Using home heating oil in my tractor

[Msamt]

Haven't yet, but have ~200 gallons of heating oil that the delivery guy swears to me comes out of the same tank that they pump offroad diesel from. 2 questions:
1. Would you burn it in your tractor
2. Anyone see a method for having a full time pump and nozzle outside from a basement tank so I don't have to transfer the oil to an outside tank?

Oh yeah, the why part?
We converted to propane, and wasnt aware the fuel company had started auto delivery again. They wont take it back for a credit, and I'm thinking this could be a big work saving during the summer (no 5 gallon cans or trips to fill them). I could transfer it to an external tank, put a hand or 12v pump on the tank, but want to see if I can keep the oil where is without stinking up the house by pumping from the tank into a 5 gallon jug in the basement.

Any ideas?

 

[smstonypoint]

See http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/oil-fuel-lubricants/292570-home-heating-oil-your-tractor.html.

Steve

 

[90cummins]

Could you reach your tractor fuel tank with a 10~20 foot fuel hose thru a door or window?
If so you can buy an auto shut-off fuel nozzle and fuel your tractor from the main tank.
90cummins

 

[Diamondpilot]

No issues. Lots of guys do just this with a pump and a hose out a window.

Chris

 

[mikesee]

As others have said the fuel is fine for your equipment. Looks like your going to need to get that oil out one way or another because the oil storage tank will eventually corrode. I had one that started leaking after 45 years.

The issue is getting the oil out of the tank without making a mess in the basement which will occur with the 5 gallon bucket method. The hose out the window is better but you will still have to store the hose and nozzle in the basement and when I did this the wife always complained about the smell from the residual oil on nozzle. 55 gallon barrels would work. If you got 4 of them and an oil transfer pump you could fill them all at once with a hose through a window then take remove the pump from the basement tank and use it to dispense from the drums. Or maybe get a 275 gallon tank, transfer the 200 gallons and store the tank in your shop. From then on you can get it filled by the heating oil guys.

Having a dedicated diesel tank with pump is very convient and a lot less messy than 5 gallon cans.

 

[Coyote machine]

I've never heard of a fuel supplier that wouldn't pump out a tank they fill, especially on auto fill?!
I'd ask if they would accomodate you and transfer the fuel out of your tank into another tank or barrels you provide outside.
If they're worried about sludge from the bottom of your existing tank have them pump out all but 10 or 20 gallons.
They may want to charge you for the service- ask them how much.

 

[crazyal]

A few years ago the natural gas company was expanding their service near my father's house. Lots of people were left with an oil tank partially full (although some people were smart enough to burn off everything in the tank before converting their furnace). I ended up buying a fill-rite 12v pump. Most people just wanted the fuel out of their garage or basement so the pump paid for itself by just draining friends and family member's tanks. Usually they offered it for free but I always gave them some money. The Fill-Rite pumps screw into the 275 gallon tanks. I would remove the fill pipe and vent pipe, sometimes they were copper while other steel pipe. At least one of the holes through the wall was large enough for the rubber hose to fit through I ended up getting a Parker quick disconnect that made it real easy to remove the hose from the pump without making a huge mess. I didn't bother going to friends of friends or their neighbors because I didn't want the liability. Now there are several companies with insurance charging to remove the fuel and tank.

Even if the pump hadn't paid for itself I would of bought one sooner or later. I keep a 55 gallon drum (which the pump also screws into) on wheels in the garage. It's much cheaper buying the fuel in bulk and it's so much easier to fill a tractor with a pump than a 5 gallon jug. I usually have the dealer just stop when he's in the area and I need fuel but I have put the drum in the back of my truck and had him fill it up.

I would get a pump and drain the tank. You'll most likely need to raise one end of the tank to get as much of the fuel out as possible. Even then there will be some fuel left in the bottom. It'll make the tank a little awkward to move but two people can get it out of a basement together.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I love diesel except when you don't want the smell! It seems every time you try and transfer diesel, you have a spill of some sort. Doesn't take much to make a mess that smells forever.

Fuel companies are becoming more and more difficult. I still wonder whey I pay more when having a few thousand litres delivered then what I can buy it for at the pump. It never used to be that way but I guess they know that unless someone has the means to transport large amounts of fuel, they pretty much have you at their mercy.

 

[stuckmotor]

Did you sign any kind of contract or get any paperwork concerning how this kind of situation would be handled? Have you paid for the fuel?

 

[Msamt]

Thanks all for the replies, sounds like my best route is to transfe to an outside tank, which I will pursue in the spring. For the questions regarding the fuel company, the contract we had specifically states they will not take back any fuel delivered (of course I never read it!). Transferring is no issue, will be getting a fill rite, just need to figure out what kind of tank to put outside, all I have for shelter is a shelter logic snow and wind rated structure, maybe I'll just go the 50 gallon barrell route, and put it in the garage on wheels, fill one for my son while I'm at it. Thanks again!

