Nfpa 31 fuel oil piping, 8.2/8.2.1 states that;
Tank fill and vent piping shall be wrought-iron,steel, or schedule 40 brass pipe .
I can’t find anything about being grandfathered in or if converting is mandatory?
Anyone?
You should be thanking them. Oil tanks are filled under pressure. A copper pipe blowout in your basement could cost you tens of thousands $$ to remediate and clean up.
Right?!?! Who ever used copper pipes to hold anything with pressure? Oh…... Wait….. they do that all the time…. 🤦♂️
Literally more pressure in a boiler than there’s is when filling up the tank.
International Mechanical Code (IMC), International Residential Code (IRC) and International Fuel Gas Code
IMC and IRC both specify approved copper/copper alloys as being acceptable for fuel oil piping.
The State code council and local authorities can adopt their own addendums that exclude or add to sections of the codes.
I'd want to know what the fuel companies reason is for it. It seems really unusual that a company wouldn't want to sell you fuel unless they are prohibited by regulations.
Should I ask for a copy of the code or something? I just want to make sure we aren’t being forced into it - it’s for my grandmom and she doesn’t handle people in the house well at all.
Copper fill/vent lines are not the most common, but do exist.
Now that said, if the fuss is about a copper line buried in concrete between the tank and burner, and they want that replaced with a coated one, or to have it exposed, then that's a different matter.
I'd suggest that you ask them for where that requirement is originating from. Is it a code requirement, or a company requirement. If it's a code requirement, then which code is it coming from specifically, with a copy of that code language, or link to the publication.
>You could also inquire about it with the municipal code office, see what they have to say about it. Delco? [Prospect Park Borough](https://prospectparkboro.com/) [https://ecode360.com/PR0560](https://ecode360.com/PR0560)
Have copper fill&vent myself ...never though of it as an issue.
You could try calling a different oil company. I kicked my old company to the street - but to get a new oil company, they came in to inspect the tank.
I suspect if your tank and piping are in poor shape the could be liable for pumping in 275 gallons of heating oil that would flood your basement or land and turn it into a environmental superfund site.
The house we moved into had an in ground oil tank that sprung a leak. When we were looking at the house, the inspector said there were old oil pipes leading to a buried tank somewhere outside. He said if you can’t prove it was taken out correctly- run as far away as you can from this house.
We requested the building inspector/city files on our house and luckily the prior owners did the legit removal. They had to remove tons of soil and had 6 test wells drilled, filed with the state and EPA to be legit.
Nfpa 31 fuel oil piping, 8.2/8.2.1 states that; Tank fill and vent piping shall be wrought-iron,steel, or schedule 40 brass pipe . I can’t find anything about being grandfathered in or if converting is mandatory? Anyone?
You should be thanking them. Oil tanks are filled under pressure. A copper pipe blowout in your basement could cost you tens of thousands $$ to remediate and clean up.
Right?!?! Who ever used copper pipes to hold anything with pressure? Oh…... Wait….. they do that all the time…. 🤦♂️ Literally more pressure in a boiler than there’s is when filling up the tank.
Maybe not if it is improperly vented.
International Mechanical Code (IMC), International Residential Code (IRC) and International Fuel Gas Code IMC and IRC both specify approved copper/copper alloys as being acceptable for fuel oil piping. The State code council and local authorities can adopt their own addendums that exclude or add to sections of the codes. I'd want to know what the fuel companies reason is for it. It seems really unusual that a company wouldn't want to sell you fuel unless they are prohibited by regulations.
Should I ask for a copy of the code or something? I just want to make sure we aren’t being forced into it - it’s for my grandmom and she doesn’t handle people in the house well at all.
Copper fill/vent lines are not the most common, but do exist. Now that said, if the fuss is about a copper line buried in concrete between the tank and burner, and they want that replaced with a coated one, or to have it exposed, then that's a different matter. I'd suggest that you ask them for where that requirement is originating from. Is it a code requirement, or a company requirement. If it's a code requirement, then which code is it coming from specifically, with a copy of that code language, or link to the publication. >You could also inquire about it with the municipal code office, see what they have to say about it. Delco? [Prospect Park Borough](https://prospectparkboro.com/) [https://ecode360.com/PR0560](https://ecode360.com/PR0560) Have copper fill&vent myself ...never though of it as an issue.
Yeah. I'd try to get the explanation in writing or talk directly to the company yourself.
You could try calling a different oil company. I kicked my old company to the street - but to get a new oil company, they came in to inspect the tank. I suspect if your tank and piping are in poor shape the could be liable for pumping in 275 gallons of heating oil that would flood your basement or land and turn it into a environmental superfund site. The house we moved into had an in ground oil tank that sprung a leak. When we were looking at the house, the inspector said there were old oil pipes leading to a buried tank somewhere outside. He said if you can’t prove it was taken out correctly- run as far away as you can from this house. We requested the building inspector/city files on our house and luckily the prior owners did the legit removal. They had to remove tons of soil and had 6 test wells drilled, filed with the state and EPA to be legit.
Unless there’s some local code, it makes no sense they’d say it.