Can You Use Diesel Instead of Heating Oil?

Posted on by Hunter Geist

Diesel is very similar to heating oil. They both have a similar consistency, and they both come from crude oil. But you might be asking, if diesel is a better heating oil option than heating oil. Or you might be wondering if your tank can use diesel instead of heating oil. I’ll be answering those plus much more in this blog post!

Diesel can be purchased at your local gas station! It is typically located on the same pump. But some gas stations have them separately.

Using Diesel Long-Term

While diesel is similar to heating oil, it isn’t a good long-term heating oil solution. If you have a heating oil system, you should only use diesel in an emergency situation. Meaning that if you run out of heating oil, then you can run out to your local gas station to pick up some diesel. Diesel actually burns slightly hotter than heating oil. So long-term usage of diesel in a heating oil tank will actually damage your system. This is because your system isn’t designed to use diesel for a long period of time.

Diesel burns roughly 138,000 BTUs per gallon compared to heating oil’s 137,000 BTUs. Now, this is only a slight difference. But it’s big enough to pose long-term problems if you decide to use diesel instead of heating oil for your heating oil system. Using diesel long term will only pose problems for your system. If you wish to use diesel as a long-term heating oil solution, then you must have your system converted over to a diesel system.

When Can You Put Diesel in your Tank?

Diesel should only be put into your heating oil tank in an emergency. If you run out of heating oil, then stopping off at the gas station to get 5-10 gallons of diesel should be the first thing you do after verifying that you’re out of oil. But, before you do this you really should make sure that you’re definitely out of oil. You can determine weather you are out or not by doing the following:

  1. Check the Float Gauge Reading: Take the plastic cap off and slowly pull up the colorful disc on the float. Once you do that, you can determine if the level is low or not. If it slowly goes back down then you’re not out of oil. But if it falls back down and can move about freely you might be out of oil.
  2. Grab Diesel: Going to your local gas station and grabbing roughly 5-10 gallons of oil is the best thing to do in a situation like this. It’ll hold you over for a couple of days until your next delivery comes.
  3. Locate your Fill Pipe: These are usually located outside your home and says “Fuel Oil” on the caps. Only fill the tank from here, NEVER FILL FROM THE TANK’S FITTINGS!
  4. Wait 10 Minutes: Before you turn your system back on, you’re going to want to wait a couple of minutes for the sludge to settle at the bottom of the tank. Then, you can press the restart button your furnace and the system should kick back on. You might need to bleed out the lines if you don’t have hot water or heat back.
Using diesel will be super helpful for you in a pinch! Stopping off at your gas station can save you when you’re running low!

Running Low on Oil

When you run out of heating oil, your system will shut down and you’ll wake up to a cold house. If this is the situation you find yourself in, it’s important to determine weather or not you’re actually out of oil or not. This is is because sometimes it can be an entirely different issue. Other issues could happen such as a faulty starter or a clog in the feedlines. So it’s very important to determine weather or not your tank is actually out of oil.

If you’ve followed the above steps, then it’s crucial that you order oil as soon as you can! You can order from your regular dealer, or by using our FuelSnap program. After placing your order, you should run down to your local gas station and grab around 5-10 gallons of heating oil. Doing so will help you stay warm until your next delivery!

A Great Short-Term Heat Source

While diesel in a heating oil system is not something that you should have for a long-term, it’s fantastic for short-term usage. If you run out of oil, then run down to your local gas station and purchase about 5-10 gallons of oil to keep you going until you get your next scheduled delivery. It’s very useful in a pinch!

Just be careful about letting your tank level run low. Running low or running out of oil can cause your pipes to freeze which can damage your home! Even if you have to keep running to the gas station, do not let your tank level get low! This can and will damage your system! Using something like a Smart Oil Gauge will be very helpful to ensure that your tank never runs out of oil! The gauge will track your level and usage data to help you ensure that your system will always be up and running!

Happy Heating,

Hunter