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Photograph of - is this heating oil running across the basement floor? Notice the abandoned oil line at the furnace? Heating Oil Tank Leak & Odor FAQs
Q&A What to Do About & When to Report Oil Tank Leaks

Q&A about leaky oil storage tanks or oil tank odors smells.

This article series explains what to do about issues surrounding leaking oil tanks, describes oil tank inspection and tank testing methods, suggests what a home owner or home inspector is obligated to do and report if an oil leak is found.

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Residential Buried Oil Tank Leaks & Smells FAQs

Leaky oil tank (C) Daniel FriedmanThese questions & answers about oil tank leaks and smells were posted originally at OIL TANK LEAKS & SMELLS - that's a good place to read about what to do.

Click to enlarge any image]

On 2019-02-23 by (mod) - are oil tank fumes dangerous for my family?

Linda, You will understand that nobody can guess at the actual level of exposure members of your family to oil tank fumes based on a text message.

The hazard of exposure to oil tank fumes or smells depends on a number of variables including

the level of exposure: concentration of gases in air

duration of exposure: how long people are exposed

The health vulnerability of indivuduals, where elderly, asthmatic, immune-impaired, infant etc. are probably at graeater risk.

See details at HEATING OIL EXPOSURE HAZARDS, LIMITS

On 2019-02-23 by Linda

In the home which my grandchild lives (7 weeks old) there is the smell of oil in the home. Is it dangerous for my grandchild and other family members to be exposed to these fumes?

On 2018-04-08 by (mod) - pursue soil testing for oil tank leak detection

Robert

OPINION: You should pursue soil testing - that might be possible using a boring method through the slab, to the depth of the bottom of the tank; that's in part because if there's a leak and the oil plume continues to spread underground that can only increase the ultimate remediation cost.

I would not assume the house needs to be jacked up to remediate, but we should not speculate further before we know

1. that an oil tank remains

2. whether or not it has leaked (as odors could be from a different source or problem)

3. where you live and what provincial or state laws apply

4. whether or not there is financial assistance available

On 2018-04-08 by Robert

I just discovered I may have an underground heating oil tank. While preparing a vented crawl space for a plumbing repipe of my 1951 home, I removed abandoned copper fuel lines, and discovered a pipe tank vent behind a shrub.

The tank is under a concrete slab the previous homeowner had poured to extend the driveway. There is a strong smell of solvent under the house. Neither the local fire department or building department have records of a tank removal (full removal is required in my city if the tank is not under the structure).

My concern is contaminated soil directly under the house. Would the house have to be jacked up off the foundation to remediate the soil under it, and at what cost?

If I have an oil company determine there is a tank and leak, what if I can't afford to immediately remediate the soil?

On 2018-02-20 by (mod) -

Doreen

A single pinhole leak might be temporary repaired with a sheet metal screw and gasket washer. The risk is a rusted drum thst leaks worse when you fool with it.

There are also strap on repair kits for oil tanks but the cost may be as a new drum.

A larger leak area or a seam leak are beyond even temporary repair.

On 2018-02-19 by Doreen

Do I need a new drum or can it be repair I'm low income and need help

My oil drum is leaking what can I do the drum has a leak

On 2017-10-18 by (mod) - get rid of un-wanted heating oil in Philadelphia area

Jon

I am sorry to say that unless you can pump your (presumably clean, usable heating) oil out of your tank and into containers to donate through a local aid association, I'm doubtful you can otherwise "get rid of the oil" yourself.

You cannot dispose of heating oil by dumping it into a drain, onto the ground, etc. Doing so is illegal, contaminates the environment, and would be just plain wrong.

Check with your local aid society, or check with

to see if they can accept 5 gallon containers of heating oil as a donation.

If so, buy clean 5 gallon containers, buy a pony pump and suitable tubing, and you might be able to transfer oil to containers for donation. Take care not to spill oil - it will make a smelly mess and could be dangerous.

On 2017-10-18 by my name is Jon Jon

can someone please help me out with this, I'm trying to get rid of the heating oil to have it pumpkin removed cost money but I would like to do it myself I'm even trying to give it away I live in Philadelphia Pennsylvania and the Germantown section of Philadelphia

On 2017-01-22 by Ray

i am under contract to purchase a home with a active 275gallon oil tank buried in yard. I had tank inspection and the soil sample came back with 11,500 parts per million. How serious is that

On 2016-11-28 by Mod

Ariella

See OIL TANK LEAK & SIZE REPORTING to see the reporting requirements

On 2016-11-28 by Ariella

Hi, I have a serious problem with an oil leak on my roof from my oil tank. I do not live in the U.S.

