Farm Fuel Tank Questions

[Jerome Stanek]

It is a pressure vent and fill opening that is broken should have a cover on it and you can lock it so no one can steal gas. Been a long time since we had one.

[Jim Andrew]

That 3rd pic is where the tank is filled. It is also a vent. Part of the fitting is missing, the part that closes over the hole. I would want to clean the tank before filling it.

[Lon Crosby]

Jerome is correct. The missing cover and skirt keeps water and snow from entering the tank. The valve in fig 4 is a drain valve. Tanks are open to the atmosphere so water can condense in the tank. It settles to the bottom because of density. Also a place for sediment (rust flakes) to settle. Needs to be drained periodically, just like an air compressor. Unless you are using a lot of diesel, easier to go buy 20 gallons at the cheapest local truck stop and claim you federal and state tax rebate once a year. If you run old engines, fuel quality is much less of a concern than if you are running modern engines. Read you tractor manual for fuel spec requirements. Hauling a drum of diesel in the back of a pick-up is not legal but you can still haul 5 gallon containers. Best bet is a 100 gallon diesel tank designed and certified for OTR transport in the back of a pickup with a 12 volt electric pump. No fuel quality worries, no delivery charges and typically lowest cost. Around here, that setup meets the needs of hobby farmers running 1000 acres of row crop or more.

[Ronald Blue]

Get a tank like this. It is DOT approved and is a safe substitute to using a barrel. I am sure there is a TSC or a similar store in the area. You can always use it as your storage tank or just your transfer tank. An electric pump is nice but expensive for no more than you will use it. Here is a link to check out.

tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/delta-steel-transfer-tank-50-gal

[Rich Riddle]

Thank you for all the replies. I decided to stay with this tank and have a local supplier deliver the fuel. The company driver who delivers home heating oil to the neighbor and they will deliver off-road diesel without a delivery charge at the same time they fill the neighbor's home heating oil tank. We just need to coordinate filling both tanks. Amazon sold the cast iron 2" fill cap that was broken in the picture and it's now on the tank. Northern Tool is supposed to ship the rotary hand-wind hand pump. The local supplier provided a source for a Goldenrod water-block filter to deal with water in the tank.

There were a few items floating around inside the tank. Someone had used a dip stick and dropped it inside. Apparently the pick-up pipe of the old fuel pump separated from pump upon removal and the previous owner just left it floating inside. Both proved entertaining to remove. So the remaining question is how do you folks clean out the inside?

[Michael Dye]

Rich, take a look at how much fuel you plan on using. You will find that burning through 150 gallons of diesel, during certain times, might take some time. That stuff does go bad. Also, if you install that tank, you will have to have a containment that will contain the entire contents of the tank, in the event of a spill. The annual inspections and the eyesore of the tank can be trying. I installed a tank about twice the size of yours to supply jet fuel for our company helicopter and hated it. Eventually, we went back to a truck mounted tank and removed the ground tank. No inspections and never had to worry about the fuel going bad. Plus, I got myself a pretty nice crew cab pickup to drive.

[Rich Riddle]

Michael,

The local area had nice weather this week and the containment system was built. In the area where the tank's placed the tractor shed hides one side and bushes hide the other sides, so no one will ever see it. Part of the consideration on tank placement involved visual backdrop and another consideration centered on thefts in the country; out of sight, out of mind. A walkway exists next to the shed but is hidden by foliage. Some might consider the tractor shed an eyesore, but we're located in the country. Beautifying the shed might draw attention to it. The nearest fire department waives the inspection fee for small farms in our area, so that's fortunate. We also provide an annual donation to the fire department, but of course the donations wasn't based upon the fire department performing the inspection because we just purchased the tank.

On another note, we would love to find a method to hide the LP tank to the farm house and are considering the option of purchasing an underground tank exclusively for that purpose.

[John A langley]

underground LP tank is nice , Fence is cheaper

[John K Jordan]

I finally got around to taking a photo of the cap and fitting on my old tank:

tank_cap_IMG_20170208_13514.jpg

It is not spring loaded and doesn't seal tightly so I will also function as a pressure vent.

JKJ

[Todd Mason-Darnell]

Rich,

I know is for the new skid steer--I am still jealous.

