Oil & Fuel Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank?

   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank? #1  

WifethinksImworking

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I was wondering if anyone ever tried to add any type of pump (hand or auto) to an existing and accessible home/bldg heating oil tank? It seems to me that if one has an exterior tank already full of oil (same as diesel) that one could simply draw from a 275 gallon tank. In my area, heating oil is priced @ $0.25 less than road diesel at a station anyway and I could possibly save even more by locking in on prices during the summer.

Obviously, the typical home owner may not have an exterior oil tank but I happen to have some on my property and it seems to be an easy and unlimited solution.

Thoughts?
 
   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank? #2  
ive only seen fuel tanks while i was up north but i would look for a threaded plug or something on top i could take out and modify for a fuel siphon then get an electric or manual pump to attach it to i woulnt put the siphon at the bottom i would go 2-3" above to bottom as not to pickup sediment and install one of those nifty goldenrod 3/4 or 1" npt filter/seperator that you can get a northern for under 40$
 
   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank? #3  
Find a top bung, get it's size and install a hand pump with hose.

Alternately raise the existing fuel tank so you can gravity feed.:D

Picture is of a pretty standard farm type fuel tank.:D
 

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   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank? #4  
I have a friend who did exactly that. For all intents and purposes its the same fuel, and yes, you don't get whacked with the tax. He just ran black iron pipe out the bung at the bottom, and feeds it into a 110v pump (like they sell @ TSC). His tanks are outside, but his pump is just inside his overhead door to keep the pump out of the snow (for convenience). He has had this set up for a couple years and it has worked like a charm for him.



P.S. He adds a little Power Service in the winter months since the tanks are outside and has had no gelling issues.
 
   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank? #5  
Not a reccommended procedure up here. That fuel is dyed so inspectors can check it. One look in your tank and it is tax time, big time. I have heard of them collecting back taxes for years of supposed use. I dunno if it is true but my brother, who was a head mechanic at a Ford dealer, says one tank of dyed fuel leaves evidence on the filler pipe.

Harry K
 
   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank?
  • Thread Starter
#6  
Thanks for the input. My only concern was there are other fuel lines and guages going to the tank for the home heating. I obviously don't want to impact that but I do think it should work. Regarding inspectors: my last place my neighbor had a diesel tractor that he let me use and I let him put his 55gal drum in my little barn. Since he let me use his tractor sometimes I would fill the drum with diesel. When I called the delivery company they showed up with the same heating oil truck and filled it up. They were the ones that told me they it is the same fuel. Maybe in PA it is taxed different and off-road diesel is the same as heating oil.
 
   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank? #7  
I've tapped into the tank in my basement. It's kind of a pain carrying the full 5-gallon containers up the stairs, but I figure I'd have to carry them anyway if I went to a gas station so in the end it's more convenient.

I use this pump from Harbor Freight: Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices

The only good thing I can say about it is that it was cheap ($20) and it sort of works. My oil tank has a 2" bung on the top, and the pump comes with a 2" adapter, but the adapter doesn't have enough thread to hold it in place, so the pump rocks when I try to crank it, which makes it hard to crank. The handle is awkwardly close to the outlet tube, and it is difficult to hold a container on top of the oil tank and crank at the same time.

I made a few modifications that make it work better. I took a brass 1-1/4" male threaded pipe to 3/4" sweat copper fitting, and I drilled it out so that 3/4" pipe would slide through. I slid it on a piece of copper pipe, and soldered it so that there was about 4' on one side and 1' on the other. The fitting went into a 1-1/4" x 2" bushing, which went into the bung. This gave me a rigidly attached pipe, with 4' sticking into the tank and 1' above. Onto this I sweated a 1-1/4 male fitting which matched the intake of the pipe. And, no, I didn't solder the pipe while it was on the tank!

Next I put a hose on the pump outlet so I can fill tanks on the floor. The outlet to the pump has a non-standard thread, so I put a piece of 7/8 ID hose over the tube and fastened it with a hose clamp. At the other end I put a short piece of 3/4 copper pipe with a ball valve. Having the can on the floor makes pumping a lot easier, as gravity does most of the work, and the ball valve allows me to seal the pump outlet, which keeps fumes out of the house.

When I ask the oil company to give me fuel oil, the invoice says #2 diesel. It also says off-road use only. As long as I stay off public roads I believe this is legal.
 
   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank? #8  
Yes, #2 fuel and diesel are the same thing. #2 will normally be died though to show it is non-road taxed. It also may not have the non-gell additives.

Harry K
 
   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank? #9  
turnkey4099 said:
Not a reccommended procedure up here.
1*That fuel is dyed red so inspectors can check it.
2*One look in your tank and it is tax time, big time.
Harry K
1*Wouldn't it be red in the tank to start with ?
How would adding a pump and nozzle to the tank change anything?
2*Why is that?

How can it be legal to get diesel at a service station or have it home delivered but if you draw it out of the home heating oil tank it's illegal ?
 
   / Anyone try adding pump/nozzle to home heating oil tank? #10  
turnkey4099 said:
Yes, #2 fuel and diesel are the same thing. #2 will normally be died though to show it is non-road taxed. It also may not have the non-gell additives.

Harry K
#1 is only dyed for off road use
#2 is only dyed for off road use
 
 
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