Oil & Fuel Fuel Transfer Strategies

[Outlander1]

Yellow plastic cans from Lowes @ $6.95
JAZ 60 micron filter funnel from Behrent's Racing @ $32.
Battery powered kerosene pump from Walmart @ $7.
All is good. The little pump is great!

 

[Highbeam]

How long does the 7$ kerosene pump take to pump 5 gallons?

 

[Scrounger]

Better yet, how long does it last before you're buying a new $7 pump. I have lever operated oil pump and I was thinking of one for the fuel can so the wife can fill the tractor when she needs to. Then again, that would mean that she is using the tractor. Not a good thought.

 

[Outlander1]

About 15 years with my level of use. Bought my first one in the 80's and replaced it this Winter. It still ran and pumped but the battery case was cracked. When I farmed with my Dad we had all the fancy heavy duty fuel transfer stuff and it was two things....expensive and drippy. My little setup is just right for a 10 gallon a month guy. If you have a lot of large equipment or delusions of grandeur you no doubt will have to have something better to satisfy your needs?

 

[bdog]

I have a 300 gallon overhead tank at my house with a gravity feed. The co-op owns the tank and I pay nothing for it. I just give tehm a call and they fill it up. I have never asked about minimums but I usually get 100 gallons at a time and they never complain. I am not sure what is involved in getting one of these tanks but I live on a farm or should I say the house I bought was once a farm headquarters and it was here already when I moved in. I guess as long as I fill it up every once in a while they don't mind leaving it here.

Second I do a lot of commercial dirt work, shredding, tilling, etc and I hate using the small cans. They are slow, tip over in the truck, and in general cause agrevation. I bought a 36 gallon rectangular tank and installed it in my truck right behind my tool box. The tank is 9 inches wide and just as high as the bed of my truck. It runs from side to side of the bed. I put a 10gpm electric pump on it and I can fill my tractor in about a minute. It works great and I only have to fill it up once a week as opposed to fillilling up 5 gallon cans every day. I would not have it any other way but it did set me back about $400. If you don't use your tractor off premisis this may be overkill.

 

[AntrimMan]

The tippy factor....
I forgot about this, and with 5 gal jugs it is an issue.
I use an old divers weight belt, the type with a quick release buckle which will clamp at any belt length. I belt my two 5 gal jugs together and no more tippy factor. With all due respect this was not my idea, I stole it from my dad, I have never had an original idea, but I sure know when one is good enough to pilfer. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Best of luck,
Martin

 

[2nstonge]

The bedliner of my pickup has notches molded into it - 2 on each side with a match on the opposite side - that accepts a 2x? on edge. The most rearward location is ideal to create a section that my fuel jugs fit into; no front to rear movement and the side-to-side is controlled with a simple bungy cord.

-Norm

 

[sy308]

I have three diesel tractors. If they run way low, I drive to the filling station down the road and fill them. I will ask on of the kids to come along and drive a second one if necessary. Otherwise, I have several 2.5 or 5 gal cans always on hand for topping up the tanks. I never run out and always have 10 gallons on hand because one of the other vehicles needs gas from time to time anyhow. Climbing with a 5 gal can without spilling can be difficult, so I prefer the smaller ones. Diesel goes a long way. I have found the hourly use is often half the consumption of gasoline equipment. I don't find cans that difficult. If you have a diesel generator, then I would think about larger storage tanks. Good luck.

 

[frank_f15]

i use 2.5 gal cans also! so much easier to lift and control, specially at my age and arm conditions. my B2400 only has a 6.5 gal. tank. so when it gets to about 1/2 , in goes 2.5 gal. as a matter of fact just filled them today, and the fuel is always fresh.

 

[wvhillbilly]

I have a K L3400, and the fill cap (in the hood) is about mid-chest high. I guess you can call me lazy, but I hate holding a 5 gallon jug that high to fill my tractor. I got a 55 gallon drum to store my diesel in. Went to TSC and got a nice barrel mount rotary pump. I have a second 55 gal. drum I use for hauling the fuel from the gas station to home. My near future plan is to make a cradle for the drum and put it in the loft of my barn. Run some black pipe out the side of the barn and terminate it with a shutoff valve. Off the valve will connect a 6 foot rubber hose. Pull up to the side of the barn, crack the valve and let gravity do the rest. The only drawback in pumping 55 gallons of fuel from ground level to the loft. I plan on getting a 12 volt electric pump....Because once again, I tend to be lazy and dont want to crank out 55 gallons of fuel. I think the system should work pretty well. I don't worry about the fuel sitting too long. I treated it with PowerSource, and have a water-blok filter that I reun it through.
Dave

 

[PineRidge]

I used to fill and transport 6 of the plastic fuel jugs but all the juggling, transporting, & lifting got old real fast.

