examination I determined the thermostats were reversed. After switching the two thermostat connections at the oil burner the room temperatures returned to desired temperatures. When the hot water tank was first pressurized no water leaks was observed, however, during the next few days, a number of leaking joints were identified. A different employee install the plumbing of the hot water tank. It took another employee to arrive and take apart and reconnect the connections to stop all the leaks. I was told that the pipes were not adequately tightened at the first install. To the company's credit response time to my report of leaks was fast. Two bills were received from the company for parts and labor to fix the water tank leaks. I called the owner of the company and the charges were reversed. A few days later I noticed the circulator pump to the hot water tank was running and the boiler temperature was low. The house was not calling for heat. After some research I found that the boiler control unit was not set for an indirect water heater. So as long as the house did not call for heat, the oil burner did not turn on to supply heat to the hot water storage tank. The position of a switch in the control unit needed to be changed. Once changed the burner turned on supplying heat to the hot water storage tank. The exhaust for the oil burner is out the side of the house using a power vent system. A few days after the install, I realized that the venting fan was running for an extended period of time (approximately 11 minutes) after the oil burner shut off. After reading the manufacturer literature, manufacturer recommends the vent fan to run for a period of 3 to 5 minutes after the oil burner shuts off. The run time of the vent fan was reduced from 11 minutes down to the 3 to 5 minute period as the manufacture recommends. The oil burner purchased included a control unit that can be adjusted to provide increased energy efficiency. This feature was discovered as part of reading the control unit manual to solve the water heater - oil burner problem (see above). The company left the system where the control unit did not provide any added efficiency. After experimenting with the efficiency setting, a "good" trade-off has been reached between oil burner responsiveness and the house need for heat. A few weeks after the install, the fire department came out the inspect the system. The system failed the inspection. The oil burner exhaust flue was within 18" of combustible materials. Board needed to be installed above the flue pipe where the wood floor joists were withing the 18" of the flue pipe. The company was quick to respond to the situation. I am extremely happy with the new heating system, power vent, and hot water storage tank. I would have preferred not to have raised the issues and work thru the problems I had to with the install and start-up of the system. It is important to me to be associated with a company that will work thru issues and problems to satisfy the customer.
unknown
Specializes in
Also offers
Service area
Languages
Ownership
Certified attributes are verified against the public registry. Others are the business's own statement.
1 change recorded — last scanned Oct 5, 2026.