Oil tank - refused delivery

[Bodgit]

I've just had a delivery of heating oil refused because my GRP tank is "cracked". Looking at the tank there is some crazing of the gel coat, but it's certainly not going to leak!

The tank is 9 years old so it's within its 10 year warranty, but Balmorral tanks have gone bust so I can't make a claim against the warranty.

I've re-ordered the oil from another supplier in the hope that the next driver is less fussy about the state of the tank. But I would like to make some effort to fix it over the summer.

If I fill the gel coat and paint it, it will be obvious that it's been fixed. Does anyone know what the oil delivery drivers are told to look out for, and what constitutes a "cracked" tank?

[harry]

Does it have a catchment bund? If it hasn't, the oil companies are hypersensitve these days.

[Bodgit]

It's just a single-skin tank with no bund.

[harry]

Are you sure first it's GRP? Most oil tanks are polypropylene

The problem with cracks in gel coat on GRP is that they can propagate into the GRP beneath. It can be fixed, but not by filling and painting. The gel has to be ground off and replaced. There can be problems with adhesion if there is oil contamination

[Nightjar]

They underwent a major reorganisation a while back and seem to have moved their manufacturing from Aberdeen to South Wales, but the group is still trading:

Colin Bignell

[GB]

It's worth checking the Companies House register. Balmoral Tanks Ltd was registered in 2006, so any guarantees may have died with a now-defunct company.

Still, it might be worth checking.

[The Natural Philosopher]

then count yourself lucky you have got away this far.

And start saving for a new tank..

personally I think its bollocks, but that's the law.

[Bodgit]

I phoned them. Any claims against warranties before they went into liquidation should be referred to the liquidator!

[Dave Liquorice]

Unless things have changed recently only new/replacement tanks have to be bunded. Existing ones don't come under the bund requirement. There maybe a difference between domestic and commercial.

I hope things haven't changed, says him with a 2500l single skin plastic tank...

To foist a bund onto perfecttly servicable existing tanks yes, but for new/replacement no.

[Bodgit]

You're probably right. I can't check now as I'm at work.

[Huge]

Isn't it the case that tanks only have to bunded if within "x" (15?) metres of a watercourse? We have a well in our garden, so we had to have a bunded tank when we replaced ours last year. We had a steel one, because plastic degrades, and there's a fair amount of shooting round here and a shotgun pellet will go straight through a plastic one.

[fred]

I had one split a few years back. After the previous steel one had rusted a nd I though I was safe with plastic :-(

It split vertically at one end starting at the top. PITA as I had to empty it before I could replace it. That end of the tank faced south and I wonder ed if the sunlight had anything to do with the degradation.

I hate the smell of diesel.

[Bill Taylor]

Or if you store more than 2500l. It seems sensible to use a bunded tank if your replacing one, they aren't that much more than unbunded tanks.

[GB]

I'm afraid that you are probably the victim of yet another pre-pack deal.

[Peter Crosland]

The driver's first priority has to be safety. No prudent driver will deliver if he has any doubts as to the integrity of the tank. The driver is not being "fussy" because it is his job on the line if he gets it wrong and he should err on the side of caution.

[Bill]

Last year a neighbour of mine scraped up enough money to have his metal oil tank filled, first time in years that he could afford a full delivery. Next day the tank split, and started leaking. It hadn't had that amount of stress for ages.

First I knew about it was when I saw the fire brigade chemical incident truck parked in the road and lots of activity. Fortunately another neighbour had a LARGE plastic container in a metal cage, stillage? So some of what was left was saved. What he did about the contaminated ground I don't know and haven't asked. I would hope that the fire service advised on that.

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

Yep. If I were getting a new tank I'd shade it completely or at least paint it on the top.