55 gallon drum for diesel?

[twodogs]

I am considering buying a 55 gallon drum & using it to buy off-road diesel for my tractor. I am tired of using 5 gallon containers, having the spouts break/leak, and making many trips to buy the off road. I have a FEL to unload the drum from my truck, so the weight isn't a concern. I know that I have to start with a clean drum. I plan to pick up a pump from TSC or Northern Tool. Is there anything else that I need to be concerned about? Your help is appreciated.

 

[TexasSD]

I use a plastic 55 gallon drum for storing biodiesel. I got it free from the car wash, ran it through the pressure washer to clean it and it has worked great.

Make sure that collar on the pump you get fits one of the holes on the barrel. The rotary hand pump I got from Northern didn't fit either hole, so we take it off after we pump our methanol from the metal barrel. I'd also make sure I had a water separating filter on it when I pumped it out.

I would also consider getting a bung wrench, Northern doesn't carry them, not sure about TSC, but I got mine from Grainer for about $35.

Good Luck!


Scott

 

[JESSE1]

This is the same system I've been using for about 25 yrs. I only use about 6 drums a year so the fuel stays fresh.

 

[sandman2234]

I am lucky to have a small Mom and Pop's store about 3/4 mile away, that I can buy diesel. If I really got into a bind, I could probably get a couple gallons out of the Semi parked in the yard, but I would get fired for that in a heartbeat. The short drive is worth the trip.
I would use plastic drums also, due to metal rusting, or sweating.
David from jax

 

[rdln]

I used steel, the delivery guy who deliverd my home heating and fuel to farmers brought an empty oil drum that hey had and filled 'er up.

dont put more than 50 gals in, need room for expansion.seperate can bottom from concrete or dirt with a non absorbant insulator like plastic or rigid foam

 

[Theowegian]

I have a steel 55 gallon drum and use it for my off road diesel. I also use a hand style pump and a standard fuel hose with a filter on the pump discharge. I haven't had any problems with the set up. The system works pretty good for me.

 

[InlineDieselFan]

How long will it take you to go through the 55 gallons?

If it takes more than 6 months I would consider some adding some anti-microbial, and diesel fuel stabilizer.

steve

 

[scott_vt]

Hi Bernie,
We use two 55 gallon drums and add a stabilizer. In addition to what the others have stated, dont run your pickup tube all the way to the bottom ! We take delivery once a year from the home heating oil man and it works out fine ! Definitely need a filter with water seperator. I was using a hand crank but just upgraded to a little electric pump, that way I dont have to worry about the prime

I could probablly use the excersize but what the heck

 

[SteveInMD]

If you don't run the the pickup all the way to the bottom, then you need to have another way to get the water and debris out. It's a bad idea to leave that stuff sitting in the bottom because the drum will rust out from the inside.

Don't skip the filter.

 

[Highbeam]

I acquired 2 new barrels from the local JD dealer that had been emptied of (so I guess not new) hydraulic oil. The barrels were free. I cleaned them out and flushed them with a bit of diesel. They were very clean and were stored with bungcaps tight out of the weather.

I then bought an 11$ rotary hand pump from harbor freight. The pumps pickup tube has a standoff that holds it about 3/8" inch from the barrel bottom. The pump moves diesel in both directions and primes by cranking. It just bloody works and takes 80 easy turns to fill my 5 gallon jerry can. 80 turns is the tradeoff between an 11$ pump and a 300+$ electrical pump. I use a clear vinyl hose rated for fuel clamped onto the pump neck and then the other end has a stab fitting and cap.

One of my two barrels stays in my wooden shed on an elevated wooden floor and the other barrel is my runner barrel meaning I bring it to the fuel depot and fill it and then transfer that fuel into the staionary barrel. This is mainly a compromise due to a small city lot, tractor on a trailer, and poor access to the barrel storage location.

I use no filter since the fuel is filtered going into the barrel and filtered by the tractor's filter. Someday I may regret this ommision but how many times must we filter this fuel? Rather than using an inline filter, I would rather use a Mr. Funnel when I fill the tractor tank.

I buy off-road diesel at a 40-50 cents per gallon savings. No account, license, or minimum quantity is required. The fuel tanks at the fuel depot are replenished once daily and sesaonally up to two times daily since this depot is high turnover meaning the fuel should be fresh.

The convenience factor of having your own fuel tank at home is great. I fill a jerry can and add a PS additive to add to the machine after a full day's work.