oil gauge install on 275 G oil tank

[@Samlol23_drrich]

To everyone who is about to write that the float was hitting the side of the tank; I promise that was not the issue. It may look like that, in fact you may even be correct at the moment I filmed this video. Realize that this was filmed after I removed the float, made the diagnosis and ordered the new gauge. I merely screwed the old non working gauge back in until the replacement arrived. May have even screwed it in with the float pointing towards a wall. Had the float ALWAYS BEEN in the wrong orientation (to hit against a wall and not freely sink) the symptom would be the exact opposite of what I experienced- where the float would be unable to sink and always read full. This was a 9 year old gauge that worked fine for 9 years, then after a fill up stopped floating. Watch 4:20 to see it sink in spite of a full tank of oil. Anyway, replacing the gauge solved the problem. Thanks for commenting.

[@patrickyerovsek479]

Getting ready to do this tomorrow. Thanks for the heads up on which way to point the float.

[@lesstantial8001]

From my experience working on carburetors that use a float to control fuel level, the float can become saturated with the gas or oil and lose buoyancy. I'm not speaking of hollow floats that use trapped air to be bouyant. These are floats made of cork or some plastic material that over time will eventually absorb the liquid and lose the ability to stay on the surface. I would call it coincidence that this failed after a fill up. I suspect the float had been slowly failing and became obvious after the fill. Thanks for posting this. I'm sure you helped a lot of folks.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Just as your expertise helped me understand why this happened. Thanks for commenting. Appreciate it.

[@johnkosick1464]

I would clean the old float and see if you can get it to float. maybe its just the OUTSIDE of the float and not the inside. Just for your own satisfaction on why it failed. Just a thought.@@Samlol23_drrich

[@UFCyaLATERR]

Maybe its from a new oil fill because i just got an oil delivery yesterday and just noticed now my gauge is shot also. Thats what brought me to your page bro. At least its an easy fix. Great vid man 👍🏻

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Thanks for the comment. You’re probably right. These things don’t just crap out from nothing. And I had just had a delivery cause the tank was full.

[@bmo125]

The oil fill tube/pipe should not be coming down over the float. When tank is being filled, oil coming into the tank should not come down on the float because it will damage the float.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

I did this video years ago and you're the first person that mentioned that. And it makes sense. The problem for my setup is that there is no other way to orient the float. It's too close to the back and left and right side of the tank. In other words it would hit the wall of the tank. But you are right. I pointed it directly toward the front of the tank right where the oil comes in. I will need to angle it towards one of the walls. Like 45 degrees between front and side wall if that makes sense. Thanks again

[@ababner317]

How far away from the fill hole should the float be in the tank?

[@Samlol23_drrich]

@ababner317 Well, since there's only a couple of holes. In my case, one hole is where it fills and the other hole is where the gauge Sets so I didn't have too much choice period

[@harleyadam4813]

I had a similar situation happen 3 years ago, but because of a different problem. You probably got a pinhole in the float. My float/gauge assembly is proprietary, so thank God mine wasn't compromised. The linkage was simply gummed up with sludge. I cleaned mine with a flat-blade screwdriver and some chemical cleaner and now it works great.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Was there more sludge in the tank? Kills me. Pay good $ for oil and there is junk mixed in. What kind of proprietary gauge? I thought it's a standard opening and you buy whatever gauge you want.

[@harleyadam4813]

There are TONS of different gauges. My tank was made in the early 90s. Basically EVERYTHING made for it is obsolete. Come on. 30 YEARS?!?! EVERYTHING moves on!!! But realistically, oil tanks aren't NASA-level rocket science. They're very simple systems. With a little basic maintenance and potentially some VERY easy fabrication in some (extreme?) situations, your oil tank, float and gauge will last WAY past your lifetime.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

@@harleyadam4813 I know there are lots of different gauges. But not so many opening sizes on the tanks. I thought if your tank has a 1.75” threaded opening you could replace your obsolete gauge with anything that will fit. That’s all.

[@AlexDeLarge2022]

You're supposed to make sure that the float is at the opposite side of the fill pipe, but because of where the tappings are on your tank, you have no choice but to aim the float towards the fill line. Apparently they can be damaged if the float is under the fill pipe. Is the old float empty? No leaks? Love those giantmungus pump pliers. 😂

[@Samlol23_drrich]

@@AlexDeLarge2022 you’re 100% correct. The float is right under the fill pipe. I’m still not sure why it failed. When I took the old float out it looked and felt exactly like the new float. It wasn’t full of oil or even heavy. If I lose a $40 gauge once every 10 years I can live with it. And I use those pliers monthly. They are the only thing that can get around my whole house filter cartridge since it’s not mounted on a wall and it’s hard to remove without torquing the main water line. Thanks for commenting.

[@julissy9689]

Thanks for this vid... the same thing happened to me! I'll replace mine now!

