Substitutes for home heating oil

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Originally Posted by Donald
Originally Posted by atikovi


Isn't home heating oil CHEAPER than diesel? Isn't that why people in the 70's were fueling their diesel Mercedes with the stuff? I still have an in ground tank at my house from the previous owner.


I would get rid of the underground tank. Its almost impossible to sell a home with an underground tank. Many places need all kinds of permits and inspections to remove an underground tank.


What difference does it make? It's under a side flagstone patio with two steel pipes coming up. If it's a problem, not that I plan on selling, I could just cut those pipes off and put flagstone over them.
 
In years past, (like 1988-91) I've used both Kerosene and Jet-A in my oil burning furnace. The only issue I had was a clogged $5 filter, as the thinner fuel did "stir up" some debris in the ancient tank. Otherwise it worked just fine for the few winters I was in CT.

It's also one reason why I don't live up North anymore. Oil deliveries became exceedingly expensive in Connecticut. After the heating oil's base cost, fees, taxes, delivery charges and some form of war surcharge, I recall heating oil reaching $3 per gallon in '90 or '91.

One winter, it was not unusual for wintertime heating oil to be half my take home pay! No thank you.
 
Originally Posted by Oldtom
I heat my home with oil and am a little worried about events in the sandbox making heating oil expensive or impossible to get. Years ago, I was under employed, nearly broke, and needed heating oil. Most heating oil dealers have a minimum delivery amount
( cannot blame them ) and I did not have the money to fill the tank. I started buying small amounts of off road diesel every payday and dumping it in the oil tank. Off road diesel is dyed pink just like home heating oil. All I needed was a pickup truck, a few 5 gallon cans and a big funnel. The off road diesel pump has a big adapter on the nozzle to prevent fueling modern vehicles, the funnel was needed to get fuel into the can without spillage. The off road diesel worked fine and I never had any heater problems. This alternate fuel kept me warm until I found a real job.

I live in a community with lots of poor people. Every Friday, I see people filling up 5 gallon cans at the off road diesel pump. Poor folks can be inventive :)


FYI -


Heating oil is diesel fuel is heating oil. The only difference is the red dye.
 
The supplier I use in my area heating oil is cheaper than off road diesel, even with "delivery cost." It's usually 10 cents or so more for OR Diesel. OR at the pump is typically $.50 higher per gallon in my area, so heating oil is the cheapest option.
 
People say ATF can go in there as well, as long as you have some other oil or diesel mixed in to thin it out, however atf is expensive unless you come across a case/pallet of the old stuff from the 90s and can get it cheap. I bought 200 gallons in October, $2.18 delivered, to top off the tank at the shop. Now that Im about 2/3 done, I see its closer to 2.75 now. I usually mix in a bottle of Diesel anti gel as well, since its an outdoor tank.
 
Originally Posted by JHZR2
Originally Posted by MrMoody
Originally Posted by Oldtom
I also have a kerosene heater, which is the poor boys friend IF you can find a good source of K1 kerosene. A lot of supposedly pure K1 smells like diesel and has a foul odor when burned, not to mention fouling the wick.

I remember back in the 80s every gas station had a 1-K pump. Now I can't find it anywhere except prepackaged at TSC/Lowes at a high price. I'd like to keep some on hand for power outages, but not at $6-9/gallon.


Lots of places still stock it if you know where to look. Very few places have the best clear 1-k.

That said, I've not had terrible issues burning ULSD with a bit of alcohol in my heater...

How much alcohol? I tried ULSD in my kero heater. That did not work at all. Clear kero pumps are nowhere to be seen around here. There are a couple dyed pumps for $8/gal. Better to buy the cans. I usually bring a can and buy clear kero when I go to E TN.
 
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Originally Posted by Donald
Originally Posted by atikovi
Originally Posted by Oldtom
I started buying small amounts of off road diesel every payday and dumping it in the oil tank.


Isn't home heating oil CHEAPER than diesel? Isn't that why people in the 70's were fueling their diesel Mercedes with the stuff? I still have an in ground tank at my house from the previous owner.


I would get rid of the underground tank. Its almost impossible to sell a home with an underground tank. Many places need all kinds of permits and inspections to remove an underground tank.


The home sale will force a removal unless a cash buyer. Insurance and mortgage companies no allow buried tanks in typical home sales.
 
Originally Posted by madRiver
Originally Posted by Donald
Originally Posted by atikovi
Originally Posted by Oldtom
I started buying small amounts of off road diesel every payday and dumping it in the oil tank.


Isn't home heating oil CHEAPER than diesel? Isn't that why people in the 70's were fueling their diesel Mercedes with the stuff? I still have an in ground tank at my house from the previous owner.


I would get rid of the underground tank. Its almost impossible to sell a home with an underground tank. Many places need all kinds of permits and inspections to remove an underground tank.


The home sale will force a removal unless a cash buyer. Insurance and mortgage companies no allow buried tanks in typical home sales.


Not if they can't find it.
 
Originally Posted by atikovi
Not if they can't find it.


But you just have the P&S say that the seller doesn't have an underground tank. So if you find it later, guess who you go after?
 
How much is a typical job to convert oil burner home to NG heating?

This winter I didn't turn on my furnace once, I put a Sunbeam heating throw on every single sitting and sleeping surface. Compare to last winter I saved about 60 dollars a month. Life is good.
 
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