How can i refill my house heating oil myself, the company here will only do 150 gallon, i cant afford that now

Question

What type of oil is used for the common house heater?
Can i buy it myself and fill it in?
Staying temporarily in the house cant afford a 150 gallon filling
thanks in advance

Answer 1

I have been in the same boat you are in. It's ruff and it will work you but you can do it.
You can buy kerosene at a lot of stores. You can also buy desel fuel at nearly any gas station. #2 fuel oil is just about a perfit mix of the two at a 50/50 ratio and that is what your heater is designed to use.
Straigh kerosene will give you more heat per gallon and will work perfect with it.
When I was heating with oil I would always order kero instead of #2 because it heated better.
If you have no other means, round up a lot of gallon milk jugs, but some 5 gallon cans is easiest.
You can get 2 1/2 and 5 gallon plastic jugs from most resturants if you know someone there or are real nice to the employees for free. They work good in a pinch. If you get peanut or soybeen oil jugs from a resturant don't even worry about cleaning them out. The little oil left in them will mix with the kero or desiel you put in them. As someone else said, desiel isn't recomended and I wouldn't use it straight but a 50/50 mix is ok.
You will need a ladder or some way to get up to the top of the tank to pour it in and you need some kind of funnel to use.
If you have a helper that will hold it, cut the bottom off a milk jug to use as a funnel.
5 gallons of fuel is heavy, so be careful not to loose your balance on the ladder pouring it in. I am disabled because of a 10 foot fail. Ouch. It hurts.
According to where you live and how cold it is, one 5 gallon can should last 2 to 3 nights if you keep the heat down somewhat.
I lived in one trailer years ago and got a couple weeks behind on the rent and the landlord wouldn't fill the tank so I was buying the fuel in 5 gallon cans and when it got down in the teens I would burn a can a night.
The problem is you have to bleed the line every time it runs out before the heater will start again. It's not hard to do, but you will need a 1/4" boxed end wrench to do it with.
If you don't know how to do it, e-mail me and I'll walk you though it.
Good luck and God Bless
Dennis

Answer 2

I do this myself, I have a 55 gal drum that I lay on it's side in the back of my truck. I fill it through the top bung an on the bottom one I have a 1/4 turn shut off with a 1" hose off it that I put in the fill hole at my house. I go right to the fuel oil company and get it, I have been getting for around .05-.08 per gallon cheaper that haveing it delivered to me, but I only live about 2 mile from there so I do save some money. It is fairly simple to do.

Answer 3

Many convenience stores have 50 gallon tanks that you can carry in your car. All you have to do is turn the crank(handle) and the kerosene will pump into your container. Number 2 fuel oil is what I have used. Hope this helps.

Answer 4

Fuel oil for heating is #2 grade oil, which means it is very refined, almost to gasoline.
You can substitute kerosene or diesel fuel for #2, (I would use kerosene)but not for permanent use. You should be very careful when running oil burners, period if you are not experienced in their operation.
I don't know of any place that sells #2 fuel oil retail, which would be preferred, without a large minimum.

Answer 5

Just go to a gas station that sells fuel oil [most do] and start filling up cans.

Answer 6

For future reference... LIHEAP.org.
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
Your tax dollars pay for this program; if you qualify, use it.
They can weatherize your house too (even if you rent).
No charge for either program.

Answer 7

i haved used diesl fuel when i was short on cash .i was told its not recomended .try contacting your county,city or state for assistance

Answer 8

try calling another company, or explain your financial problem and that is all u can afford