Water in heating oil

[Weedhopper]

I have water, sludge and crud in my heating oil. Changed the filter and strainer today and they were plugged. Last time they were changed was last November before the heating season.

Last year I drained the tank and added some diesel stuff that was supposed to eat sludge. I used the diesel chemical and added about 30 gallons of diesel at a time hopefully to eat the junk up.

Still got sludge. Boiler runs fine now that I have changed the filters.

Can I physically vacuum the tank with an old shop vac and extension tubes or will I blow myself up??

Any Ideas on a chemical that REALLY dissolves sludge would be appreciated.

 

[fledglingme]

if you have a high tolarence for work, you could install a better trap/cleanable filter. and expect to have to clean/drain it more often, just after having the tank filled. after a few days the water and stuff that are stirred up on filling, will settle out( and if the heater's running, it'll suck some of it up and into the filter). there are companys that specilaize in tank cleaning services,if you'd rather go that route. but water will still collect over time. it might be a good idea to take a look at the filler neck and determine if rain water is funneling into that...or the vent

 

[Weedhopper]

Fill and vent are water free. I did think a filter/water separator like on the boat might be the ticket. I know a guy who's brain I can pick.

I think the water is coming with the oil. I just don't want the tank to rust out at the bottom.

 

[titanpat57]

How many gallons you talking..5..50..500? I'd call a waste oil company and have them come come and "suck the livin' sh*t out of it". If the tank is old and it's a combo of crud from the tank and nasty fuel..I'd throw another tank in, and find another home heating oil company if the product is showing up with water and mud in it. I've been burning oil for a long time any never had water in it. Just my 2 cents...good luck.

Pat

 

[fledglingme]

water delivered along with the fuel oil is highly likely..as pat said, step one is to find another delivery service, this by it's self will not guarantee that your going to recive pure fuel, but is an excelent first step. rust at the botton of the tank is unlikely...to rust you need both moisture AND oxeygen...there's little o2 at the bottom of a tank. please keep in mind that water does collect at the lowest point, if you have a burryed tank you already know what the lowest point is.the very best fuel/water separators are the centrifugal type- expensive but very effective...probably out of the reach of most home owners

 

[Weedhopper]

It's a 275 gallon tank in the basement. Looks like when they built the house they poured the foundation and floor, dropped the tank in, then built the house. Nice spot for a tank, but tough to get out.

I am PO'd cause last year I went to great lengths to clean the tank with sludge dissolver, tip and drain, tip and drain... then tipped the tank the opposite way so any junk would tend to slide away from the outlet. And I get junk and water for my efforts.

The strainer was TOTALLY plugged and I could'nt see the filter with all the sludge on it. My oil company is a big outfit. Maybe I just drew the short straw and got the bad load.

 

[MrMoMo]

Why not install a drain (ball valve) on the bottom of the tank so you can just crack the drain to get the crud out the bottom... Kind of like the drain on an air compressor tank, to let the water out. 1/2" ball valve or something like that.

 

[RavenTai]

I am PO'd cause last year I went to great lengths to clean the tank with sludge dissolver, tip and drain, tip and drain... then tipped the tank the opposite way so any junk would tend to slide away from the outlet. And I get junk and water for my efforts.

there is always going to be water at the bottom of fuel, it can come just from the air, and every bit of water that the fuel it collects it keeps by sealing it off at the bottom without air contact it cannot "dry out". there is a bacteria that lives in the boundary layer of fuel and water, it can create a large quantity of sludge and wreck havoc, especial in heavier fuels and tanks that sit around a lot, in Jet-A it smells like rancid feet smell,

IMO tilting the tank so that water gets trapped and cannot get out of the tank is a bad idea, eventually the water will get to the level of the outlet anyway and you now have a huge water/fuel contact area for sludge to grow in

, you want to get the water out of the tank and burn it or trap it, eiher way you want it out, make sure you are either sumping the tank at its lowest point regularly, start with weekly and see how often there is water, or make sure the fuel pickup is at the very bottom of the tank so it will remove the water.

 

[Weedhopper]

Had to push reset this AM. If I was away and this happened to it would not be pretty.

Tank is low on fuel now, so I will go thru the cleaning process again. I will leave the tank flatter so that I will not accumulate water and I will buy a supply of filters and strainers and change them more frequently.

 

[ntsqd]

Condensation occurs the least when the tank is full, so filling in the Spring might help control it over the summer months.

If you think that the water is coming in with the fuel you might try filling the tank through a chamois. This is an old trick used in bush planes and in Baja (& I'm sure elsewhere as well). I'll bet that the driver won't be happy about how long it will take to fill the tank though.....