Help-- Home Fuel Oil Gelled

39 below zero here and my son that is galavanting around florida called to see if I could take care of his fuel oil furnace. Outside tank with about 250 gallons of #2. Can I pour in some 911 fuel conditioner? Any other suggestions......

911 is what we use in all our heavy equipment. Fixes the jell problem.

Yep.. I have used it many a time in trucks and equipment... But not sure about using it on the home fuel systems...

Thin it with Kerosene.

You could call and ask supplier.
I've added clear kerosene by syphon while sitting in warm truck
with exhaust directed under the tank.
I've also used electric light under tank.
This is not fun, been there a lot.

Talk to the fuel supplier they must deal with this often.

They are closed till monday morning.. I'll try another..

I would find another supplier. It should have been treated before your tank was filled. 911 works on fuel for semi's.

This would be my sons fault. We have the choice of #1 or #2 fuel.

Call a supplier!

We have added kerosene in the past to drop the cloud point.

Got no experience on treating 250 gals at a time.
Always had the tank in the basement at the house.
The cabin only has a 5 gal tank on the space heater ... lasts little more than a day ... always brought the next day's supply in to warm up.

Cold weather
And I'm guessing the filter is outside and the tank is full too.

Any way to reasonably apply heat under the tank or is it underground? Back in '72 we had 56 below and my 500 gallon propane tank was low and the liquid propane would not turn into a gas at that temp so the supplier told me to build a fire under the tank. I did and it worked to get my furnace going again.
This would only be a temporary fix since we are expecting several more days of this tropical weather. A fuel additive would be the long term answer.

Don't think if would matter much. At -39 below they both would gel without an additive of some kind.

We use 911 lots but I’d do what upstate suggested

911 in the orange bottle, follow recomendations,

At -39, should have blended #2 fuel oil and kerosene 50-50 before temps dropped below 20F. Anti gel fuel additives help some, but now that you are gelled, you need kerosene, warmer temps and change any fuel filters on your system.
Owning logging equipment all my adult life in Northern NY have always used blended off road fuel in winter. Contracted for International Paper Co. years ago, in the Adirondacks. One winter we had -40 every morning for a week straight, never had fuel gel problems in equipment with a 50-50 blend.

I got ahold of another supplier and he said the 911 conditioner would be okay. Heat the line from tank to house also recommended.
My son knows I am not thrilled about this and I am sure this will never happen again. Living in northern Minnesota you always use #1 fuel for heat....

#2 and kerosene 50-50 blend is way less expensive than #1.

Here we have the choice of #1 or #2 offroad at the pump. In winter there is an option for "blended" for the road trucks but i always thought it was a mix of #1 and 2. .. The price for that is way more because the road tax...

Another way.
Pull the line from tank and insert into another container of better fuel.
I do not miss depending on my old bleepity bleep.

The road tax is reason to use kero.

Fun way to spend a cozy morning. Glad it is not me! My daughter called and said that her propane furnace would not run but she had a full tank. Told her to pour hot water over the regulator. Leaned back in my recliner, another days good work done.

I only wish I could take care of this that easy. The longer I putz on here.. The warmer it is getting outside...

Had the same set up years ago, outside tank. Had the supplier come out. We used pans of hot water under the barrel and the line to the house to warm it up. Took some time but it worked. His idea not mine and he had been doing this a long time.

Kerosene at this point. No one up here uses #2 just for this reason.

Be VERY careful not to get any on your gloves at those temperatures. Evaporative cooling will drop the temperature of your fingers very quickly.


Remove the filter element completely if your fuel is pretty clean.

Thanks for all the replys. I am heading out. Got my propane weed burner, wrenches, buckets and rags, and will pick up some orange bottle 911 on the way.

Only place to get kerosine is closed till monday...

X2 on the filter until you get fuel to the furnace.

If the temp has dropped below freezing in the house .... turn the water off until it warms up and you can verify there are no broken water pipes.

Ken's idea of removing the filter is a good one. Condensate in the tank goes to the lowest point in warm weather and typically builds up in the filter first if your tank is pitched toward that end. Newer tanks having a bottom tapping where older tanks had the tapping on the end an inch or so up.

In MN we don't pay road tax on off road fuel.

Is there a back up heat source in the house?
Should have a wood stove back up to keep water pipes from freezing in emergency.

Same in NY, that’s why off road diesel and kerosene is dyed red. Get caught with red fuel in your semi, big time fine.

49er I responded to OPs reply below.
Sorry for trying to help.

"Here we have the choice of #1 or #2 offroad at the pump. In winter there is an option for "blended" for the road trucks but i always thought it was a mix of #1 and 2. .. The price for that is way more because the road tax..."

In my area off road is red also. Kero is clear. available at sheetz and bp.
None of that matters to the cool guy right now lol.

Another thing worth mentioning. The shutoff valve on the tank is thermally fused to close automatically during a fire. You can spin the wheel to the top (counterclockwise) and give it a light rap with a hammer to make sure it seats and closes off the fuel supply before you remove the filter. They're also spring loaded. Lifting them and letting them snap back under their own power will most often seat them.

Got over to son's house and found he had an underground fuel tank. Poured in the fuel deicer anyway. Went down the basement and checked for filter and all I found was this thing on one of the lines, I didn't monkey with it because the furnace fired right up. It is a combo wood and oil furnace and the person watching the place did build a fire last night so no damage done. If it happens again I will meet with a professional. Last time I messed with one of them oil burners I got a jolt from the transformer that burnt my lip and laid me flat out on the floor....

Digger
That looks like a check valve , to keep the fuel from bleeding back into tank..

You can use a bottle of dry gas or just use isopropyl alcohol which is the same thing. May oil would freeze up every year on the coldest day. Finally I called my oil dealer and that is what he did.

Note: Do not use gas just dry gas.

Garryowen

50/50 should flow

The older transformers kick line voltage up to around ten thousand volts. I think the newer ignitors are worse, 15,000-20,000 volts. I've been bit before, back when I played as a heating tech. It hurts.

That was my thought also. If I could have seen directional arrows on it I would have been sure. Can't believe there is no filter...

I don't remember it hurting much but am not sure how long I laid there either.. I had the transformer folded back so I could look in that little hole and got the brite idea to hit the on button. Took about 6 seconds to build up enough charge to jump the 6 inches to my lip.. Kind of like getting whacked with a belisle... Once is enough...

I wondered how you got hit in the lip. I took mine through the hand but all the pain was in my elbow. I had a co-worker swear up and down his hit was in the testicles. He was sitting on a bucket. I'll take the elbow all day long.

I don't know if it will help you much, but we use those silicone block heater pads on the hyd tank on our cranes at work to shorten the warm up time.

You are correct it's a check valve used as you said in two pipe systems.