Not quite DIY, but what about covering oil tank filler if it's raining?

[MM]

So far it's always been dry when I've received a new delivery of heating oil, but what if it's raining? Do people routinely hold an umbrella over the filler pipe?

My last but one service verified that the oil tank has absolutely no water in it (the engineer tested with some special gunk on a stick that would turn pink), so given the amount of rain we're getting and the fact that my oil level is getting near the re-order stage, should I buy that umbrella and keep the inside of the tank water-free?

MM

[ARWadsworth]

Just put a Tescos carrier bag over it:-)

[newshound]

A thousand litres of oil will dissolve about 100 grams of water. I can't see how that much would get in through a filler even with a very unfavourable layout (like a long hose running downhill, channelling all the rain that falls on it into the tank).

[MM]

Wash your mouth out! (You can buy nice soap from Aldi...)

MM

[ARWadsworth]

I use Dove.

Some of us are worth it.

[Weatherlawyer]

Isn't there a trap on the outlet to bleed off any inhalation?

BTW an empty tank is a tank full of 100% wet air in a 100% humidity weather spell such as... Ah, no.

It won't inhale anything once empty. What it draws in depends on the weather at the time of use. OTOH in nice weather use in minimal. The cap should have a shed though. Have a look at its internals.

[MM]

"The cap should have a shed though..."

What does that mean?

MM

[Nightjar]

No idea. However, it makes me wonder whether putting a garden shed around an oil tank might not help reduce the risk of theft, as well as being an answer to the original question.

Colin Bignell

[MM]

I am actually still contemplating the erection of a shed, which, if I do decide on one, will be placed in front of the tank so that the tank is hidden from the road when the side gate is open.

MM

[damduck-egg]

Someone near me covered theirs with wooden trellis a few years ago, it now looks like a large bush and as roses and other plants have grown over it.

G.Harman

[S Viemeister]

Ooh, I like that idea!

[Dave Liquorice]

I've thought about it but we'd never get the trellis to stay put long enough for anything to grow up it, not to mention finding a climber that would survive in the first place.

[MM]

Well, it is amazing when one drives around rural parts how many of the tanks are in plain sight for all the world to see. But I suppose when the tanks were installed, heating oil was relatively cheap, so there wasn't the threat of theft like there is today.

MM

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

Having watched the docu on the ill-fated 1924 Mallory/Irvine attempt on Everest, I'm inclined to agree.