Oil & Fuel Heating oil vs Diesel???

[Clumber]

Is heating oil really the same as Diesel except for red dye and the tax? The old part of my house has an oil fired furnace for heat. The large tank is in the crawl space with fill and vent piping emerging from the rear of the house. It would be nice to install a pump mechanism that I could use to fuel a diesel PT. This would avoid installing another tank on the property... Any legal or fire code issues?

Patrick

 

[20 20]

I'll stick my foot in my mouth and say it would work fine, but it is illegal. Infact #2 heating oil would probably improve engine performance. With that said, lets do the right thing and pay those taxes

 

[rswyan]

I'll stick my foot in my mouth and say it would work fine, but it is illegal.

Huh ?

How so ?

With that said, lets do the right thing and pay those taxes

Very little right with paying taxes ......

 

[ponytug]

Heating oil (fuel oil #2) is basically the same hydrocarbon cut as diesel, but it lacks additives for lubricity (keeping injectors running) and cold flow and detergents.

You can get off road diesel, which also has dye and has no highway tax. Yes, you have to buy another tank, and you probably want to add an algacide to keep from growing crud in your tank.

Have a look at;
Diesel vs Home Heating Fuel

What is generally illegal is the use of fuels without highway taxes on roads. i.e. heating oil in a semi.

However, you need to be aware that it is legal to sell fuel oil #1 and #4 or kerosene as heating oil in many places. None of these are suitable for standard tractors. You would want to be really sure that you aren't putting them in your tractor.

All the best,

Peter

Is heating oil really the same as Diesel except for red dye and the tax? The old part of my house has an oil fired furnace for heat. The large tank is in the crawl space with fill and vent piping emerging from the rear of the house. It would be nice to install a pump mechanism that I could use to fuel a diesel PT. This would avoid installing another tank on the property... Any legal or fire code issues?

Patrick

 

[Bob999]

Check with your home heating oil supplier to find the specs for what is provided in your area.

In my area home heating oil is usually identified as dyed diesel on the sales receipt and use in an off road vehicle, such as a tractor, is legal. You also need to pay attention to sulfer content--in my area home heating oils are "low" sulfer, ~500 ppm, but are not ultra low sulfer, ~15 ppm, that is typically specified for new diesel engines.

 

[woodlandfarms]

So, let me add a twist to this.

If you are not using that tank to heat the house (you have converted to something else) you may put yourself in an uninsurable position. My logic is that if the house caught on fire and the insurance company found out that you were storing tractor fuel in the basement, the results may not be in your favor.

As for taxes, it is like death.... it is what makes living so wonderful and the results so inevitable.

Carl

 

[Clumber]

Thanks for the great responses here. My goal here is acheiving convienence more than saving taxes. I will probably end up with 2 - three compact tractors (Ventrac, Power Trac, etc), a large whole house elec. backup generator, a portable generator, and 2 HHO furnaces... It would have been great to fuel all these devices from a single tank. Hoever, it seem that I will need at least two: one for HHO/backup generator and one for the tractors. From what I have read here and other Internet sources that we should be burning premium diesel fuel meant for newer cleaner burning autos and tractors. Other TBN forums have stated that they have trouble with their equipment when burning cheaper diesel.

 

[Clumber]

Another related issue is gasoline vs diesel tractors. I live at least 5 miles from nearest gas and diesel station. When we get heavy snow it can be days before the roads are passable. It can actually take 2+ days to clear 36" of snow/ice from few areas, such as the mile long private road, that have to be cleared. Thus, I would need to store maybe 50-75 gallons of gas to make thru 3 days... Storing a large amount of gas for long periods is probably too dangerous because of its volatility. So diesel tractors is probably the way to go. Although, I could keep 6 five gallons gas cans under in a small shed just during the winter... I have heard that farmers just have a large oil drum with a hand pump on top and that they have diesel delivered.

 

[American Bulldog]

Home heating oil has more sulfur than road diesel, and it will not work correctly with zero emissions engines. However, I think that the home heating oil will work in a Deutz. Supposedly the home heating oil will clog up fuel filters quickly, so it is probably not the best choice in the long term. It should be a good backup source should you be in a jam.

Running diesel without the road tax in a PT is completely legal. I only use off road diesel in my tractors. The price of off road diesel is usually about half way between road diesel and home heating oil.

 

[Clumber]

So, let me add a twist to this.

If you are not using that tank to heat the house (you have converted to something else) you may put yourself in an uninsurable position. My logic is that if the house caught on fire and the insurance company found out that you were storing tractor fuel in the basement, the results may not be in your favor.

As for taxes, it is like death.... it is what makes living so wonderful and the results so inevitable.

Carl

I would never put another fuel tank near the house. The existing tank in the crawl space was installed when the house was built by a previous owner. Anyway, your point is well taken. For example, the insurance co may not accept a large gasoline tank anywhere on the property.