Oil tank?

So DH and I looked at a house today which we really liked but have a major concern about oil heat. In the basement we don't see the oil tank so our thought is it's underground. Ideally, if we move into any house that has oil we want to change it over and get rid of the tank before we were to move in. Thinking that the tank is underground is a real concern for us. Has anyone else had similar experiences or advice?

Re: Oil tank?

First, I would find out where the oil tank is in the house -- it may be above ground but located outside the house, in the garage, etc. In hi ranches (which usually don't have basements, so that's probably not the style of house you were in), I've seen the oil tank be inside the house, but under the first floor landing (you could access it through a door on the ground floor). Sometimes, they are in the basement, but not visible (they are behind a door or a wall).

If a tank is underground, and you plan to convert to gas heat, the cheaper option would be to abandon the tank (have it cleaned out and filled with sand or foam) by a company that does that, instead of removing it. It's not that expensive (maybe in the $1K to $2K range), but the actual price would depend on the size of the tank (how many gallons). You could always get more info and then call some places to get quotes.

Hope this helps!

Re: Oil tank?

I agree, it would be much cheaper to have it abandoned correctly and just have the tank filled and left where it is.

Also, does the house already have gas and you would just be converting the heating system to gas? If not, you might want to inquire if gas is available and approximately how much it would cost to convert it. (Call keyspan) gas is not readily available in all towns.

Re: Oil tank?

We bought a house with an underground tank

The sellers weren't willing to negotiate on that so we bought the house anyway and had it legally abandoned with no issues once we closed. If you are converting to gas though it would be wise to find out if there's a gas line in the area because if it's not you won't be able to convert. Unless you pay to have a gas line installed which is costly to say the least

Re: Oil tank?

When we bought our house the tank was below ground...in our bid we required the seller to legally abandon the tank and provide a new tank above grade...we have since converted to gas and had the above grade tank removed...it was very important that the seller abandon the tank prior to the purchase since if there was any leakage or issues with the tank we would not be held legally responsible for it.

Re: Oil tank?

Ours is on the side of the house. Have you looked outside?

Re: Oil tank?

I spoke with the realtor and the tank is in fact underground. But she also said that the owner is already aware and ok with the fact that he would have to abandon it if that's what a buyer wanted.
Thanks ladies!

Re: Oil tank?

I will preface this by saying I live in NJ. Our house had an underground tank, we had it pulled and it was found to be leaking. thankfully it was a small leak and we had tank insurance to cover the remediation (remove all contaminated soil, replace with clean soil etc). In the community we live in houses with underground tanks are a tough sell, most of the sellers end up pulling them. There was even a house on our street that the buyers even required an abandoned tank to be pulled. HTH!