I'm looking at buying a 150 - 200 gallon above ground diesel fuel tank. Most of the used ones I have looked at are steel and therefore have some rust inside, some more than others. I would assume that it is somewhat common for these tanks to rust, especially if they are not kept full. So, how much rust, if any is acceptable in a used tank and is there a way to clean a tank to remove as much rust as possible? I'll have a filter and water separator on the pump and will have the inlet 1" or so above the bottom. Also, do you use and diesel stabilizers/additives to help keep the fuel usable?

Thanks, Logger

The county I worked for had a 300 gallon above ground diesel tank. It was originally outside exposed to the elements. I installed a concrete containment structure and covered it with a shed. Rust was not a problem, even after all those years exposed to rain, but every tank needs to be equipped with a filter and water separator, regardless. There were no rust or water contamination problems with diesel powered tractors, trucks and fire trucks filling from this tank.

I also installed a new 500 gallon gasoline above ground tank, that was state of the art at the time, and it was protected inside and had cathodic ground sinks attached. www.agtvault.com/tanks.html

That's a pretty small tank,......If round, I'd lash up a set of casters, or improvised rollers,.....so I could spin the thing a bit. Throw in a bit of 3/4 crushed and do just ,....spin it,....

Big Towns have "Tank Cleaning" Service companies, on smaller tanks they go in with a rotary wand / sand washer,.....

Gravel or Sand Wash,....you're really just trying to get the BIG CHUNKS of crud, scale, rust, etc.......Your Filter Separator will Deal with the small stuff ,.....IF you are using the right setup,.....Mines a common NAPA #,....let me know if you need the #.

I've been treating my Diesel with "Sea Foam",.....so far , so good.

SHADE your tank, if at all possible, The combination of moist climates (yours) and heat grows bacteria in the BEST of Diesel Fuels.

Luck.

GTC

There is a company I may be going to work for part time that makes filters that keep the water out of the tank by drying the intake air. They do a great job and their filters can be thrown in an oven and renewed.

https://pindellengineering.com/

I had a 500 gallon tank where I just moved from for use in the truck and the generator/tractor etc...

I never had a problem with rust. It had "some" but not enough to really be a problem. Of course it didn't take long to burn thru 500 gallons of diesel pretty quickly either.

I didn't have a cover/shed for it but it stayed in the shade probably 80% of the day.

Crap, another "WTH didn't I think of that?" moment.

I WILL be checking them out !

Thanks Amigo !

GTC

It is a relatively small tank, but I want to get one that is not so big that I can't easily keep it full. It is round and on a stand. I plan to build a simple cradle that I can use to take the tank to town on my flatbed trailer when I want have it refilled. We are far enough out of town that fuel delivery gets pretty expensive. When I buy a tank, it will be stored under cover in our hay barn. Scott, thanks for the info on the filters, that sounds very interesting. I'll also check to see if there are any tank cleaning services in the nearest large town.

Yep, I know the feeling.

I know the owner/founder. He had the idea and got a patent on it. One test he just completed was a tug that goes from Port Angeles to somewhere in Alaska. The normally pull a gallon or more water form the trap of each tank on every round trip. Put one of these filters on one tank as an experiment. Less the a tsp in the filtered tank and over a gallon on the unfiltered. Guess which tug company wants more filters.

You're on the right track,.....The "Deck Tank" that sits on my old Service Truck



Is a "Home Built" that I Welded up MOONS ago,.....It holds about 140 Gal Diesel IIRC. I'll be setting it up on a "Sled",....modularized with a smaller Gasoline Tank.

One good thing about smaller storage tanks is that if "Containment" regulations apply, you're not out a small fortune implementing same. In THAT regard, think stock tanks,....

These "Rural Self Sufficiency" threads ROCK !

GTC

I've got a 300 gallon diesel tank and a 1000 gallon gas tank, both on stands. I use filters on both. I had some trouble with my diesel a few years back and it was a beech to get my New Holland tractor back running good again. The old Case would run on the same fuel with no problem. I think it may have been some stuff that just then showed up in the tractor's tank though.

The best way to do it is to get a 100 gallon tank and keep in your pickup. Then fill the larger tank from it. That way you can take advantage of the good deals if you come across any, out of town.

I once cleaned one of my tanks by blowing water in it and sloshing it around and then draining it. Seems counter-productive but it was already rusted inside anyway and I was able to remove a lot of scale.

Don't sweat it. You are not going to flow enough to stir up much. Just don't use it as you fill it and keep an eye on your filter.

Cole:

I was wondering whether doing that (using water to slosh around and then draining to remove scale) would be a net improvement.

i have 4 ea 1000 gal tanks here on the farm, each on a stand 6' off the ground. also have a 1000 gal tank on a trailer that is towed to tractors/combines when they are in fields too far from the fixed tanks. i have a larger tanker truck refill them when low or less than half full. it has been my experience that all metal tanks rust over time. one of my tanks is over 20 years old, and still going strong. each tank has a filter right off the tank (at the beginning of the hose line), which is changed every other time the tank is topped off. keep the filters changed and when you mount your tank (on a stand or a trailer) slope the filter/hose end up a few degrees so the sediment settle on the other end from the filter. as you probably know, clean, properly functioning filters are key to clean fuel. filters are cheap when compared to diesel pumps, injectors, etc.

I try to keep my tanks full as much as possible. Since I am just over the hills on the coast from you, we face the same maritime climate.

This spring I took the tank out of my D-6 9U which is over 50 years old, and we coated it because the rust was getting pretty bad. It would be an expensive project to do to a larger tank, though a round tank would have made it less work.

I like your mount it on a trailer idea, I think I can make use of that idea.