[blakesq]

HI All,

I am a Texas boy living in Connecticut, and heating oil tanks and fiberglass patches are all foreign to me. Anyhow, we have a heating oil tank in our basement, and a "whistle" to the outside, that lets the oil delivery people know when our tank is close to full. Well, the whistle has been not working for a few years, and the oil company has been slow-filling our tank. Well, they overfilled the tank a bit today, hardly any leaked out, but it stinks up our whole house, and they are cleaning it up. They overfilled the tank about 4 years ago, and cleaned it up back then too. They have quoted $250 to fix the whistle and make the whistle pipe bigger, which is code. But, I understand it may cost around $1000 -$1900 to replace and install a new tank and new pipes.

I have no idea how old the tank or fiberglass patch is, but the oil guys say it looks in good shape. But, when they fail, the oil can slowly leak out, or gush out. The house was built in 1947.

So my questions are:

1. should I be worried about the fiberglass patch?
2. Should I just get the whistle fixed for $250, or
3. get the whole tank and pipes replaced (including the whistle) for maybe $1000-$1900.

Thanks all!

[NewHavensFinest]

Something doesnt sound right here.

the "whistles" im thinking of is just a ventilation pipe so pressure doesnt build up when filling. Our whistle pipe is like 1 1/4" dia. and it can handle the oil fill.

our tank has a level reader but its inside and the oil guy cant see it anyway and he never overfills it. This is probably because we check the level and get as close as we can to "full" without going over.

The only thing you can do is keep checking the tank. The patch will not just suddenly start gushing 150 gallons out, oil will start to seep.

I wouldnt mess around with small repairs, either the tank leaks or doesnt, the oil guy watches his fill or doesnt.

with the tank already being repaired, Id just look into a new tank come the spring time. That way you wont have to worry about anything its all taken care of.

[Cambium]

I would do 2 things.

Get the whistle fixed
Call DEP to make sure you and your family are safe from any drops or leaks and plus nothing gets absorbed into land or sewers

Connecticut - Oil Spill & Pollution Clean up Contractors Directory

[Tetto]

Change the tank. The peace of mind is worth the thousand or so bucks. Put in a 330 gal tank and you'll be all set

[Cambium]

Also, I never dealt with the whistles but can't you transfer it in case you need to get another tank? This way its not a total loss . If yes, then try the whistle replacing first. If not then replace the pipes and tanks if needed and within budget.

[NewHavensFinest]

Why replace a part when the tank is on its way out? Do the whole system. Just my .02

The parts for a whistler/piping would be no more than $50 if you did it yourself.

I know its a big price difference, but in the end your just adding to the cost of a whole new system.

[DontLookPhoto]

I would play it safe and put in a new tank or better yet if you have natural gas I would change the entire heating system to a hydronic system that doesn't boil water to steam but just circulates hot water through radiators. These are very efficient heating systems.
Conventional oil heating systems are archaic and the oil is costly.

[NewHavensFinest]

Hydronic is the way to go, the floor elements heat up a house like no other.. But installing that system practically requires a renovation and massive re piping things. A conversion from oil to hydronic I imagine would cost around $20,000, and thats a guess.

Hydronic is the most efficient though. You can maximize your oil fired, by having good quality windows that are insulated, having good door seals, good insulation in walls, adding a cold air return etc.

[Marc Wallace]

Originally Posted by Cambium

I would do 2 things.

Get the whistle fixed
Call DEP to make sure you and your family are safe from any drops or leaks and plus nothing gets absorbed into land or sewers

Connecticut - Oil Spill & Pollution Clean up Contractors Directory

Oil poses NO hazard to you or your family in the minute amount that you stated had overflowed. Respectfully disagree with Cambium, but that could potentially be the absolute WORST thing to do calling in the DEP! Nothing like getting your home condemned, pay 30K for a "clean-up" and take out expen$ive insurance policies for future mishaps. There is no way I'd allow anyone from the EPA, DEP or any other like angency into my home. YMMV...
Marc

[TobinJ]

Have another oil company come in and get a second opinion. Btw are you sure the patch is fiberglass and not asbestos? How old is your furnace? Is it worth converting to gas at this time?