Diesel fuel storage and delivery

[Overtaxed]

I'm in the process of buying my first "big" tractor (60HP) and was wondering how others deal with the fuel for a tractor like this. I'm used to carting around 5 gallon cans; but, I'm thinking with a fuel burn that's got to be 3-4X what I'm used to, that might not be reasonable anymore. My first choice would be to put a tank (250 gallon?) on the property and have someone come fill it. I'd also considered putting a tank on a skid; putting that into my truck and driving down to the local station for a fill, then unloading it back on the property once it's full. I'd like to use offroad fuel for the cost savings, but, honestly, I'm not going to burn that much each year to make it huge consideration; I'd be surprised if I went through more than 500 gallons a year. But saving lifting 100 cans of fuel would be very nice, especially if I can do it at a reasonable cost.

Location is upstate SC, in case that matters.

 

[George2615]

I use a 275 gallon tank. I have 3 of them. I have Home heating oil (#2 dyed diesel) delivered. I use the fuel for home heat and my tractor. The fuel is ULSD which has less than 15 ppm sulfur. For the tractor tank I have a 12V, 8 GPM pump.

If you are going to haul your own fuel you may need to limit the tank size otherwise a whole new set of rules may apply such as hazmat and placards.

 

[TripleR]

We use a 300 gallon fuel tank on each farm on a raised stand, our dealer refills it and replaces filters upon request, so much better and safer than handling it ourselves.

 

[Overtaxed]

We use a 300 gallon fuel tank on each farm on a raised stand, our dealer refills it and replaces filters upon request, so much better and safer than handling it ourselves.

What does the price per gallon look like when you get that much (~250 gallons) of fuel delivered vs buying it at the station? Of course, most stations around me don't have offroad fuel, so you're saving the taxes and buying in bulk, but is that enough to get over the delivery fees/costs?

 

[TnAndy]

I built myself a shed to hold my tanks up high enough they gravity feed easy. The shelving stores oils/antifreeze/etc.

One tank is 300 for gasoline (have quite a few small gas engines, and I occasionally fill the car or truck) and I get non-eythanol gas. The diesel is 275 and I buy off road 'red'.

For filling, I either call a local fuel distributor, or the local farm Co-op. Off road diesel here is 41 cents/gal cheaper than on road.....enough to buy the 'red'. No fee for delivery, but you pay the same price as if you picked it up too, so no discount for bulk either.

 

[Looking4new]

I use HHO as well. I save the road use tax. I still gotta pay sales tax and all that other nonsense.

 

[George2615]

What does the price per gallon look like when you get that much (~250 gallons) of fuel delivered vs buying it at the station? Of course, most stations around me don't have offroad fuel, so you're saving the taxes and buying in bulk, but is that enough to get over the delivery fees/costs?

I just got 300 gallons of #2 diesel HHO delivered last month. Price was $2.35 a gallon no delivery charge. On road Diesel at the pump is $2.59 a gallon so I save .24 cents a gallon and don't have to go get it. Note, these prices will vary depending on where you live.
Included on the bill is a Federal Superfund tax, Federal tax NORA, and NYS spill tax.

 

[TripleR]

What does the price per gallon look like when you get that much (~250 gallons) of fuel delivered vs buying it at the station? Of course, most stations around me don't have offroad fuel, so you're saving the taxes and buying in bulk, but is that enough to get over the delivery fees/costs?

To be honest, I never checked. My father in law use to own the business and since we live in a farming community he never charged for delivery fees etc. as they also sell propane, gasoline and lubricants, so he figured he would do well enough based on the number of customers and volume.

Even if we pay more, it is worth it not to have to handle the logistics for keeping fuel on both farms. We live three miles from the distributor and our other farm is only a mile, so when we run out, a phone call gets it to us real quick, same with our propane.

 

[TractorGuy]

I just set up a diesel generator so I wanted more than the 20 gallons I had been keeping on hand in cans. I did mine on the cheap and got two 55 gallon oil drums. The drums were clean with only some new motor oil residue in them and cost me $15 each. I painted the drums to blend with the color of my generator. My generator has a transfer pump/float switch that sucks fuel from the drum to fill the tank on the genset and shuts off when the generator tank is full. So far I have just used a separate 12v pump to fill my 5 gallon cans from the drum and I still pour the fuel into my tractors.



Local supplier delivered 100 gallons of off road diesel for $2.26 per gallon plus 7.5% sales tax. They have a 40 gallon minimum and the price goes up to $2.55 if you buy minimum. No delivery fee other than fuel cost reflects amount purchased.

 

[s219]

I have a 55 gal aluminum transfer tank and a 55 gal storage tank for my generator. Between the two of them, I always have 55-110 gals of diesel on hand. Every so often, I will go pickup a new load using the transfer tank, and bring it back home. For my needs, that setup works very well.