What You Need to Know About
Underground Oil Tanks

Risks Associated with Underground Oil Tanks
There is much debate about the life expectancy for an underground oil tank, but it is likely to last about 20 to 25 years. Any oil tank older than that has a very significant risk of leaking. Underground oil tanks usually fail as a result of rust proliferation. Tanks rust from the inside out, and the rust is usually caused by water that has gotten into the oil tank. A small amount of water and sulfur exist in home heating oil. When the water and the sulfur mix, they become acidic and corrosive, eating away at the tank from the inside. In most cases, the buyer of a property is legally responsible for the oil tank and any contamination, even if the buyer never used the oil tank.

Tank Inspections
If you are buying a property with an underground oil tank, you should have it tested for leakage. Identification of any leaks is extremely important because substantial environmental damage and remediation costs in the hundreds of thousands of dollars may ensue.

The inspection will also determine whether the tank has water in it. As noted above, water inside the tank leads to rust. An oil tank that contains water has a very limited life span.

Do You Know for Sure Whether the Property Has an Underground Oil Tank?
Sometimes homes with gas-fired heating systems still have an underground oil tank. If the vent and the fill pipes have been removed, the tank can easily be concealed below ground.

We recommend having a tank search performed by an environmental company that specializes in locating underground oil tanks. Such companies have specialized equipment to locate hidden tanks. The cost is worth every penny that the peace of mind will bring.

We also recommend having the soil tested whenever there is a below-ground oil tank, regardless of whether the tank is in use. Soil testing looks for evidence of soil contamination. To conduct a proper soil test, you must first locate the buried tank or the site where a tank was previously buried, and then take soil samplings to a depth just below the tank bottom.

Remediation of Improperly Abandoned Tanks
When an improperly abandoned tank is found, there are two methods to properly fix the situation, provided that there is no oil leakage:

1. Oil tank removal: The tank is excavated, emptied, cleaned, and removed from the property.
   
   
2. Oil tank abandonment: The tank is left in place, cut open, emptied, and cleaned. The piping is removed, and the tank is filled with an approved filler. Typical tank fillers include sand or special foam products. These fillers prevent future collapse of the tank.

Remediation of an Oil Tank Leak

If a leak is detected, you should:

• Immediately report the leak to the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Call the DEP action line at (877)-927-6337.
• Call your oil company and have them pump any residual oil out of the tank.
• Contact a qualified environmental contractor for cleanup.
• Alert your insurance company about the leak. Some insurance companies offer coverage, but most do not unless it is specifically written into your homeowner’s policy. Lately, some insurance companies are denying coverage for homes with underground oil tanks.

Want to Know More?
More information about oil tank leaks, cleanup, available financial assistance programs, and insurance is available from the NJ DEP at www.nj.gov/dep/srp/publications/brochures/homeowner/#tellproblem