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Just shows you what -41° can do. Is the tank frosted over yet??? If the boiler can warm the oil sufficiently………….that could occur…………..but probably not with 275 gallons. That's why I figured it was 1/3 full.

I would assume you must add treatment regularly to prevent it from gelling? Or do you use a different fuel than #2?

Is there a reason why the oil tank is not inside. i'm not much of an oil guy and I really ain't too familiar with having outdoors tanks at that temperature so I only ask out of ignorance. We in Boston don't get down to those temperatures.

i would think that having outdoor temperatures in the ranges your describing would require indoor tanks. but what do I know lol.

So silly.

I used to recommend to people with outdoor tanks to install a heavily insulated storage cover using 2" minimum Styrofoam and a 60 watt incandescent bulb or 2. When the temp falls too low, turn on the light. You could also add a low temp temperature controller. Maybe this is something you could consider doing.

Usually this is fine. I used to do that when I burned oil, and the tank ran out. Have it looked at.

Where in Southern MD? Maybe "Deep in the Heart of Waldorf"?

This is has been a very educational thread. I have an update. One of my dad's friends, it turns out his brother is a plumber and knew my dad. I guess they were in some of the same Veterans groups over the years. He popped over to take a look at the tank. He said the tank looks in good shape to him, but my dad should have updated the valve years back. He is going to take care of that for me and service the boiler and make sure everything is good going forward. He said the tank is about 40 years old, so he reccomends monitoring it and letting him know of any signs of an issue, or alternatively, he will put a new one in at some point this year before a renter comes in if I go in that direction. He said the boiler looks good, and thinks that it will probably go for a quite a while, but said you never know since it is older, but looks well maintained. He seemed to think he could get the tank out of the closet without taking down the wall, which would be a great plus.

My wife and I always loved my dads house. It is a 3 bedroom ranch style home about 1200 sf with a 2 car garage. It was perfect for what he needed in the latter part of his life. Our kids are teenagers now, so when (if) they ever move out, we might move to my dads house for the same reasons he bought it. Easy to maintain, small but nice yard and not expensive to heat. So, we plan to rent it out for a few years and maybe move in. It is in the town next door to where we live. So, we will see how it goes.

Thanks for the information. This is a great thread for people who never dealt with oil heat and come across these kinds of scenarios.