GCGiftos
New member
Picked up my new Kubota L3200 this Saturday & logged just over 8 hours running the rotary cutter. Finished up with a quarter tank to spare (probably 1gal per hour), so it's almost out of commission until I figure out a fueling strategy. Not exactly unexpected, but I just hadn't gotten around to it as it's not particularly urgent & had other stuff to do. My tractor is going to be a weekend warrior, so not getting a lot of work, maybe 10-20 hours a month, maybe.
I have a Shell station under a 2 mile drive away (quarter mile as the crow flies) & they sell off-road diesel. I had been planning on getting a 55 gallon drum ($10-20 for a decent plastic one) & manual or 12v pump, filling it at the local station & schlepping it home in my truck. Unload the barrel & leave it in the shop to fuel the tractor as necessary. Other thoughts were spending $300ish & getting a decent used 200-300gal tank (maybe just a couple 55 gal drums ) & having fuel delivered. My least exciting option would just be driving the tractor to the station to fuel it up.
Is getting delivery going to be price competitive with filling up a few 55gal drums?
I was just faced with this problem when I added a skid steer (40 gallon capacity) to my two diesel tractors and RTV. Tractors fill from the top....skid steer from the top rear, higher than the tractors. I ended up finding a $75 used heating oil tank with legs in good condition. Painted it green and set it on concrete patio blocks. Added a great 12V transfer pump with a digital flow meter from Northern Tool for around $249 and a diesel filter for $39.95 . The pump has 10' of 1"hose and pumps 20 gal/minute. When diesel was $3.96 at the pump, I paid $3.48 delivered. I leave it up to you to do the math and make your own decision. My tank sits along the drive to the pole barn. It's a great system and no more lugging heavy (for me) 5 gallon plastic fuel containers.
George