Real Estate Professionals - Oilheat Storage Tanks & Safety
Types of Tanks
There are two kinds of residential oil storage tanks.
An aboveground storage tank may be located outside of a house, or it may be in a basement, garage or crawl space. Today's aboveground tanks are small enough for those hard-to-fit places in a basement.
An underground storage tank is buried beneath the ground. The size of a tank can be determined by checking an oil delivery ticket from the home's heating oil company. Common tank sizes are 275 gallons for an aboveground tank and 290, 550 and 1,000 gallons for an underground tank.
Safe and Efficient Storage
Homebuyers may have misconceptions about heating oil storage tanks. You can set the record straight about storage tanks by telling them about these benefits:
Tank Safety
- Today's oil tanks are built with corrosion-resistant materials for long life and safety.
Legal Issues
- In the U.S., all underground residential heating oil tanks regardless of size are exempt from all federal regulations.

Convenience
- A tank on your property puts a homeowner in charge of supply.
- Homeowners only pay for the Oilheat that they receive.
- As an automatic delivery customer, a homeowner can rest assured that they will never run out of Oilheat.
Versatility
- Storage tanks can be located in the basement, garage, next to the home or underground.
- New tanks are compact in size, and can be hidden away in small hard-to-fit places.
- Attractive tank enclosures to protect aboveground tanks from the elements can be custom-built to match the home.
When homebuyers ask questions about underground or aboveground storage tanks, you'll have the answers!