Alisske
Senior Member
I have been running my Lehman, Naturally Aspirated, 120hp diesel on home heating oil for the last decade. (I have filled up maybe 1x a year at a dock)
I travel a-lot and use boat frequently use it year round, so i can go through 1500 gallons a year.
I ask the fuel oil guy to fill up drums when he fills the house tank. (Obligatory tip of course)
Recently, my brother ran out of fuel oil, so he borrowed a few barrels. He was going to fill them back up and return from the gas station. I told him just to wait until he gets fuel oil and have them filled.
He then said, well, you should not run your diesel on heating oil because it does not have any lubricants added. Since he is a smart guy, I looked up “on road” (green tinted) diesel from the pump and saw they added lubricants!!! I suddenly second guessed my brilliant idea of saving $1.50 a gallon by using heating oil.
So I did some research and wanted to share the good news (i was right!) with the group.
Long story short, heating oil is high sulfur diesel and has more lubricating qualities that low sulfur diesel that is destined for your local pump. . The low or “ultra low” diesel has lubricants added prior to hitting the pump because the refinery process to remove sulfur also removes other naturally occurring lubricants.
To note, if you use high sulfur diesel in modern diesels (post 2007) you might have a problem that could hurt your engine.
So in summary, if you have an old Lehman, she was designed for, and loves to eat, home heating oil, lmao. Also, i have never experienced water in my fuel, or algae etc….
One more note, I realize that high sulfur diesel is not the best for the environment, But its 2k$ in fuel savings each year. (Sorry)
https://fueloilnews.com/2010/03/04/taking-the-mystery-out-of-lubricity/
I travel a-lot and use boat frequently use it year round, so i can go through 1500 gallons a year.
I ask the fuel oil guy to fill up drums when he fills the house tank. (Obligatory tip of course)
Recently, my brother ran out of fuel oil, so he borrowed a few barrels. He was going to fill them back up and return from the gas station. I told him just to wait until he gets fuel oil and have them filled.
He then said, well, you should not run your diesel on heating oil because it does not have any lubricants added. Since he is a smart guy, I looked up “on road” (green tinted) diesel from the pump and saw they added lubricants!!! I suddenly second guessed my brilliant idea of saving $1.50 a gallon by using heating oil.
So I did some research and wanted to share the good news (i was right!) with the group.
Long story short, heating oil is high sulfur diesel and has more lubricating qualities that low sulfur diesel that is destined for your local pump. . The low or “ultra low” diesel has lubricants added prior to hitting the pump because the refinery process to remove sulfur also removes other naturally occurring lubricants.
To note, if you use high sulfur diesel in modern diesels (post 2007) you might have a problem that could hurt your engine.
So in summary, if you have an old Lehman, she was designed for, and loves to eat, home heating oil, lmao. Also, i have never experienced water in my fuel, or algae etc….
One more note, I realize that high sulfur diesel is not the best for the environment, But its 2k$ in fuel savings each year. (Sorry)
https://fueloilnews.com/2010/03/04/taking-the-mystery-out-of-lubricity/