How long does an oil tank replacement take?

Most domestic replacements are completed in a single day. If the tank is being moved to a new position, or the base needs concreting and curing, we may split the work across two visits. We will tell you which at survey stage rather than on the day.

What happens to the oil already in my tank?

We pump it into our own holding tanks, filter it to remove water and sludge, and return it to your new tank once it is commissioned. You do not need to run the tank down before we arrive.

Do I need planning permission for a new oil tank?

Domestic tanks up to 3,500 litres are normally permitted development, so planning permission is not usually required. Listed buildings, conservation areas and larger commercial tanks are the common exceptions. Building Regulations still apply either way, which is why the installation must be certified by an OFTEC registered engineer.

Will you take the old tank away?

Yes. Removal, decommissioning and recycling of the old tank are included in every replacement quote. Plastic tanks are granulated and reprocessed; steel tanks go for metal recycling.

Service

Oil Tank Replacement

If your oil tank is rusting, weeping at the seams, split, or simply past its 20-year design life, replacing it is cheaper than cleaning up after it fails. We handle the whole job on one visit: draining and filtering your existing oil, removing the old tank, laying a compliant base, installing a new bunded tank, and recommissioning your boiler or AGA before we leave.

Book a free site survey 01673 842874

A large green bunded oil tank on a newly built blockwork and paving-slab plinth in a lawned garden, with a brick farm building behind

When does an oil tank need replacing?

Most domestic oil tanks last between 15 and 20 years. Steel tanks fail from the inside out as condensation collects in the base, so rust is often well advanced before it shows on the outside. Plastic tanks fail differently. UV exposure makes them brittle and they craze, bulge or split, usually along the top seam or around the outlet.

An OFTEC engineer will also fail a tank that is technically sound but non-compliant: too close to a boundary or building, sitting on a failing base, or a single-skin tank in a position that now requires secondary containment.

Visible rust, blistering, weeping seams or oil staining beneath the tank
Cracks, crazing, bulging or a distorted shape on a plastic tank
A cracked, sinking or undersized base, or a tank no longer sitting level
Persistent water in the oil, sludge in the filter or a boiler that keeps cutting out
A single-skin tank where regulations now require a bunded (double-skinned) tank
Your tank is over 20 years old, or your insurer or OFTEC inspector has flagged it

Bunded vs single-skin tanks

A bunded tank is a tank within a tank: the outer skin holds at least 110% of the inner tank's capacity, so a leak is contained rather than released into your garden, drains or a watercourse. Building Regulations and OFTEC guidance require a bunded tank in most domestic situations. That includes tanks within 10 metres of controlled water, within 50 metres of a borehole or well, above hard ground that drains to a watercourse, or where the vent cannot be seen from the fill point.

In practice we fit bunded tanks on the overwhelming majority of replacements. They cost a little more up front, but they are what insurers expect, and a single containment failure on a single-skin tank can run to five figures in remediation.

What a replacement costs

Cost depends on tank size, whether it is plastic or steel, how much groundwork the base needs, and how far the oil line has to run. A straightforward like-for-like swap onto an existing sound base is at the cheaper end; a job that needs a new concrete or paving-slab base, a repositioned tank and a longer oil line will be higher.

We survey on site free of charge and give you a fixed written quotation that includes the new tank, base, fittings, removal and recycling of the old tank, and recommissioning. It is one price for the whole job rather than a day rate, so the figure you agree is the figure you pay. Finance plans are available if you would rather spread the cost.