Contaminated Home Heating Oil?

ybot

Hi, has anyone ever come across a case of a contaminated Kerosene delivery from one of the main home heating oil suppliers? A friends heating stopped working and after much investigation by a plumber it seems the kerosene is completely contaminated as in there is a dark brown/black sediment resting at the bottom of the samples taken from the tank. It has to be from the last delivery as it was working fine up to then (this delivery was just to top up for the winter) and the boiler was serviced a couple of months before.

Not only is the heating out of action at the coldest time of the year but the rest of the oil that was in the tank is obviously now also contaminated. She will contact the oil co in the morning but I've no doubt they will probably try to fob her off. Just wondering if this is common and any ideas of how to resolve the contaminated oil situation if they won't help? All suggestions appreciated.

Dazler97

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058325519/contaminated-home-heating-oil

I'd get on to the company and complain this isn't on at all , now your friend will have to drain her tank and get a fresh tank of kerosene, I'd be absolutely fuming 😤

Wearb

Contact them and ask them to send out someone to look at the samples. Tell them you want it emptied and new oil put in tomorrow and that you'll work out the details later. That's if they don't take immediate responsibility.

BTW I haven't come across anything as bad as that. Just dirty filters or water after a fill. Mostly from dirty tanks, but sometimes from a suspected dirty delivery.

minibear

I worked for an oil distributor for ten years and never came across a case of contaminated oil. But some customers would tilt their tank by placing a concrete block under the end to get the last of the oil into the system. Also getting the gunk into the boiler.

The sludge in the bottom of a tank is almost inevitable unless you keep your tank full. I'd say there's very little chance of proving it was contaminated oil. It would mean every delivery made on that run was contaminated. It might be time to get the tank emptied and cleaned. Or just replaced.

There is a service available for damaged tanks (usually for a leak or crack in the tank) where the oil can be temporarily decanted into a tank on the back of a trailer so it can be added back into the new tank once it's installed. Might be worth considering. I think it cost a couple of hundred euro at the time but that was over ten years ago.

listermint

Who's to say it's not the bottom of her own tank. With it being maybe completely empty dry filling it from zero would have stirred up the crap at the end.

My tank is slightly slopped away from the tap. As above.

There's definitely sediment in there the tanks probably 20 years old.

ybot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121450305#Comment_121450305

Thanks very much for that. The tank was definitely not tilted but I appreciate it will be a difficult one to prove. We'll see what the oil co says.

blackbox

While not impossible, it is very unlikely that the delivery was contaminated. Most likely the sediment in the bottom of the tank got disturbed if the level had gone very low. Even in this case it should not have got past your filter, but may have blocked it.

Have you tried cleaning the filter?

ybot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121450315#Comment_121450315

The tank was at least half full, this was just a top up for the winter months. The tank was never empty.

ybot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121450319#Comment_121450319

Thanks, I'm not sure what was done, I just know the boiler was serviced a couple of months ago and the level was not low in the tank.

Lenar3556

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058325519/contaminated-home-heating-oil

It’s possible that the most recent delivery was contaminated, but also that at least some of what you are seeing was present in the tank before hand and was either disturbed when the latest delivery was made, or it has simply reached the level of the tank outlet.

In some installations oil tanks can be prone to condensation building up internally. This gives rise to a water accumulation at the bottom of the tank which over time will build and sludge will form.

Often heating oil suppliers are accused of delivering a contaminated oil, when in fact the issue was arose within the customers tank over a prolonged period and was only noticed when it reached the outlet.

I think it’s reasonable to contact the supplier, explain the issue and ask them to have a look. But keep an open mind at this stage. Also it would be helpful to take samples from both a high and low point in the tank to establish the extent of the issue.

ZX7R

Is the tank plastic or metal.

ybot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121450340#Comment_121450340

It's a plastic tank

cap.in.hand.

I suppose any sediment will settle from now on and new clean filter to further provide clean flow.

10-10-20

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121450334#Comment_121450334

It has been such a damp/wet year this year that if it going to happen then this is the year for it.

Wearb

There's minimal condensation inside a plastic tank, unlike steel. The biggest problem with the plastic tank was a black scum that formed and was blamed on the small amount of bio fuel that used (perhaps still is) to be added to the fuel.

Water can be delivered in the oil if the supplier hasn't a regular procedure in place for storage tank inspection. (These storage tanks are steel and subject to condensation) I think that with quality control this problem is now rare.

Op, I think if you can get your plumber to contact you oil company, you might have a better response. No oil company will want a plumber going about saying that they sell dirty oil.

declan b

I really doubt the delivery is contaminated.., Was the oil tank dipped for any water content during the service.Dark brown sediment sounds like water to me...,to pull abit of black sediment from the bottom of the tank is normal.

i would be checking the tank for water with a dip stick and water seeking paste.if water is present,it does not mean the oil is contaminated.The water is heavier than oil and goes to the bottom. Also if water is present in a oil tank,the water level will rise when temperatures drop below 4 degrees.In my experience it has always been an issue with the tank and not the oil delivery.