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Guide to Checking Heating Oil Tank Support Legs, Feet & Piers
InspectAPedia® - 
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InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers, products, or services discussed at this website.
This article discusses inspection of oil tank support and piers. The photo above shows an oil tank supporting leg (commonly made of iron pipe) that has been so exposed to flooding that it is badly rusted and about to split and collapse. If the pier or foot supporting an oil tank collapses, tips or slips and the oil tank falls over, a costly oil
leak as well as possible damage from loss of heat to the building could be the result. Page top photo is courtesy Arlene Puentes.
This is a section of our article on inspecting above ground oil tanks for defects.
The article and photographs below give advice and example photos for the visual inspection of above ground oil tanks for leaks and damage
including damaged or leaky oil storage tanks, improper oil tank piping, valves, and indoor-type oil tanks located outdoors.
Green links show where you are. © Copyright 2013 InspectAPedia.com, All Rights Reserved. Author Daniel Friedman.
Oil Storage Tank Support Requirements: feet, legs, piers, strapping, impact protection
OIL TANK SUPPORT and Oil Tank Protection Inspection
Here are a some important indicators of tank condition that any home owner or home inspector can examine when an oil storage tank
is visible and accessible inside or at a building.
Also see additional visibly detectable oil tank defects listed at Home Inspection Report Language Library: Visible Defects in Oil Tank Installations, Tanks, and Heating Oil Piping.
Are the tank support legs sound and on firm footing? If required by local ordnance, is other tank support in place? A standard 275-gallon tank with an
average capacity of 260 gallons weighs about 2000 lbs. Placed on wood or dirt the tank is likely to tip and spill.
The photo shows a seriously tipping oil tank support pier, risking tipping of the tank, oil spillage,
loss of heat (risking frozen pipes and water or mold damage) and environmental contamination. Photo courtesy Arlene Puentes, Kingston NY
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What about rusty oil tank feet? The rust shown in this photo is trivial in that it has not caused enough damage that we have any
concern that the tank is going to tip over - at least not in the near future.
But rust on oil tank supporting feet for an indoor
oil storage tank, especially on those back feet close to the wall, hard to reach, and hard to re-paint, are a great indicator of
the history of water entry in a building. |
What about just skipping oil tank feet entirely. Why can't we just sit the oil tank on the ground?
Steve Vermilye (photo at left) looked concerned for a reason. This oil storage tank had not much besides luck holding it up, and in addition, the tank was not designed for ground-contact.
This oil tank installation is inviting rust perforation of the oil tank or a tipped-over oil tank spill and loss of heat all at once. |
Oil Tank Protection From Vehicles or from Tipping-over
Regardless of whether an oil tank is installed indoors or outdoors above ground, it must be properly supported.
Some municipalities also require installation
of special protection to assure that a tank cannot tip over, even if its feet are damaged.
A steel pipe may be installed in the floor next to the
tank and extended vertically above the tank and then after making a 90 deg. bend, secured to the wall to "cage" the oil tank.
Our photo (left) shows steel piping installed to protect an outdoor oil tank from tipping over.
Where oil tanks are installed in garages, some jurisdictions require that the garage oil tank (and boiler or furnace if one is present) also be
protected from being struck by a vehicle using similar iron pipe guards as just cited above. |
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about support & protection for heating oil storage tanks
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Technical Reviewers & References
Related Topics, found near the top of this page suggest articles closely related to this one.
- Arlene Puentes, an ASHI member and a licensed home inspector in Kingston, NY, and has served on ASHI national committees as well as HVASHI Chapter President. Ms. Puentes can be contacted at ap@octoberhome.com
Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair
 The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 25th Ed., 2012, is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume. Special Offer: For a 10% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference Book purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space. InspectAPedia.com editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author.
Or choose the The Home Reference eBook for PCs, Macs, Kindle, iPad, iPhone, or Android Smart Phones. Special Offer: For a 5% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference eBook purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAEHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space.
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- Carson Dunlop, Associates, Toronto, have provided us with (and we recommend) Carson Dunlop Weldon & Associates' Technical Reference Guide to manufacturer's model and serial number information for heating and cooling equipment
Special Offer: Carson Dunlop Associates offers InspectAPedia readers in the U.S.A. a 5% discount on any number of copies of the Technical Reference Guide purchased as a single order. Just enter INSPECTATRG in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space.
