Moving a propane tank

[joeyd]

A friend of mine wants to move an empty 500 gal propane tank to the side of his new pole barn to use for heating it. Can I move it with my 35 hp tractor? My FEL is rated at 2875# at the pins and 1241# at full height. I just have to lift it 4-6 " for ground clearance and move it about 100-150'. I looked it up and an empty tank should weigh around 1100#. Has anyone done this before?

 

[ovrszd]

hitch up some rear ballast and go for it.

 

[Deere Dude]

Done it empty. No problem. Just strap it down good because those suckers are slippery if on forks. If you use chains on the handles it might be better.

 

[RickB]

You can move it as the guys say. But you might want to make sure your buddy has checked the codes for building setback for a tank that size. We put in a 500 gal tank for a generator at my Mom’s house and it’s had to be across the driveway to be far enough away.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Moving it with straps or a chain is the RIGHT way to move one!

MY propane supplier said his empty tank was about 1500 pounds...

I also moved one with 275 gallons of propane in it...

SR

 

[jaxs]

I've moved 250 tanks (one contained 50 gallons) with 3 point forks so fel should do the 500 with no trouble. Just tie it down good.

 

[joeyd]

Moving it with straps or a chain is the RIGHT way to move one!

MY propane supplier said his empty tank was about 1500 pounds...

I also moved one with 275 gallons of propane in it...

SR

This is what I had in mind using chains and a little less play in the tank, thanks!

 

[RNeumann]

Empty a 500# tank won’t be any problem for your machine. I’ll bet you can rock or slide it with a pry bar- RS1 style!

 

[jasonzee]

That's how I moved it to my house.

 

[joeyd]

Empty a 500# tank won’t be any problem for your machine. I’ll bet you can rock or slide it with a pry bar- RS1 style!

I thought about that when it gets close. There won't be enough room to set it square with the building so we will have to muscle it to get it set where he wants it.

 

[RNeumann]

I thought about that when it gets close. There won't be enough room to set it square with the building so we will have to muscle it to get it set where he wants it.

My wife ran the bucket and I was able to move mine quite a bit with longer chains like the photo above shows- she would lift it just slightly off the ground and I would push it around to get it square and level. Ours still had 2/3 of the propane- not an issue on flat ground.

 

[3Ts]

Yes, I have. You can do it.
The way Sawyer Rob shows in his picture is the right way. Use the lifting eyes on the tank. Also, do not make the straps or chains to short. The shorter they are the more tension there is on them and the stronger they have to be. If I remember my trig right, a 45* angle will put and additional 40% more stress on the chains/straps than when hanging straight down.
My tractor will lift 3300# (not much more than yours) and I moved a 1000 gal tank with it and no problems. You should have no problems either with your tractor and a 500 gal tank.

 

[Jack Murdock]

Yes, I have. You can do it.
The way Sawyer Rob shows in his picture is the right way. Use the lifting eyes on the tank. Also, do not make the straps or chains to short. The shorter they are the more tension there is on them and the stronger they have to be. If I remember my trig right, a 45* angle will put and additional 40% more stress on the chains/straps than when hanging straight down.
My tractor will lift 3300# (not much more than yours) and I moved a 1000 gal tank with it and no problems. You should have no problems either with your tractor and a 500 gal tank.

Those lifting lugs are not rated for the tank with liquid in it. Any tank with liquid or vapor in it should be lifted by sling the tank itself not with the lifting lugs on the tank itself. When liquid propane changes to a vapor it expands 272 times which can easily envelope a machine and operator. google BLEVE

 

[Oldoak]

I never liked carrying anything rigged like that with the loader that high in the air. All that weight hanging from the bucket has the same effect and leverage on the tractor as carrying a 1500# load in the bucket. Which makes the tractor very tipsy. Keep the tank as low to the ground as possible.

I would use a length of length of 6x6 wood laid across the forks as a spreader bar and rig two chains straight down attached to the lifting lugs on the tank. That way the forks and bucket carrying the load are much closer to the ground.

 

[bigtiller]

When I was in the propane business, I was trained to only lift a tank with nylon straps under the tank. The "handles" on each end are for tying the tank down to a tank moving trailer. The handles can be used to lift if the tank is nearly empty, that meant less than 10% of gas in it. If the "handles" rip out of the tank it will be a bad day for the guy lifting it.

Why take the chance? Buy a couple of nylon tow straps to wrap around the tank and lift it that way.

 

[ruffdog]

Those lifting lugs are not rated for the tank with liquid in it. Any tank with liquid or vapor in it should be lifted by sling the tank itself not with the lifting lugs on the tank itself. When liquid propane changes to a vapor it expands 272 times which can easily envelope a machine and operator. google BLEVE

BLEVE.....interesting and scary. I learned something today.

 

[RickB]

Those lifting lugs are not rated for the tank with liquid in it. Any tank with liquid or vapor in it should be lifted by sling the tank itself not with the lifting lugs on the tank itself. When liquid propane changes to a vapor it expands 272 times which can easily envelope a machine and operator. google BLEVE

When I was in the propane business, I was trained to only lift a tank with nylon straps under the tank. The "handles" on each end are for tying the tank down to a tank moving trailer. The handles can be used to lift if the tank is nearly empty, that meant less than 10% of gas in it. If the "handles" rip out of the tank it will be a bad day for the guy lifting it.

Why take the chance? Buy a couple of nylon tow straps to wrap around the tank and lift it that way.

Here’s the difference between guys trained to do a potentially hazardous task safely and a bunch of guys that weren’t but managed to get away with sketchy methods.

 

[3Ts]

Those lifting lugs are not rated for the tank with liquid in it. Any tank with liquid or vapor in it should be lifted by sling the tank itself not with the lifting lugs on the tank itself. When liquid propane changes to a vapor it expands 272 times which can easily envelope a machine and operator. google BLEVE

I assumed we were talking about an empty tank, so I went back and verified that the OP did specify an empty tank and that he said it weighted 1100#. Any gas inside it will add weight at the rate of 4.2 #/ gallon, so 500 gal tank @ 80% max fill is an additional 1680#. A full 500 gal. tank will weigh about 2780# so he could probably lift it, but like it is mentioned here, not a good idea.

 

[bigtiller]

There should be a 6x6 inch name plate on the top of the tank, usually under the lid. It is the "birth certificate" for the tank with year, tare weight, manufacture, and dimensions.

If the tank is truly empty, with no pressure, I would ask your propane supplier to purge the tank to insure there is no water in it.

 

[Jack Murdock]

Here’s the difference between guys trained to do a potentially hazardous task safely and a bunch of guys that weren’t but managed to get away with sketchy methods.

40 years in the LP business we get to see some good and some bad. A lot of the old horizontal tanks have liquid valves in the bottom of the tank more than once a year a lull or tractor with forks will take a valve off. If we roll the tank so the valve is up its just a vapor leak, bad enough but nothing like a liquid leak.