 

[George2615]

Yes it is safe for tractor use. Home heating oil is #2 diesel. In colder climates the supplier may actually use a mix of #2 and #1. I have mine in a separate 275 gallon tank outside the garage. I add Power Service to prevent gelling and when I get a delivery of HHO I have the driver add 50 gallons to the tank I use for the tractor. I bought a 12V pump with hose and nozzle that screws into the 2" bung on the tank for filling the tractor when needed. much nicer than hauling 5 gallon containers.

 

[liberty2701]

Yes it is safe for tractor use. Home heating oil is #2 diesel. In colder climates the supplier may actually use a mix of #2 and #1. I have mine in a separate 275 gallon tank outside the garage. I add Power Service to prevent gelling and when I get a delivery of HHO I have the driver add 50 gallons to the tank I use for the tractor. I bought a 12V pump with hose and nozzle that screws into the 2" bung on the tank for filling the tractor when needed. much nicer than hauling 5 gallon containers.

Heating oil in NH is not the same as diesel. Heating oil in NH is allowed to have up tp 4000 ppm of sulphur. I confirmed this. NH has not adopted the Ulsd that all adjoining states have adopted. It is under review now by the state .legislator. It may at times be the same depending upon the supplier and what is available in the market. I know personally that high sulphur diesel in a modern tractor does not run as well as the lsd or Ulsd. Live free or die!

 

[crazyal]

Heating oil in NH is not the same as diesel. Heating oil in NH is allowed to have up tp 4000 ppm of sulphur. I confirmed this. NH has not adopted the Ulsd that all adjoining states have adopted. It is under review now by the state .legislator. It may at times be the same depending upon the supplier and what is available in the market. I know personally that high sulphur diesel in a modern tractor does not run as well as the lsd or Ulsd. Live free or die!

We had the same problem for a few years. Dealers would have to put the heating oil in one tank on the truck and either kerosine or off road diesel in the other. That required him to flush the tank out when switching between the two. So he would do kerosine for one week and then ORD for the next. Now it's all the same again. The bad part is that when they were different the ORD would get winterized for the farmers, now you have to add in something like Power Service to keep it from jelling.

 

[George2615]

Heating oil in NH is not the same as diesel. Heating oil in NH is allowed to have up tp 4000 ppm of sulphur. I confirmed this. NH has not adopted the Ulsd that all adjoining states have adopted. It is under review now by the state .legislator. It may at times be the same depending upon the supplier and what is available in the market. I know personally that high sulphur diesel in a modern tractor does not run as well as the lsd or Ulsd. Live free or die!

I didn't realize that ULSD wasn't the standard in NH. ULSD is all we've been able to buy for years. To the OP, if your tractor requires ULSD then that's what you need to use. Check with your fuel company and ask if the fuel delivered is ULSD. Yes, HHO is the same as off road diesel. But depending on the State you are in your off road and HHO may still be low sulfur diesel and not ULSD. It shows on my delivery ticket that the HHO contains less than 15 PPM sulfur and is ULSD.

 

[STx]

Heating oil in NH is not the same as diesel. Heating oil in NH is allowed to have up tp 4000 ppm of sulphur. I confirmed this. NH has not adopted the Ulsd that all adjoining states have adopted. It is under review now by the state .legislator. It may at times be the same depending upon the supplier and what is available in the market. I know personally that high sulphur diesel in a modern tractor does not run as well as the lsd or Ulsd. Live free or die!

Wish I could economically move some of that diesel to Texas for my truck. My 2002 7.3 ran a lot better on the LSD than it does on the ULSD. It was quieter and had better mileage.

 

[aczlan]

Wish I could economically move some of that diesel to Texas for my truck. My 2002 7.3 ran a lot better on the LSD than it does on the ULSD. It was quieter and had better mileage.

What they have is HSD, LSD was under 500PPM of sulfer, ULSD is under 15PPM of sulfer.
Running ULSD in our furnace has helped reduce the soot/ash buildup in the furnace and the chimney.

Aaron Z

 

[Msamt]

Thanks all, more investigation is needed. I have to dig out the owners manual to see what fuel it requires, would guess at 2 years old its ULSD, but ya never know.

 

[buickanddeere]

ULSD barely smells compared to the stinking diesel of 10+ years ago.
Be glad the tank was still in the basement connected to the fill pipes. For reasons unknown many people remove the tank but leave the fill pipes through the wall. The oil dealer shows up on auto fill and fills the basement .

 

[buickanddeere]

ULSD is only required if the engine has a particulate filter.

 

[Katahdin]

Maine, Mass, and Vermont also do not require ULS-HHO, but will in 2018.

https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=11211