Waste Oil Burner Pros & Cons?

edwardpitzul

Hello, trying to nero it down to see if i should go with a waste oil burner or save me the headache and go with gas or both? As my waste oil could be my secondary..

Big Ed_4

A shop that sells enough oil changes works out . The small shops seem to scramble for oil in the cold months . You can always use fuel oil , transmission fluid and cooking oil . New motor oil that did not run through the engine will burn .

The small units 140 burns 1gph and the large 500 burn 3.5gph . With larger shops the barn doors are always opening up . It costs the shop to get rid of oil , so they burn it for heat .

They do take extra service to keep running ...

hot_rod

How much $$ do you want to spend. I think waste oil would be my primary, the gas as a back up or when the oil burner is off line for a major cleaning. Use the least expensive fuel first.

I don’t know if there is a value for btu/ gallon of waster oil, to make a fair comparison to other fuels. It will burn a lot more oil than you expect. Plan on some black smoke, hopefully you don’t have downwind neighbors nearby. Burning used cooking oil creates some interesting odors.

Being a coil type boiler it is not a fun or easy clean and the ash is toxic, so you need to wear a respirator. They run very hot when those coils plug with ash.

The ones I installed were in truck repair and tractor dealerships, so oil wasn’t an issue. And a good diesel mechanic can clean and troubleshoot them, but they hate doing it😂


At a claimed 148,000 output, it could be 3 times the btu / hr that you require. I predict a buffer tank will be a must. The worst operating condition is short frequent on off operation.
It will need to run around 180f all the time. Your slab may only need 100F, so you will need a mixing station.

I would visit a shop that has been running one for some time, ask for their input.visit on a day when they have it open for cleaning.


Research all the regulations, local and federal.

Redbaran

As stated; maintenance is key. With the word "waste" in the fuel (waste oil) don't neglect the quality of the waste oil - water/coolant/gasoline in waste oil makes for a real nightmare in these applications. Good filtration with proper maintenance goes a long way towards a good experience. 12 years at a shop that sold and serviced such systems. Truth be told, I don't miss it; but when properly applied with an abundant source of waste oil they are a good solution. Dealerships were pretty good in regards to service; small repair shops that accepted waste oil from the DIY guys were troublesome to say the least.

hot_rod

Redbaran said:

As stated; maintenance is key. With the word "waste" in the fuel (waste oil) don't neglect the quality of the waste oil - water/coolant/gasoline in waste oil makes for a real nightmare in these applications. Good filtration with proper maintenance goes a long way towards a good experience. 12 years at a shop that sold and serviced such systems. Truth be told, I don't miss it; but when properly applied with an abundant source of waste oil they are a good solution. Dealerships were pretty good in regards to service; small repair shops that accepted waste oil from the DIY guys were troublesome to say the least.

The one shop I worked with had to finally lock the outdoor oil tank. Employees were welcomed to dump their drain oil into the tank. But they would dump paint thinner, old gasoline, old cooking oils, charcoal lighter, anything they wanted to get rid of, anything the thought was “waste” oil. Most dumped with good intentions to cut down the buildings fuel costs.