Price Gouging on Heating Oil vs Off-Road Diesel

[Hay Dude]

Fellow farmer in my area scored big and actually got 1500 gallons of #2 for next to nothing.
He found out a large food processor was installing huge new diesel generators for their plant. The installer would not provide warranty on new generators unless all old fuel in existing tank was drained and new fuel only used for new generators.

 

[Williy]

Heating fuel and #2 diesel are the same
so I have been told

willy

 

[JWR]

Heating fuel and #2 diesel are the same
so I have been told

willy

Yes. Identical as I said in the original post. In the case of this outrage both of them were also dyed !

 

[Air4Dave]

Here in MD on 16 Feb 22 I paid $180 more for home heating oil (HHO) than the same 300 gal would have cost for off-road diesel (ORD). The price difference was 60 cents a gallon! At the time $3.84/gal vs $3.23/gal. Priced with 2 different suppliers and both had the same differential within pennies. Had the State investigate and it is NOT a tax difference (which the suppliers claimed it was.) Have not yet found out how high the difference got nor what the difference typically is. Both fuels are IDENTICAL. Both are dyed. This was long before the Ukraine war hit. In less than 2 weeks after the State investigated and called suppliers about it, the price was suddenly the same.

So many unknowns: How high did the difference get? Are farmers now being gouged with the ORD being suddenly raised in price? Was some of this illegal? Did either State or Local govt know about it?

Any of you have this or similar experience?

I worked for Chevron for 27 years from fuel deliveries to management. There is absolutely ZERO difference between #2 HHO and #2 dyed diesel AND #2 clear diesel! The only difference is the winter blend to prevent gelling! There WILL be a difference in price - higher - for the clear diesel since its price contains the on-road taxes. I would have confronted the supplier and told him to come pump it out and put the cheaper dyed diesel in! He would have said, of course, that it would cost you in order to do that, at which time I would have asked him why the huge difference in price. I would then tell him he will be reported to the State - as you did.

 

[JWR]

I worked for Chevron for 27 years from fuel deliveries to management. There is absolutely ZERO difference between #2 HHO and #2 dyed diesel AND #2 clear diesel! The only difference is the winter blend to prevent gelling! There WILL be a difference in price - higher - for the clear diesel since its price contains the on-road taxes. I would have confronted the supplier and told him to come pump it out and put the cheaper dyed diesel in! He would have said, of course, that it would cost you in order to do that, at which time I would have asked him why the huge difference in price. I would then tell him he will be reported to the State - as you did.

I appreciate the support BUT there was one more catch: here in my county in Maryland there is an Energy Tax on HHO. So the delivery companies will not deliver #2 dyed diesel at the much lower price to my furnace tank. Say they would be "put in jail" which is exaggeration but I understand it is illegal for them to bypass the local tax. At that very time HHO cost me $180 more for 300 gal than dyed diesel would have cost. The tax was only $14.40. So I was literally forced to pay $180 extra so that the county could collect $14.40.

A few days later after I got the state people involved all of a sudden the #2 dyed diesel was upped to the same price as HHO -- the higher of the two of course. That is why I questioned the locals [in public, in the newspapers and to the County Commissioners] about why the farmer and tractor users are artificially paying the 60 cents a gallon higher price too & now they are the new ones being screwed. Never any answers and no resolution of the issue.

 

[DarkBlack]

#2 HHO and diesel, can be, and most likely are the same. If I remember correctly, there are subtle differences in the technical specifications, with diesel, having slightly more documented specifications that must be met to pass as diesel. Anyone here feel free to tell me I’m wrong.
I also believe, it’s normally more economical for the refinery to make it all to the diesel spec, being that it can pass both specifications, but the slight possibility exists that the HHO was made and only tested to the HHO specifications, which means the slight chance, it would not meet one of the diesel specs.
If you search the internet hard enough you should be able to find the 2 specifications, and you’ll find they aren’t exactly the same.

 

[JWR]

#2 HHO and diesel, can be, and most likely are the same. If I remember correctly, there are subtle differences in the technical specifications, with diesel, having slightly more documented specifications that must be met to pass as diesel. Anyone here feel free to tell me I’m wrong.
I also believe, it’s normally more economical for the refinery to make it all to the diesel spec, being that it can pass both specifications, but the slight possibility exists that the HHO was made and only tested to the HHO specifications, which means the slight chance, it would not meet one of the diesel specs.
If you search the internet hard enough you should be able to find the 2 specifications, and you’ll find they aren’t exactly the same.

I disagree. They are totally identical in every respect regardless of specifications. It is the same stuff. Period. Some of it is dyed for law enforcement purposes.

See post # 24 above. #2 fuel oil is diesel fuel (and maybe other names) but all the same the world over.

 

[DarkBlack]

I disagree. They are totally identical in every respect regardless of specifications. It is the same stuff. Period. Some of it is dyed for law enforcement purposes.

See post # 24 above. #2 fuel oil is diesel fuel (and maybe other names) but all the same the world over.

What exactly in my post do you disagree with?


No, diesel and heating oil are not the same ‘the world over’, as you say. Significant differences in some countries.

Identical, regardless of specifications.. now that’s funny.

 

[JWR]

What exactly in my post do you disagree with?


No, diesel and heating oil are not the same ‘the world over’, as you say. Significant differences in some countries.

Identical, regardless of specifications.. now that’s funny.

HHO and diesel fuel are identical in all respects. Come out of the same source tanks at essentially all suppliers with the only difference being where in the chain they mix in the dye for tax reasons (i.e. on road vs off road usage.)

I'm glad you find it hilarious; truth is sometimes downright side splitting. No problems with me -- you go think whatever you choose to think.

 

[DarkBlack]

Again…..exactly what sentence in my post don’t you agree with?
Is it “#2 HHO and diesel, can be, and most likely are the same.”?

if you disagree with that, you must just want to argue.