How much diesel fuel to store (fuel tank) - Page 3

 



Ignoramus25850 wrote:


    If you have oil heat, diesel fuel will burn just fine in your home
furnace.  My dad likes to run the tank nearly dry at home before
he orders a refill.  The oil company charges a lot for off hours
delivery, he will go to the gas station, buy ten or so gallons of
diesel fuel to keep the house going till monday when he runs
it dry.

    Also, for a fixed generator, you can burn off-road diesel
fuel, which is taxed at a much lower rate in the US.  Something
to inquire with your fuel supplier is the cost of delivering sealed
55 gallon drums of fuel.  Since they are sealed, they will have
much longer shelf life, and drum pumps are readily available.

    Big problem with stored diesel is that water condenses in
the tank and then bacteria start growing.  The bacterial sludge
that results will clog the hell of of your fuel system.  Common
problem with national guard trucks, most of the year they sit
with full tanks, but only a little fuel being used and mostly from
the driver side tanks.   Come annual training convoy, soon as
they start using the passenger side tanks they start breaking
down from clogged fuel filters.

    --Dale

 


I do not have an oil furnace.


I believe that keeping such drums would be illegal.


Hm, in case of a hermetically sealed tank such as a full jerry can,
that is not possible, right?


Sure, but these tanks have breathers...

i

 



Ignoramus25850 wrote:


    So that isn't an option for you.


    Check your local laws to be sure.  Don't assume.


    Actually sealed airtight, less so.  You will want to toss in some
thing to take care of any water in the fuel when you fill it.  alcohol
or whatever is recommended.  The biocide stuff mentioned before
sounds like the ticket.


    Yup, and a checkout procedure that has them opening the
tank cap periodically, sometimes that is during the rain or snow
storm.

    --Dale

 


[snip]

This subject has come up before. Permit me to offer my own experience. I
have a few steel cans of diesel I've had for 20 years. I recently used some
in a generator. This old fuel had the same appearance when poured as new
fuel, and ran the engine without difficulty. There is no detectable
degradation. I did not add any antioxidants when I originally procured the
fuel.

I suspect this is because the cans are gasketed, and stored in a garage
where few thermal cycles occur. Consequently, there was little ingress of
oxygen into the cans. Contrast this with a vented fuel bin, subject to
diurnal variations, or even small cans that are stored outside. Inevitably,
the pressure differential will cause ingress of oxygen.

Key points: attempt sealed storage; minimize the rate and number of
temperature cycles.

 

Thanks Robert. I will store diesel fuel in airtight jerry cans.

i