Off road diesel - How do you find locations?

[LD48750]

Is there a good rule of thumb for how quickly you need to turn over fuel? A big drum would be convenient, but I want to be rational about it.

Think back a few years to when fuel oil (same as diesel) was the preferred heating source for homes.
People had 250 Gal tanks outside their homes and had no problems with them.
A simple water filter on the outlet changed once a year should be fine.

 

[clemsonfor]

Just curious, how likely is it that someone would be caught using the off road in an on road vehicle? I cannot imagine a cop taking the time to check every time they pull over a diesel pickup....different if we are talking tractor-trailer rigs. I don't have or plan to have an on-road diesel vehicle, so this is pure hypothetical for me.

I wouldn't bother, personally. For the relatively low amount of diesel I expect to use, I will pay the additional tax. That being said, if it is convenient, I'll use the cheaper stuff.

Is there a good rule of thumb for how quickly you need to turn over fuel? A big drum would be convenient, but I want to be rational about it.

Its not often but I have heard, and also I had a logger working for me have a dually pulled over and they dipped the tank. They don't go after big trucks usually I think it's more the age trucks and the mid size vehicles like hot shot truckers which is basically if I remember right what they pulled over for my guy. Think he was hauling logs on a smaller flatbed type equipment trailer that or it was a bobcat, it was 10 years or so ago and I just don't remember the details. You will see transport police waiting in certain spots. I'm guessing they don't dip all tanks but they probably know what there looking for.

Diesel treated will last year's, older stuff if not full of algae will run after decades. But it had sulpher which from what I understand cut way back on what could grow in it.

 

[bmaverick]

Its not often but I have heard, and also I had a logger working for me have a dually pulled over and they dipped the tank. They don't go after big trucks usually I think it's more the age trucks and the mid size vehicles like hot shot truckers which is basically if I remember right what they pulled over for my guy. Think he was hauling logs on a smaller flatbed type equipment trailer that or it was a bobcat, it was 10 years or so ago and I just don't remember the details. You will see transport police waiting in certain spots. I'm guessing they don't dip all tanks but they probably know what there looking for.

Diesel treated will last year's, older stuff if not full of algae will run after decades. But it had sulpher which from what I understand cut way back on what could grow in it.

With the new clean diesel fuels, just add a can of Seafoam to the 55-gal barrel to prevent the algae growing that mostly occurs in warmer temps.

 

[California]

I read somewhere (here?) that farm equipment auctions are where a lot of tanks get dipped.

As for old high sulphur diesel - when I bought the YM240 in 2003, the seller had put a modern home in front of an old farm that had been subdivided into horsey 5 acre sites. There was an old rusty bulk fuel tank there that must have had decades-old sulphur diesel. The fuel in the YM240 burned my eyes. It smoked, and smelled, worse than following an old Greyhound up a long grade. Hard to start. Refueling made a day/night improvement.

 

[Williy]

To find off road diesel you can ask your local
diesel fuel stop or check with the fuel delivery
people.

Can you imagine driving behind a grayhoud
and smelling like mcconald's???
The cop's don't have to look or check your
fuel tanks to see if you are burning the off
road diesel they just look at your tail pipe and
if its red You get to pay $10,000 fine! On ten
gallons of the red stuff I saved $1.76 so I just
use regular diesel. The only way you save is
if you have not sure if its 150 or 250 gallons
delivered to your home!

willy

 

[ning]

to see if you are burning the off
road diesel they just look at your tail pipe and
if its red

The dye doesn't get burned and colors the soot red?

 

[ponytug]

The dye in off road diesel is flammable, and burns.(Solvent red #26 or 164) No, the soot is still black.

Off road diesel was high sulfur longer than on-road diesel, but has come down to low or ultra low sulfur levels. Anyone with an older diesel is well advised to use a lubricity additive, or add biodiesel, or just use biodiesel.

Not all red fuel is off road diesel. Some aviation gasoline is dyed red as well.

At the fuel amounts that I use, and the distance to get to an off road diesel supplier, it just isn't worth it to me.

I think that the key to long term diesel storage is an algicide, and an air drier (desiccant) on the vent line. Diesel is hydroscopic, and once wet, you get algae sludge and rust. Personally, I keep all of mine in sealed metal containers. (Wavian NATO cans)

All the best,

Peter

 

[clemsonfor]

To find off road diesel you can ask your local
diesel fuel stop or check with the fuel delivery
people.

Can you imagine driving behind a grayhoud
and smelling like mcconald's???
The cop's don't have to look or check your
fuel tanks to see if you are burning the off
road diesel they just look at your tail pipe and
if its red You get to pay $10,000 fine! On ten
gallons of the red stuff I saved $1.76 so I just
use regular diesel. The only way you save is
if you have not sure if its 150 or 250 gallons
delivered to your home!

willy

This must be a wives tale??? I run mostly off road in my tractor, besides the stained translucent plastic tank that's got a slight tint to it and the filter nothing else is red. My pipe is black from soot...nature of a diesel. And as I have mentioned I'm a Forester. I oversee logging. I am friendly with many loggers and talk to them all the time especially working on their equipment of I'm there. I also see it running and have seen many pipes up close. There is NEVER a red tint to them. Put your finger and it's black soot. The dye combusts like the fuel. The new machines run a shitload of deff and have cleaner pipes as they put almost no soot out compared to the pre tier whatever put def on those size engines did.

 

[Hay Dude]

To find off road diesel you can ask your local
diesel fuel stop or check with the fuel delivery
people.

Can you imagine driving behind a grayhoud
and smelling like mcconald's???
The cop's don't have to look or check your
fuel tanks to see if you are burning the off
road diesel they just look at your tail pipe and
if its red You get to pay $10,000 fine! On ten
gallons of the red stuff I saved $1.76 so I just
use regular diesel. The only way you save is
if you have not sure if its 150 or 250 gallons
delivered to your home!

willy

1. Never heard that before……None of my tractor exhaust pipes are “red”.
2. Its a considerable fine, but not a “$10,000 fine”
3. You can certainly save by driving your truck with transfer tank to a seller of red fuel and fill it. I have been doing this for decades. You don’t have to have it delivered.

 

[Cycledude]

Around where I live there are plenty of places selling off road diesel , and also plenty of places that will deliver it, some places will even supply the tank to store the fuel in free of charge.
I don’t use a lot of off road diesel so I just haul it home from town in 5 gallon cans.