Anyone have a neat simple design, using 4x4s or 6x6s to build a stand for a 200 or 250 gal fuel tank about 5 or 6 ft high?
Mike
This wouldn't be too hard of a project. The thing to not forget is that the fuel alone will weight 1,700lbs. Couple of hundred for the tank and you are trying to support a ton. When you make your connections they need to have a direct load path. You can't bolt a cross beam to the side of the post and expect a couple of lag bolts to transfer 500lbs. The next problem will be stability. The tanks are narrow and tall, to put the tank up 5' will have the top close to 10' high. This means the tank is very unstable. It won't be cool to have the tank flip over on you. This would probably hurt. The solution is to make the base nice and wide. The easy way to do this is to have the legs angle outwards. It won't need to be much, 15 degrees will be more than enough. After than, make sure you X brace the legs.
For the posts I'd use 4x6's and then mortise in double 2x6 cross beams. Use (2) 1/2" carriage bolts set diagonally at each post. 2x4 braces will be sufficient with (4) 3" screws per connection. The braces can be applied to the face of the 4x6, but you could mortise them if you want it to look good. Put one brace on the outside and another on the inside so they form a X. You will have (4) when you are done.
The 4x6's won't have enough area to keep the stand from sinking into the ground. When I built my tank I used full length 2x8's and havn't had any problems. The water stand that I built for my cabin up north used 2x4's for the base and they've sunk into the ground over the years. There are a couple of solutions:
1. You could use a pair of double 2x8's with the corners lapped between each of the legs. The advantage to this method is that it ties the bottom of each leg together and makes another triangle which adds strength.
2. You use a 2x8 turned 90 and laid on top of a 2x12 to create a nice wide foot. This solution will use less wood than the above solution. Just make sure the feet don't sink in or you could tip the tank over.
I'd suggest using (2) 3/8"x8" spax timber screws to fasten the feet to the post.
The tank will have threaded holes to screw a pipe into for legs. Buy a couple of pipe flanges so you can bolt the tank down to the stand. I'd suggest using (4) 3" screws per foot. I'm pretty sure the flanges are wider than 3". If they're a lot wider, you could lay a 2x6 on top of the cross members so you have a wider surface to fasten too. Just make sure that at least two of the flange screws bite into the cross members and the 2x6 is screwed down really well.
Let me know if you want a sketch of what I tried to describe.
When I made my tank stand, I kept it low and built a strong pallet so I could move it around. I used a hand pump for filling equipment. It can pump 16 gallons pretty quickly which is the biggest tank that I have. I had to add a vent so when the fuel guy fills the tank the exiting air doesn't blow fuel back in his face. I used a
McMaster-Carr for the vent. I also used a Krueger tank gauge from JME sales
Krueger Sentry Home Heating Oil Tank Gauges - D2275GAL. I've used the Krueger gauges a bunch of times and have never had a problem with their product.
The home heating oil tanks come in a bunch of configurations. Make sure you know what you need for bungs when you go shopping. I got my tank for free from a heating oil company. I promised to buy a tank load of fuel from them in exchange for letting me drag the tank out of their scrap bin. Keep a couple of filters on hand because the tank will have a bunch of sludge in the bottom and this will plug the filters pretty quickly. I went through two filters really quckly, but got over 400 gallons on the third one. Make sure you use the fuel. If it sits for too long you'll get water in the tank from condensation and this will settle to the bottom and give you running problems. Not sure if you run winter blend when you live, but for the summer I buy home heating oil. It's dyed red and the fuel dealer it's the same as off road diesel, but no tax. Plus, because it's heating oil, I get on the budget plan so I can stretch the purchase over several months without paying interest. If I buy 100 gallons they'll deliver for free too.
Dang old threads...
