Oil tank sight tube
Bob2000
showing how full the tank is.
Unfortunately, the tube has become cloudy over time and is very
difficult to see the oil through it.
I guess that my options are to clean it or change it.
Are either of these options ones that I can do myself or should I get
a heating engineer to do it? Seems expensive to call out someone to
fit a £20 piece of tube.
I just wondered if anyone had a similar experience.
harry
something down from the top. Bit of garden cane or similar with some
cloth SECURELY fastened to it
However if you have to remove it, the sight glass has a valve at the
bottom that isolates it. Sometimes it's just a tit you press to open
it and allow the oil to find it's level in the tube. The clear pipe
is removeable for cleaning/replacement. Usually just a big
"compression " nut to slacken/remove to get it out.
You need to be sure the valve is not passing before you remove the
tube or do it when the tank is empty. Keep a bucket handy for any oil
drips.
Michael Chare
news:5efeab68-53d3-4971...@r40g2000prh.googlegroups.com...
I would just buy a piece of clear plastic tube from the local hardware and
fit it myself and I would expect to pay a lot less that £20.
I always keep the valve at the bottom closed. Normally I dip the tank to
check the level.
--
Michael Chare
Piers Finlayson
> I have a steel heating oil tank with a vertical 4ft x ˝" sight tube
> showing how full the tank is.
>
> Unfortunately, the tube has become cloudy over time and is very
> difficult to see the oil through it.
>
> I guess that my options are to clean it or change it.
>
> Are either of these options ones that I can do myself or should I get
> a heating engineer to do it? Seems expensive to call out someone to
> fit a Ł20 piece of tube.
>
> I just wondered if anyone had a similar experience.
I've just read mine, and discovered that the sight tube was too clody
to read. So, like others, I just dipped it instead.
John MacLeod
> On 2010-11-30, Michael Chare <MunderscoreN...@chareDOTorg.uk> wrote:
>
>
>
> > "Bob2000" <denbigh1...@boltblue.com> wrote in message
> >news:5efeab68-53d3-4971...@r40g2000prh.googlegroups.com...
> >> I have a steel heating oil tank with a vertical 4ft x ½" sight tube
> >> showing how full the tank is.
>
> >> Unfortunately, the tube has become cloudy over time and is very
> >> difficult to see the oil through it.
>
> >> I guess that my options are to clean it or change it.
>
> >> Are either of these options ones that I can do myself or should I get
> >> a heating engineer to do it? Seems expensive to call out someone to
> >> fit a £20 piece of tube.
>
> >> I just wondered if anyone had a similar experience.
>
> > I would just buy a piece of clear plastic tube from the local hardware and
> > fit it myself
>
>
Or if you're mean enough and find that the tube doesn't clean up too
well, reverse it so that the stained end is at the top and the clear
end at the bottom :-) -- cost £0.
John
Dave Liquorice
>>> I would just buy a piece of clear plastic tube from the local
hardware
>>> and fit it myself
>>
>> Which is what I did.
I was going to do that but never got round to it.
>>> I always keep the valve at the bottom closed.
As one should in case the sight tube fails and you deposit a few
hundred litres of expensive heating oil onto the ground.
> Normally I dip the tank to check the level.
Top of our tank is a good 8' above ground level. One could dip it but
it's easier to open the little sight tube valve and see the level.
B-)
> Or if you're mean enough and find that the tube doesn't clean up too
> well, reverse it so that the stained end is at the top and the clear
> end at the bottom :-) -- cost £0.
Or if it's like mine and mostly shrounded in a metal sleeve just
rotate it in the sleeve. The cloudyness is where the light and oil
has got to it. I think I did have to end to end it as well as the
plastic had become to hard to form a proper seal on the spigot after
being disturbed.
--
Cheers
Dave.
John MacLeod
wrote:
Good points. The alloy sleeve is merely a friction fit and easy to
remove.
jim
yes 3 weeks ago.
Alas, tale of woe, urgently needed to order oil but sight gauge was
broken.
web checked suggested going rate for a replacement was c £12-£15,
couldn't wait for delivery delay ruled out that option, so had to
shelled out £28 for an off the shelf one ex a heating stockist.
later discovered ToolStation have them for c. £12
Also the old one had a lever valve (always on) at the bottom - new
ones have a push button which has to be pushed to admit oil to the
tube.
The tank here has a wheel valve between the tank & the gauge, so the
gauge can be removed without loss of oil.
The large new nut (which came with the new gauge) for the bottom of
the gauge was discarded as I decided to reuse the old nut. But that
was stiff to remove. The new tube thread into the large nut needed
sealing - I used a car gasket compound (Hemelite) - but prob most oil
proof sealants would do.
The oil came with free advice from a cheerful delivery driver. Best
refurbishment method is to replace the old tube with milk parlour tube
available from agricultural merchants. He said that it doesn't
discolour. He recommended sealing the tube to the nut at the foot
with a jubileee clip.
HTH
Bob2000
changing the tube.