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signifywinter t1_ja3ih2m wrote

There are a few things going on here.

First, the fill connection is 1.5” threaded pipe. These connections are very prone to leaking during fill because the threads wear out over time both on the fill box and the fill adapter. “Modern” fill adapters use rubber rings to ensure a good seal during fill. 1.5” adapters do not have these.

Also, when this stoop was constructed, the fill box was not properly installed. The adapter connection should not be parallel to the ground. The scenario you see can lead to the oil flowing back when the hose from truck is disconnected.

Also, the pipe to the tank may not be pitched corrected. So when the fill is complete, some portion of the oil may flow back to the street when the hose from truck is disconnected.

Also, the stain on the wall may be due to two factors. One is the fill box connection leaking when during fill. Another is the fill box/pipe can be cracked inside the masonry. The masonry over time soaks up the leaked oil.

The stay dry was most likely put down by the oilman as this fill is clearly a bad leaker. It’s a fairly common, though undesirable scenario.

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Ng3me OP t1_ja3opv6 wrote

Good info. Glad it isn’t a fire hazard.

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mistersausage t1_ja66jjq wrote

Fuel oil is not flammable, just like diesel. You can throw a match in and it won't ignite.

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signifywinter t1_ja6m9sq wrote

Fuel oil and diesel are actually the exact same thing, but two minor, yet key differences:

  • Fuel oil is not taxed for road use and it has red dye in it to indicate if it’s improperly put into vehicles to skirt taxes.

  • Historically, diesel used to have more strict requirements when it came to sulfur content than fuel oil. Fuel oil used to have >=2,000ppm sulfur in it and increasing standards mandated diesel at be low sulfur at 500ppm. Ultra low sulfur diesel then was mandated at 15ppm. At this point, everything is ultra low sulfur.

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