crack in plastic oil tank

[robbie77]

Hello,

I have a crack in my oil tank in the yard, one of those big green jobbies. I don't know how but it has a crack that results in it dripping constantly - hair line crack.

I tried to fix it with some putty from halfords that turns as "hard as metal" it dry hard but the constant drip meant the kerosene prevented it sealing.
I then dried to glue it and fibre glass the crack but again it would not seal and now I have a fibre glass patch that leaks and I can't even see the crack !

Any ideas on what to do other than buy a new tanks? There must be something!?

Any help greatly appreciated...

 

[Richard C]

It’s afraid it’s fecked . You’ll have a hard job repairing it with anything because of oil contamination & nothing much will stick to thermoplastic tanks anyway as the plastic is inherently non stick; heat welding is about the only thing that will work but that's hardly practical on a tank in service. A de-greased surface & few layers of Gaffa tape will probably be as good as anything for a temporary repair but be careful not to overfill as it may let go completely.

Plastic tanks used to have a 10 year warranty but there have been so many problems with leaks, I’ve heard that practically all the manufacturers have now reduced it but not sure by how much. If it’s still under warranty you should be able to claim from the manufacturer but only if you still have the paperwork & it was an official (OFTEC) install.

 

[robbie77]

Oh dear! That is not good news is it!
The tank looks new but it was there when I moved in and if its anything like the plumbing on the new boiler then their spurs will be long gone. No paperwork that I know of....

 

[Burnerman]

Oil companies will pump out the old tank, and replenish the new for you...for a nice fee, no doubt.
Bit of bad luck there, matey.....was the tank on a fully flat base?
John

 

[robbie77]

It was on a base about .5 m off the ground but there was a slight overhang on the damamged part by a couple of inches. I had a couple of lads in helping me so it must have got knocked in the yard. Must have took a bit of a whack? Gutted I can't fix it

 

[simond]

The corners of any tank are the areas needing most support. On a plastic tank there are clear instructions that there must be no overhang, you must oversize the base. The area overhanging will have been under immense stress and could rip open at any time. But the most likely time is when you fill it up.

You have no warranty as the tank has been incorrectly installed, in fact it was designed to fail.

There is no alternative to a new tank, this time make sure it is to manufacturer and OFteC instructions.

 

[numpty1]

clean the fibreglass and other crap off and rub some soap over the crack,best advice is replace it now before the EA get involved and slap a big fine on you.

 

[oilman]

A steel tank will have a longer life than plastic. They are available any size and colour you want, and don't let anyone tell you they aren't. They are generally cheaper too. The only disadvantage compared to a plastic tank is that they are considerably heavier.

 

[1CANHELP]

An oil tank requires the base to extend a minimum of 300mm on all sides past the edge of the tank. There are also many other regulations in relation to the siting and installation of an oil tank.

Your oil tank is f4cked due to it being incorrectly installed and will almost inviteably fail sometime soon.

The fact you are fannying about trying to repair it will only make matters worse when the environment agency get involved should it fail suddenly and they find out.

The last known case where I live, the householder got hit with a £6500 clean up bill so you have been warned.

The best advice is to get it replaced asap and to use a OFTEC registered business to do it!

 

[oilman]

Using an Oftec registered firm will not guarantee it will be done properly. There must be thousands of non-compliant installations done by Oftec firms, and I have sen several tens of them.

 

[numpty1]

same as gas most of the shoddiest work is carried out by registered persons

 

[1CANHELP]

Using an Oftec registered firm will not guarantee it will be done properly. There must be thousands of non-compliant installations done by Oftec firms, and I have sen several tens of them.

No but if you receive the correct certification when the work has been completed, then if their is a problem in the future it ain't your fault, the fault/liability lies with the company.

Then again! do you suggest they don't use an OFTEC registered business and just get the handyman from down the road FFS.

At the end of the day he! the OP needs to look at it asap as the tank will split and the contents will be dump on the deck.

Feel free to give decent advice, I am all eyes Oilman.

 

[1CANHELP]

same as gas most of the shoddiest work is carried out by registered persons

I would be happy to accept that sweeping statement if it were actually backed up by some hard facts and figures.

Great! a diy site where most who view will be avid diyers looking to take a short cut by diying and numpty is stating that most work carried out by GSR businesses is shoddy.

Way to go numpty! you certainly live up to your username Sheeesh!

 

[Boilerman2]

There is nothing wrong with the OP using a non OFTEC company, as the installation can be notified to LABC by paying a fee (about £100) also you can notify oil work via other bodies such as HVCA's Besca scheme!

I agree some very poor work is done by people who are corectly registered, fortunately these are rare but bad news (or Jobs) speads fast!!

 

[muggles]

I'd advise getting the tank pumped out ASAP (OFTEC installers often have spare empty tanks and pumps for this purpose, or at least several round here do including ourselves), the Environment Agency are VERY good at tracing the source of even relatively small oil leaks and will come after you for full payment of the cleanup costs, which are often many thousands of pounds. It takes a surprisingly small amount of oil to contaminate a very large amount of land and water.

In the meantime get a bucket under that drip, no choice but to get a new tank here.