And own an apartment on the top floor with a heating oil tank on the roof.

There was a puddle of oil sitting outside the filter that has been absorbed into the ceiling and now that entire room smells like gasoline.

What do I do? Is it going to smell like that forever ? How harmful is this to human health? Thank you please answer ASAP!!

Question: heating oil leak in basement has been cleaned up but odor problems remain in the house we are buying

We are purchasing a house that has been unoccupied for approximately 8 months.

In late October it was discovered the furnace had leaked oil in basement. Because the house is unoccupied it is not clear how long the oil had been leaked. The smell is throughout the whole house.

The owners have have it professionally cleaned up and floor repainted around the leaked area. Months later, the smell is still strong.

I am concerned the smell exists because the paint was not an epoxy or covered the entire basement floor.

My questions:

1) is there a way to test safe levels of the air quality in the house?

2) If basement windows left open 24 hours a day for a long period, will smell go away?

3) Will covering the basement floor in a watertight finish - like an epoxy garage flooring help contain smell?

Finally could smell have seeped into drywall throughout the whole house and would repainting the whole house help?

Reply:

If you can smell the oil odor in the home then there is little doubt that it will be an irritant to at least some occupants - regardless of what testing shows. And some tests use questionable methodology - it's a bit easy to skew test results. I'm not sure I'd bother.

I'm not able to assess the probable outcome of the oil smell case you describe - with no property inspection that would detail where oil leaked, where it may remain, where and what sealants were applied.

But in general the steps you name often help. Usually a professional cleaner uses a solvent-deodorant followed by drying and sealing all affected surfaces.

I suspect - and emphasize this is speculative - that heating oil VOCs may have penetrated more than just the painted floor area

For example, if VOCs penetrated drywall and insulation, painting the floor won't stop odors coming from those secondary sources.

Following sealant attempts that don't work one is ultimately forced to remove affected materials, seal other possibly-affected materials, and wait a reasonable period before follow-up sniff testing or more costly tests. Keep in mind that people's ability to smell odors varies widely.

Yes oil odor vocs may have penetrated materials throughout the home, though most likely some areas and materials are more significant as odor sources than others.

The painting that is used to seal against odors often uses products used to seal odors in building framing or materials after a fire.

That coating is followed by appropriate finish coats.

It might help pinpoint what materials have absorbed MVOCs using the smell patch test kit approach we describe

at SMELL PATCH TEST to FIND ODOR SOURCE

OPINION: Don't panic, but on discussion with your attorney I'd expect him or her to aggee that you should not proceed with the purchase before this question is absolutely closed to your satisfaction. The problem is that I cannot imagine any escrow fund amount other than total purchase price plus an additional amount to be spent on mitigation that could protect a buyer in an oil spill case.

And where a leak is discovered to extend into soils in most states there is a legal requirement that the leak be reported to the state environmental authorities who then get into the act specifying what cleanup is required. Again I don't know if this applies to your home or not.

In extreme cases of oil leaks and spills in buildings I've known of a few cases in which the home was no longer habitable even after repeated and extensive attempts at odor control. If the leak at your home was limited in scope I'd be more optimistic.

Question:

(Nov 29, 2014) Anonymous said:
we recently had a leak in our tank in the basement which did not get remedied for 3 days while we awaited service.

the smell was fairly strong in the basement and almost un noticeable on the main floor. the upstairs apartment reaked of fumes regardless of having the windows open to ventilate.

my concern is, do I have to wash all linens and discard foodstuffs from my cabinets such as cereal and tea as they may have been contaminated? I cant seem to find this answer anywhere please. many thanks

Reply:

Anon:

You should not need to discard canned goods as certainly oil fumes would not penetrate to the interior of a sealed metal can. Other absorbent materials such as a paper cereal box, in extreme (and rather unusual) circumstances, might be odor contaminated and could be tossed out.

It would be unusual to need to clean upper floor cabinet interiors to cure an oil spill odor in a basement except in unusual and extreme conditions.

If odors are indeed in soft goods such as curtains or carpets those may need to be laundered or cleaned.


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