Does My Heating Oil Tank Need to Be Insulated?

A Frequently Asked Question

Having an outdoor heating oil tank means it’s vulnerable to the changes in the weather. Now that winter is here, you need to worry about how cold it gets. When heating oil falls below a certain temperature it gels. That means it freezes into a thick, sludge. It never becomes solid like ice. This gelling happens at around 20 degrees Fahrenheit and effects on several components of your heating system. It affects the following components in these ways:

• Heating oil tank: When oil gels inside your heating oil tank, the sludge settles to the bottom, decreasing the space available and leaving you with less burnable oil.
• Heating oil lines: Gelled oil builds on heating oil line walls, narrowing the passageway much like a clogged artery. With less fuel reaching the igniter, your heating efficiency will decrease, leaving you with higher energy bills.
• Atomizing nozzle: The atomizing nozzle turns liquid heating oil into a vapor that can be burned inside your heating equipment. Gelled fuel can block that nozzle, meaning that less oil will get through to convert to heat. Once again, your efficiency suffers, and you end up with both higher bills and eventually needing repairs for your heating equipment.
• Fuel filter: As gelled oil is forced through the filter, it clogs quickly and needs to be replaced more frequently.

Can I Prevent My Heating Oil from Gelling?

There are steps you can take at your Hudson Valley home to protect your heating oil from gelling.

1. Insulate the heating oil tank: Cover your heating oil tank with a shed that will protect it from the elements.
2. Use treated oil: There are certain heating oil additives that can help prevent gelling.
3. Bury your fuel line: If your heating oil line is above ground, burying it will provide some insulation.
4. Install a wider fuel line: A wider fuel line will be less prone to blockages due to gelling.

Remember, a Full Tank Is Best

Remember, there are a couple reasons why you should keep your tank full. Otherwise, debris can clog your oil filters. Clogged oil filters reduce the efficiency of your heating system and can even cause it to fail altogether. Both of those scenarios will cost you more money in energy and/or repair costs. An emptier tank is also more susceptible to condensation. The water formed by condensation forms an ideal environment for bacteria to build up and create heating oil sludge in your tank. If that sludge gets into your filters, it will decrease your system’s efficiency or cause it to fail. Condensation can also cause rust, and that rust can cause your heating system to fail. A fuller tank is also less susceptible to gelling, because the more heating oil in your tank the longer it takes to freeze.

How full is full enough? Try to keep your tank at least half full (though fuller is better) all year long. Not sure how much heating oil to order, take out the guesswork by becoming an automatic delivery customer and we’ll do all the calculations for you to come up with the most efficient delivery schedule.

Quality and Affordability

Valley Oil delivers heating oil at the best price to the residents of Dutchess County, Ulster County, and the surrounding areas. We offer our customers quality, affordability, and dependability.

Valley Oil is a reliable provider of quality discount heating oil. Contact us today to order oil or sign up for automatic delivery.