Oil tank cleaning is an important part of the job of maintaining a Home Heating Oil Brockton MA tank. The biggest problem facing homeowners and businesses alike is that sludge builds up at the bottom of the tank over time and can cause all sorts of problems, from clogs to leaks.
Luckily, there are several ways to remove sludge from your heating oil tank:
Drain the Oil Tank
After you’ve removed the oil tank drain plug, place a hose in the tank’s opening and let gravity do its thing. You’ll know when the oil has stopped draining because it will come out of your hose at a much slower rate—this should take about 15 minutes or so to occur.
You now have two options: you can either dispose of this first batch of sludge yourself (which is highly recommended if there’s no municipal service available), or you can take advantage of someone who offers this service instead. Either way, make sure that any company you hire is licensed to dispose of Home Heating Oil Brockton MA and understands what they’re doing before hiring them!
Scrub the Excess Sludge
Once you’ve scrubbed the tank, it’s time to clean the excess sludge from it. You can use a scrub brush, or even a brush attachment on your vacuum cleaner.
Make sure that your cleaning agent is safe for use in contact with heating oil tanks; this is an important step because some cleaning agents may damage the tank or its inner coatings if they come into contact with them.
You may also want to use a clean cloth and water to wipe away any excess sludge that remains after scrubbing the tank.
Add Cleaner
Once you’ve removed all the sludge, it’s time to add a cleaner. You can use a good quality detergent for this, but make sure your heater oil is compatible with the cleaner. We recommend using Home Heating Oil, which has been specially designed for heating oil tanks.
Home Heating Oil will break down any residual sludge in your tank and leave it clean and ready for use again!
Dry the Tank and Refill the Oil
Once the tank is drained, you can use a shop vac to remove any water that’s left in it. Then, as an added safety measure, it’s best to dry out the tank by setting it outside on a sunny day or letting it sit for several hours indoors.
The air inside the tank will eventually dry out and become warm enough to evaporate any remaining moisture. Once this is done, fill up the tank with fresh oil and check its level against a measuring stick until you’re satisfied with how much oil has been added back into your home heating system.
You may have to add more oil at some point during this process; however, if you do so right away after draining your home heating system’s old fluid, there should be no need for another refill until next year!
Conclusion
If your Home Heating Oil Brockton MA tank is full of sludge, it can be a pain to clean. However, the process is easier than you might think. With the right equipment and know-how, anyone can remove sludge from their heating oil tank.
The key is to pay attention to where you place your hands so that they don’t get burned. Always use gloves when handling hot items such as pipes or ladders!