Make sure to get an in line filter for your pump for particles and moisture. No telling how much crap is in that tank. With it being hauled around and having loose parts banging around, there is bound to have been some spalling. Also, you will get condensation in that tank with temp changes and the last thing you want is moisture in your diesel.

Also, as others have mentioned, I would recommend a secondary containment basin under tank for spills.

Unless you plan on burning through all of that fuel in a hurry, I would recommend that make sure to add a diesel additive for to prevent algae and gelling.

[Rollie Meyers]

Just do not EVER be caught with off road diesel in a vehicle driven on the highways, the fines are huge.

[Kev Williams]

Concur on the 165 gallons.

How I was taught to do this:

divide the 28" diameter by 2,
= 14"
square the result: 14x14,
= 196

196 x the 62" length,
=12,152

12.152 x 3.1416 / pi,
=38176.72 cubic inches--

There's 231 cubic inches to a gallon, so
38176.72, / 231,
=165.267 gallons...

Didn't have time to read everything else, just want to add from experience--
We have a 125 gallon 'toy tank' in our houseboat with a 12v pump very similar to the one in your pics. The thing pumps 6-7 gallons a minute. That's not a lot of minutes of using a deep cycle battery, one charge should empty that tank no problem.

Crank? Nah...

[Rich Riddle]

Kev,

You're far more patient and intelligent when it comes to formulating math. Thanks for the exact sizing for the tank to you and the others. Rollie, I don't own any vehicles that take diesel fuel, just tractors and a skid steer. If the gas-powered F150 or cars ever received diesel there would be a lot more problems than just fines.

[Bill Saflarski]

Here are the pictures of the actual tank:

Attachment 353214 Attachment 353215 Attachment 353217 Attachment 353218
Do you know what the fitting in the third photograph is? There is a small nozzle in the fourth photograph on the bottom as well. I also hear something clinking around inside when moving the tank. Any information you might offer will be appreciated.

I purchased a fuel storage tank for diesel gas that looks a lot like these:

Attachment 353164 Attachment 353165

The pumps pictured on the tanks appear to be electrical and look similar to this:

Attachment 353166
Growing up in Kansas, many farmers had hand crank models similar to this style.

Attachment 353167

1. Is there any great advantage of the electrical style pump or hand crank pump over the other?
2. How does one arrange to get diesel fuel delivered? Filling it by hand five gallons at a time doesn't sound enjoyable or practical.
3. Diesel fuel options include dyed, non-dyed, on-road, off-road, ULS ppm15, ULS ppm15#1, B20 & B50. Which one for tractors and skid steers?
4. The tank on the farm is 28" round by about 62" long. Is that a 150 gallon tank?
5. The tank is missing the plugs on the top side of both ends. One will likely get filled with the pump Where does one find plugs for a tank?
6. The neighbor has a "gauge" on his oil tank for his furnace. Should I purchase one of those instead of a plug?
7. Many farmers place diesel fuel storage tanks next to barns/buildings. Is that acceptable?

The details of starting up a hobby farm never seem to stop. Thanks for your help.

Farmer Rich, soon to be Farmer Poor

Hi Rich,
Diesel fuel (red) dyed off-road ULS ppm15, ULS ppm15#1, for tractors and skid steers. B20 & B50 is Bio-diesel blend if your tractor is older I would not use either. Bio-diesel will dissolve older pump seals and it dissolves varnish in the the fuel tanks, fuel lines and will plug injectors. B20 is 20% bio 80% regular diesel B50 is 50% bio 50% regular. Uls ppm 15#1 you can get dyed and not dyed all that is #1 Diesel (kerosene), uls ppm 15 is ultra low sulfur 15 parts per million. you would want winter blend ULS ppm15 #1 for any thing under 25F and put in algae additive this way your fuel wont grow algae and run a in line filter on your tank pump. in your 3rd pic that is for a vented cap you can get them as locking or not locking you can get them at TSC or any farm store all they are is a large raditor cap. the valve on the bottom of the tank is for draining water from the tank some used to gravity feed from it some times when on a wagon till it gets ripped off. If you inlarge the pic of the first tank in your first post you can see the cap that I'm talking about. I no longer farm my land I cash rent it out for the same reasons your finding out a small farmer doesnt stand a chance any more working his land with the price of Equipment, seed, fertilizer, storage bins, out buildings and so on.

just my .02 cents worth

Bill