Went out and found a used 275 gallon home heating oil tank and mounted and plumbed it to a 110 volt pump in the pole barn.

I take advantage of off-road bulk pricing when the 275 gallon tank is filled and fueling the TC-40D amounts to backing into the pole barn, starting the electric pump, and waiting for the automatic nozzle to let me know when the tractor tank is full. Yeah I know, lazy.

Anyone need any of the small diesel storage tanks? I got a few lying around not being used.

 

[ultrarunner]

I'm in the city limits and any above ground tank using gravity is not approved. A 55 gallon drum is OK with a pump, for the fire regs...don't ask my how I know

 

[hdbikercouple]

i got an 35 gal desiel fuel tank from a old dump truck plumbed in a filter a rubber line on the outlet side an a ball value and air hose quick chuck in old drain plugs. use the loader to put it in the trailor ot go to the fuel station. to fill the tractor just hook the air comp. to it with 5 to 8 lbs. pressure

 

[OkeeDon]

I use the tractor a lot, and go through 5 gallons on a typical day. So, I got a standard, cheap 55 gallon drum from my fuel distrobutor ($20 new, free for used ones), bought a filter, hose and fill nozzle, and use gravity feed.

I stand the drum up in the back corner of my pickup and strap it tight, drive 6 miles to the distributor and fill it with off-road diesel, then when I get back to the property I lay the drum over on it's side, roll it out to the FEL bucket, then lift it up to the refueling platform and roll it off.

I don't have a picture of the wooden platform we buillt for it, but attached is the temporary structure we used for the first week or so until we built a more permanent rig. At least it shows the drum, hose, vent, etc.

 

[v8dave]

I use three 5 gallon plastic jugs. I try to refill them when I only have one left full. Since I have a Diesel pick-up truck, I fill 'em up when fueling the truck. It doesn't require a special trip to the filling station, just so long as I remember to put the jugs in the pick-up bed. Just don't carry the jugs in a cosed passenger car. You'll never get rid of any Diesel spill smell.

This year I put a fuel oil heater in my shop with a 275 gallon tank. I use non-taxed Diesel fuel (red) for the heater and now for the tractor too. At the moment I fill the 5 gal jugs from a gravity feed spigot. But that will be replaced with a pump and hose to directly fill the tractor tank. Based on this winter's use, I figure to use a tank of Diesel per year to heat the shop. That will keep me from having the Diesel go bad and me from swinging up those five gallon jugs over the Kubota's hood.

 

[Larry_T]

I use a 55 Gal. blue plastic drum. A guy gave me A. Arco air pump. I put A filter on it and hose and it works great.

 

[PineRidge]

I first read about using air instead of an electric pump from a post made by have_blue.

Interesting idea, and a good way to save some money if you have an air compressor handy.

 

[rswyan]

Mike,

I installed a male air line quick coupler into the 1" bung in the 55 gallon drum I was using for my fuel storage. Run the regulator on my shop air lines down to 5 psi, hook a line to the quick coupler on the tank, stick hose in the tractor's fuel tank and open the shutoff valve on the hose and away you go - it works very well. If I had known how well I could have saved the $90 I spent on a good GPI hand pump at TSC. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I'd say the only thing you have be careful of is the pressure - dunno what a 55 is rated for, but I'd think that 5 or 10 psi is within safe limits. I always uncouple the air line immediately after I close the valve.

When I'm done I cover the end of the QD with a plastic automotive vacuum cap. It's amazing to me how much pressure that vacuum cap will keep in the tank with just a friction fit.

 

[jmc]

Alton and Randall,

Any sign of water from the compressor in your fuel?

John

 

[Highbeam]

A quick pie,r, squared calc gives a 2 foot diameter barrel an end area of 452 square inches. Ten PSI gives you 4500 pounds of force from compressed air. Figure the crimp on the end of that barrel holding the thin lid on is withstanding enough pressure to lift up a full sized truck.

Further, if the bottom blows out and the thing launches into the air, it will leave a huge volume of diesel sprayed everywhere. It will look like one of those air/water rockets we used to use as kids.

I followed the same logic and tried to pump water out of a plastic pickle barrel. The barrel with the threaded on lid blew its top off when water only began to squirt. My first hand experience tells me that air pressure for squirting anything out of a barrel is risky. Good idea though.