Smart Touch Energy Blog

In many homes throughout the Northeast of the United States, oil tanks provide heat to families. Oil tanks are built to last for decades and can hold anywhere from 250 to 1,000 gallons of oil, depending on the size of the tank. However, problems can occur with this type of heating system as age, and the elements take their toll on the body of the tank.

One of the common issues that arise with oil tanks is the formation of leaks. When a leak opens up along the body of a tank, petroleum oozes to the outside. Such leakage can inflict a range of harmful and damaging effects. Unfortunately, such damage is rarely covered under conventional homeowner's insurance policies. For coverage, you need to have an oil tank insurance policy.

If your home heating system runs on oil, then you rely on your oil tank to safely store and protect that oil. Unfortunately, oil tanks aren't impenetrable, so you may experience the common problem of water making its way into your tank.

As summer begins to wind down and fall begins to appear on the horizon, there’s a lot to do to get our homes in shape for the winter. There might be outdoor chores to complete, storm windows to put in, patios to pack up and more. One of the tasks you certainly won’t want to neglect, however, is the maintenance of your oil furnace or tank.

As a homeowner, you face many potential problems. Fire, wind damage, floods and even earthquakes, tornadoes and hurricanes affect property in some parts of the United States. But one area many homeowners don’t consider is the problem of an oil tank leak. Depending on whether your oil tank is located inside or outside, the size of the leak and how long it’s been taking place, there is the potential not only for dramatic pollution problems, but some serious costs as well.

When it comes to heating your home or business, few factors are more important in the long run than which type of tank you choose to use. There are tanks that rest above the ground or those that are buried below it, as well as tanks left outdoors and those kept indoors.

Questions about when to replace oil tank units are common among homeowners. Some of the most frequently asked questions are along the following lines:

Being a homeowner means you always have to have one foot in the future. You're anticipating potential problems, needs, repairs and maintenance. With so much to think about, it can be easy to forget the less obvious systems in your home that need tending to. One of these systems is your oil heating system.

The cost of cleaning up a leak from an underground oil tank ranges from thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars depending on how much contamination has occurred — and the worst part is, there’s a good chance your homeowner’s insurance won’t cover any of the costs.