ELLSWORTH — With the price of home heating oil averaging nearly $4.50 a gallon in Downeast Maine, oil dealers are trying to rein in runaway prices, while homeowners worry about how they will heat their homes next winter.

“At the moment, we don’t believe the fundamentals of supply and demand support the price structure or the outrageously high prices in place,” Jamie Py, president and CEO of the Maine Oil Dealers Association, said when asked what circumstances could send oil prices downward.

Py contends that soaring prices for home heating oil result from unregulated speculation in the commodities market.

“Should the trading market bubble burst, prices could go down at any time,” he said. “The commodities market is driven by speculation.

“They are dark markets not regulated in the U.S. or offshore, and traders can push the commodity prices up until it bursts.”

Py and oil dealer representatives from across the country are pressuring Congress to bring oversight to the commodities market.

“They need to look into it so it is done fairly, transparently and without manipulation,” Py said.

The Farm Bill recently passed by Congress reinstates the Commodities Futures Trading Commission, which oversees energy commodities trading in the United States. But oil dealers say more needs to be done to stop speculators from exploiting foreign markets.

Whatever drives the prices, they are already beyond the budgets of many Downeast households, and oil dealers are well aware of a consumer shift to alternative heating options.

“Our dealers are having trouble for two reasons,” Py said. “People go to other fuels because they have to. As dealers sell less and what they sell costs more, it creates cash flow problems.”

The problem is compounded when homeowners are unable to immediately pay for their fuel supply, which can create a cash shortfall for many small dealers, making it impossible for them to operate.

“It’s real trouble for all of us if something doesn’t happen quickly in Congress,” Py said.

With many homeowners still paying off their heating oil debt from last winter, other heating sources are gaining popularity.

Pellet stoves top the list.

“There’s definitely a demand,” said Beth Graham, co-owner of Evergreen Home Solutions in Ellsworth.

“It has been off the charts,” Ray Graham said of consumer interest in pellet stoves. “I’ve been selling pellet stoves for 20 years, primarily to people who want to save a little, feel better about the environment and warm a core area. Now, they are mainstream.”

Other local dealers agree.

“The demand has been extremely high,” said Paul Carey, owner of North Winds Stove & Fireplace. “It’s what everybody wants to talk about. We get people in every day looking at them.”

Cheri Wallace, co-owner of Acadia Spray Foam Insulation and Wallace Heating Systems, says she gets a steady stream of potential customers asking about pellet stoves, solar heating and other alternatives to oil.

She said the insulation aspect of the business is also busy as homeowners look for ways to reduce the amount of energy they use to heat their homes.

“There are several forms of insulation,” Wallace said. “Ours is manufactured at a home or business and sprayed to an open surface — new construction, attics or basements.

“We can insulate the perimeter of a basement to prevent cold from going up. Any place you can tighten up a home is good. The industry recommends you envelop a home.”

The increased popularity for wood pellet stoves has stimulated the pellet industry in Maine. The state’s third pellet mill opened earlier this month in Athens and another is scheduled to start in Strong next fall.

Mainers also use pellets made in Canada, New Hampshire and other states, and in recent years, the availability of the compressed wood products made from sawdust and other leftovers of the logging industry has increased.

“I’ve been in the business for 20 years,” Carey said. “For 18 years, to be a shop selling pellet stoves, you needed to sell pellets. Now they’ve become mainstream.”

Ray Graham said his store will arrange to have truckloads of pellets delivered to homes, and the same service is available at local lumberyards and building supply centers. In winter, pellets are readily available at large chain stores in the Ellsworth area.

As traditional wood stoves and pellet stoves enjoy newfound popularity, oil dealers want consumers to consider staying with oil as their primary heating fuel.

“It’s been a great product for 20 years,” Py said. “It has a history of being the best value. I hope that consumers don’t make a rash mistake.”

Py recommends that people heating with oil upgrade their equipment.

“It’s the cheapest and best thing you can do,” he said.

Py said that new technology can improve the efficiency of even relatively new furnaces. Technological advances in temperature control can be added to existing furnaces and save 10 to 15 percent of fuel consumption, he said.

“Call your dealer or service and ask, ‘What can I do to save gallons?’” Py said. “Make that investment.”

Consumers also will compare the cost of wood pellet stoves and whole-house wood pellet boilers.

Whatever you conclude, now is the time to consider heating your home next winter. If your budget can’t accommodate major purchases for new equipment, start planning those improvements that help reduce the use of energy to heat your home, such as insulation, window replacements and so on.