- More Reading and advice about oil storage tank leak testing
- OIL TANK INDOOR INSPECTION - "Visual Inspection of Above Ground Residential Heating Oil Storage Tanks - ASTs" provides photos of common and easily seen tank leaks and defects, and
a description of some easy visual checks of the condition of a visible oil tank, things that you can do yourself
- OIL TANK TESTING Oil Tank Testing Methods & Choices
- BURIED OIL TANKS, FINDING How to Find Buried Oil Tank
- OIL TANK FAILURE CAUSES Oil Tank Leaks or Oil Tank Failure Causes - oil tank leaks are caused by corrosion, damage, soil conditions, other factors
- TANK FAILURE RATES Oil Tank Failure Rates - Oil Tank Leak Probability as a Function of Tank Age, Location, Condition, Soil Conditions and Other Factors
- OIL TANK WATER CONTAMINATION - how to find out if there is problematic water in an oil tank and how to get water out of an oil tank are explained
- Oil Tanks - The Oil Storage Tank Information Website: Buried or Above Ground Oil Tank Inspection, Testing, Cleanup, Abandonment of Oil Tanks
- Abandon a Buried Oil Tank, How To - Abandoning Commercial Underground Tanks, Russ Brauksieck, ASHI Tech. Journal, Vol.3 No.1 Spring 1993, P. 40-41 [Reprint]
- Above Ground Oil Tanks: Visual Inspection of Oil Storage Tanks for evidence of leaks, damage, improper piping - photos and text
- Above Ground Oil Tanks Checklist, an Oil Company's advice
- Above Ground Tanks UL Standards, UL Tank Listing Standards, guidance for home owners, buyers, and inspectors
- Buried Oil Tanks - Finding How to Find Buried Oil Tanks and "Nearly Hidden" and Leaky Oil Tanks - photos and text.
- Buried Fuel tank - Advice - Buried FUEL Tank - GAS or OIL advice for home buyers, home owners, inspection report language for homes where a buried oil tank is or was installed
- Environmental Issues & Regulations for Oil Tanks, Registration, Abandonment, Leak Reporting
- Home Inspection Report Language Library: Buried Oil Tanks, Buried or aboveground oil tank advice for home buyers and home owners, where a buried oil tank is or was installed, also home inspection report language for oil tanks
- Home Inspection Report Language Library: Visible Defects in Oil Tank Installations, Tanks, and Heating Oil Piping
- Home Inspection Report Language Library: Gas Fuel Piping or Tank Faults Basic advice - home inspection report language suggestions
- Home Inspection Report Language Library: Oil Tanks text file list © Oil and Other Storage Tank Leaks, Testing, Abandonment, Inspection - UST home inspection report language files - Reference List
- Indoor Environment Website Indoor Building Environmental Hazard Detection, Testing, Repair, & Prevention - Main Web Page
- Leaky Heating Oil Tanks - Advice for Home Owners or Buyers: caused of leaks in oil tanks, oil tank testing alternatives, what to do about leaky tanks: D. J. Friedman, ASHI Tech. Journal, Vol.2 No.1, Winter, 1992 p. 42-43 Illus
- Leak or Failure Rates for Home Heating Oil Tanks
- Legal Issues Regarding Buried Oil Storage Tanks K. S. Rea, Attorney, summary from ASHI Chapter Seminar.
- Primer on Petroleum Bulk Storage Tanks & Petroleum Contamination of Property Paul H. Ciminello, ASHI Tech. Journal, Vol.3 No.1 Spring 1993, p 35-39
- Petroleum Bulk Storage J. Sibblies, NY State DEC, Advice to Home Owners and Home Inspectors about Oil Storage Tanks - summary from ASHI Chapter Seminar.
- Septic Tank inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair
- OIL TANK FAILURE CAUSES - Oil Tank Failure Causes - oil tank leaks are caused by corrosion, damage, soil conditions, other factors
- Tank Failure Rates - Oil Tank Failure Rates - Oil Tank Leak Probability as a Function of Tank Age, Location, Condition, Soil Conditions and Other Factors
- OIL TANK TESTING - - How Oil Tanks are Tested for Evidence Leaks, of Current or Previous Oil Spills
- "How do you choose the right tank testing method?", Cynthia Johnson, Fuel Oil & Oil Heat Magazine, November 1995
- National Association of Oil Heat Service Managers, PO Box 380, Elmwood Park, NJ 07407
- "Homeowners Guide to Fuel Storage," Agway Energy Products, Verbank, NY, November 1990
- Web Link Exchange: Contact Us to list your website or contact information for oil tank testing, tank corrosion research, oil industry experts
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