Price index
What off-grid costs this week
Propane, heating oil, gasoline, and diesel from the government's weekly survey, picked for your state, with where they were a year ago. Below that, what batteries, panels, inverters, generators, stoves, tanks, and wells are actually going for this month, with the listings they came from. Refreshed weekly and monthly.
Fuel
Fuel prices for Vermont
Residential propane
$3.73 $/gal
Vermont · week of Mar 30, 2026 (last reading; the survey runs October to March)
-0.08 vs a year ago ($3.82)
Heating season only (October to March); EIA surveys about 24 states and the regions.
Residential heating oil (No. 2)
$5.56 $/gal
Vermont · week of Mar 30, 2026 (last reading; the survey runs October to March)
+1.84 vs a year ago ($3.71)
Heating season only; surveyed where heating oil is common (Northeast and Midwest).
Regular gasoline, retail
$3.95 $/gal
New England (PADD 1A) · week of Aug 17, 2026
+0.91 vs a year ago ($3.04)
Weekly; states shown where EIA publishes them, otherwise the region.
On-highway diesel, retail
$5.55 $/gal
New England (PADD 1A) · week of Aug 17, 2026
+1.58 vs a year ago ($3.97)
Weekly by region (California separately).
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration weekly retail price surveys (residential propane and heating oil from the State Heating Oil and Propane Program, October to March; gasoline and diesel weekly, all year). Where EIA does not survey a state, the nearest region is shown. Plug the propane number into the propane calculator or the planner to see what your winter costs.
Equipment
What the gear costs this month
Ranges compiled monthly from manufacturer, retailer, and government sources (low, typical, high), with the source behind each number; anything that is not a direct listing is labeled reference. Hardware only unless the row says installed. Use the typical column to sanity-check a quote; the quote review does that math for you.
| Item | Low | Typical | High | Unit | Notes and sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Server-rack LiFePO4 battery, hardware only | $240 | $287 | $289 | $/kWh | Mainstream 48 V rack packs cluster near 287 dollars per kWh: the EG4 LifePower4 V2 5.12 kWh sells for about 1,471 to 1,477 dollars at authorized dealers. Larger wall mount packs bring the floor down, with the 14.3 kWh EG4 PowerPro budget model near 3,431 dollars or about 240 per kWh. Spread is narrow this month because most sellers hold the same MAP price. 3 sources, 2026-08
|
| 12 V LiFePO4 drop-in battery (100 Ah class), hardware only | $241 | $490 | $741 | $/kWh | Budget and mid tier 100 Ah class drop ins from Renogy start near 308 dollars, which is about 241 dollars per kWh at 1.28 kWh. Battle Born sits at the top, 799 on sale and 949 list, which works out to roughly 624 to 741 per kWh. The gap between value brands and premium US assembled brands is what moves this number. 2 sources, 2026-08
|
| Solar panels, hardware only (pallet and single-panel retail) | $0.26 | $0.45 | $0.84 | $/W | Pallet buys are the cheap end: a 36 panel pallet of 450 W panels at A1 SolarStore was 4,271.49 dollars, which is about 26 cents per watt. Larger name brand 550 W pallets run near 45 cents per watt. Single panel and small bundle retail is far higher, with Rich Solar 400 W panels at about 84 cents per watt in an eight panel set. 3 sources, 2026-08
|
| Hybrid / off-grid inverter-charger, hardware only | $0.23 | $0.28 | $0.60 | $/W | The EG4 6000XP is the price leader at 1,399 to 1,549 dollars for 6,000 continuous watts, or about 23 to 26 cents per watt. Sol-Ark 15K is the premium end at 5,499 dollars on sale against a 8,999 list for 15,000 watts, so 37 cents per watt discounted and 60 cents at list. Discounting on the Sol-Ark is what moves the top of this range. 3 sources, 2026-08
|
| Portable dual-fuel generator | - | - | - | $/W | I found current product pages for the Champion 9375/7500 W dual fuel and the Westinghouse WGen9500DFc at Home Depot, Lowe's and the manufacturer, but the listings did not expose a current price in the results I could verify, so I have fewer than two confirmed price points. Values left null rather than guessed. 2 sources, 2026-08
|
| EPA-certified wood stove, 40,000 to 80,000 BTU | $1,199 | $1,390 | $1,627 | $ each | Home Depot Drolet stoves in the 40,000 to 80,000 BTU class run from 1,199 dollars for the base model up to about 1,627 dollars for the larger units, stove only. Most popular sizes such as the Escape 1800 sit near 1,390 dollars. Cast iron premium brands would sit above this range but I did not confirm current listings for them. 3 sources, 2026-08
|
| 500-gallon propane tank, installed (owned) | - | - | - | $ each | I located direct tank seller pages for owned 500 gallon tanks including installed pricing, but none of them displayed a verifiable current price in what I retrieved, and the only numeric figures I saw came from cost guide sites that are not allowed to set a range. Values left null. 2 sources, 2026-08
|
| Drilled well, per foot, US average | - | - | - | $/ft | Every per foot figure I found this month came from cost guide and lead generation sites, which are excluded from setting a range, and I did not locate a government, utility or state agency dataset with current drilled well pricing. For context those guides cluster around 25 to 65 dollars per foot with hard rock regions higher, but I am not using that to set numbers. |
How to read it: the typical column is where most listings cluster; low is usually a sale, a house brand, or pallet pricing; high is a premium brand or small quantity. A quote far outside the range deserves a reason. This is a price reference, not a recommendation; the gear page has the products this site actually vouches for.
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