I have an oil boiler in my workshop. It has a Bentone oil burner and a small 250 litre tank for the oil. It's nearly run out of oil, but no-one will supply me with less than 1000 litres, plus they're a bit funny about having the tank inspected first for corrosion etc. (it doesn't have any). It says on the burner to use No.1 heating oil.
I don't use it often, but have nearly run out of oil. I recently changed the filter and cleaned the burner, but need more oil. So, can I use diesel instead of No.1 heating oil? That way I can just buy a little as and when.
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Can you get hold of paraffin? It's much closer to kerosene (28 sec) than diesel, and won't have duty on it, unless you can get red diesel?
Never heard of having to inspect a tank before supplying?
Alternatively you could search out a friend of a friend who has CH oil delivered, and buy some from them, perhaps?
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Also, have you tried www.boilerjuice.com/ or is the minimum amount of 500l still too much?
EDIT: sorry I can see you only have a 250l tank
Edited by Focus {P} on 12/02/2010 at 09:15
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I'm in Sweden, and any oil tank over 10 years old has to be inspected every 3 years before they'll deliver the oil. Heating oil costs about £1 litre, so it's unlikey anyone would actually keep a leaking tank, but there you go. I guess it happens, and then you have the problem of ground contamination. Plus, they're trying to wean everyone off of oil, so it's another way of exerting pressure to change. I can only find small bottles of paraffin though, and at about the same price as whisky.
The oil is very thin, hence the idea of diesel, and I can fill a jerry can every so often when filling the car.
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IIRC heating oil is 28sec and diesel or heavy heating oil is 34sec - ring an oil boiler supplier and ask if you can burn it - if burning heavy oil you need to specify when buying a new boiler so something must be different - could only be a bigger hole in nozzle.
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You can burn 28s oil in a burner designed for 34s but it's a bit of a waste (don't try it the other way round though). Similarly, diesel fuel will burn equally well - but that's even more of a waste.
If you really must burn diesel, at least buy red diesel - there's no point in paying fuel duty on it.
659.
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Tank inspections are now taking place here. I ordered a delivery of heating oil just before Christmas and the tanker driver refused to put it in my tank. He said that he has to visually inspect every tank before delivery, and refuse if there are any signs of corrosion.
My metal oil tank had been regurlarly painted but was showing some signs of rust along some seams.
I had to contact a specialist tank company who came out and inspected it, and subsequently said that it was not suitable. Also, as my house was within a certain distance of a watercourse, in reality a winter drainage channel 20 metres away feeding into a local stream, then I would have to have a bunded (double skinned) tank!
So there I was nearly out of heating oil just before Christmas and no one would supply me with fuel due to the apparent condition of my oil tank.
I spent over £1200 to have a new plastic and bunded tank of the same capacity just to be back where I started! OK, I now have a new tank that will see me through many years, but beware out there! Blame Health & Safety again, and the oil storage regulations which are availble on line!
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Can you not use red diesel?
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Can you not use red diesel?
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This is more expensive, and not the right stuff for heating systems.
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Can you get hold of paraffin? It's much closer to kerosene (28 sec) than diesel and won't have duty on it unless you can get red diesel?
There might not be any duty on Paraffin but have you tried to buy any recently? The last time I saw it for sale it was almost £6.00 a gallon! Bit different to the 10p a gallon I used to pay for it in the seventies to put in a variety of oil heaters.
I suggest you stick with red diesel, it's much cheaper!
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Never heard of having to inspect a tank before supplying?
This isn't such a bad idea actually. My mum and dad had oil fired heating with a steel 450 gal tank around the side of the house.
My dad always kept it well pianted, but the base was obviously unpaintable.
Last year, they came back from holiday to find the garden flooded with kerosene from leaks that had been caused by long term rust scabs on the underneath of the tank.
Fortunately not too much had leaked out, and as it was summer, the tank was probably less than 20% full anyway. They have now gone over to plastic.
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Contact your friendly local heating oil supplier, and ask them.
I don't know whether this lot would be helpful to you:
www.caldo.co.uk/paraffin/prepac_bulk.htm
If you put diesel in it, it could be a bit sooty.
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No. 1 is generally kerosense/paraffin
No. 2 is diesel fuel for heating or road vehicles.
You should be able to get a 205 litre drum delivered or pick one up if you have a van. It is easy in the UK, and about 66p a litre.
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My Riello burner specs (for 70K BTU set-up) state reducing the jet from a 0.60, down to a 0.50, and increasing the pump pressure up from 9 bar to 11 bar, to accomodate a change from 28sec to 35sec oil. ie, from Kerosene to Diesel.
Also stated that burning the heavy oil wasn't suitable for a low level flue, presumably a vertical flue is preferred.
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Get down to your local chippy and offer the man a few quid for his old oil have some drums at the ready!
Filter the oil at home get the batter out and use that no different to what is mixed with diesel for the engine.
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