[@Kkaz89]

Thank you for your helpful video! 💚

[@Holdfast]

This video was useful. I am getting rid of oil and need to check how close the tank really is to empty. I've always filled at 1/4 but the total fill amount is never more than 1/2 the stamped tank capacity. I suspect E is nowhere near actually empty.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Are you going to pump out the extra? It should be fairly easy. Hopefully not too much sludge on the bottom. I would just open the top, take a long stick and put it in until it hits the bottom. Then pull it out and see how many inches of liquid there are. Should be able to estimate based on the size of the tank how many gallons remain Here is a chart www.adamspetro.com/residential-heating-tank-chart Good luck

[@Holdfast]

@@Samlol23_drrich Thanks i did this successfully today! 14" even though it's on E - no sludge that I can see (at least on the stick) so I'm going to keep using the oil as long as I can. I suspect my gauge was not calibrated well when installed.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

@@Holdfast 14" is a lot! According to that chart, you've still got over 140 gallons (assuming you have a horizontal 275G tank). That should last a while.

[@badpixels_]

thanks for your video. now i am going to check mine

[@twitchgrass3849]

If you twist the gauge with the wrench you need to hold the float indicator with no cover or the float gets turned too

[@Samlol23_drrich]

​​@@twitchgrass3849 absolutely correct. This was done a long time ago and I speeded up the part of the video where I showed that. If you look at 9:45-9:53 of the video, after screwing in the gauge, I turned the inner part with the float so that the arrow pointed in an unobstructed direction and didn't hit the wall. That flat silver part has an arrow that snows which direction the float is going. If you zoom in its visible. sorry that wasn't clear. If the plastic dome was already on I could have just held that. Thank you very much for commenting.

[@glenncolliss7415]

Put the float in a pan of water and boil it. Watch for expanding air bubbles . Bubbles ==leak in float.

[@markwright1981]

the float was hitting the back of the tank

[@Samlol23_drrich]

No it wasnt. It stopped working after 10 years. It wasnt touching. I unscrewed it and made sure it was pointed toward the front of the tank(see 4:30), and it still sank. Besides, if it was hitting it would not go down.

[@themostlymikeshow]

*I read where the float can leak oil into itself and cause it to sink, causing false low readings.*

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Thats gotta be what happened, but you would think when I removed the gauge I would see oil leaking out of the float- or at least it being heavy with oil inside. But neither of those things. Thanks for watching and your comment

[@uwishucould158]

I have to do mine aswell thank you for showing me. I assume your float is cracked or just absorbed the oil and now full

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Something like that. It didn't have any cracks. Weirdest thing ever. Its been fine since I replaced it. Good luck and thanks for watching

[@Gsavage1]

I take it you never found out why the previous one wasn’t working? I kinda would like to know. Maybe defective?

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Gsavage1 I have absolutely no idea. We had the buried tank removed about 8 years ago, and had those indoor tanks installed in the basement, so the gauge was put in new with the tanks. It lasted 8 years- worked fine until the day I posted the video. The float was definitely sinking in the oil. No cracks or anything. I guess they just randomly fail but I’ve never seen that before so I thought it would be interesting to see a no reason failure.

[@christopherhughes8963]

Not that it's broken. It's that sludge will actually stick on it and pull it down. Instead of spending hours cleaning it just replace with new and be done with it in ten minutes

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Can't you just tell me the float was pointed the wrong direction and hitting tbe side of the tank like everyone else???? I'll take what you said cause it was certainly east to replace. Maybe sludge was sinking it although I didn't see anything. Thanks for commenting

[@walterschilling4512]

AS I watched your video when you pulled the float out the piviot is at the short end of the tank , all you had to do was to reverse it so the pivot is a the long end of the tank.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

I promise you that wasn't the issue. The float worked flawlessly for 8 years and then after a fill up the gauge read empty. I have twin 275s and the fill goes into the other tank and the one with the float fills by equalization. Watch carefully at 4:30. Besides, if the float was hitting the side of the tank, it would be the opposite of what was happening- the float would read full even when the tank was empty because it couldn't go down. Right? What happens at 4:30 is the float sinks in a full tank of oil. That shouldn't happen regardless of which way the pivot was pointing. Thanks for commenting, though. It really was broken and didn't float. If I had a tub of #2 oil I would have loved to prove it to myself.

[@toolmkr1]

Was the float hitting the side if the tank?

[@Samlol23_drrich]

The float had been working fine for at least 8 years and wasnt moved, so it went from working to broken with no movement at all. I specifically checked to make sure it wasnt. Seems odd that a plastic thing would stop floating in oil, but it absolutely did

[@harveydodd8803]

If it was hitting the side of the tank, wouldn’t it be showing full when it was empty rather than the reverse situation here?

[@88hemoglobin]

Were you supposed to put the sealant on the bottom threading? A bit below where you applied it?

[@Samlol23_drrich]

That gauge is made to fit two different sized holes. Let's call it 1.75" and 2" If you have a tank that has 2" opening as mine did, you use sealant on the larger threads. If your tank has 1.75" opening, you would apply the sealant to the lower threads. If you look carefully you will notice that those lower threads went right thru the hole and didn't touch the tank. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@mikemarcus8676]

There is no need for pipe dope on an inside tank. What are you trying to keep out?

[@eranorion]

Trying to keep the oil stench IN! Sealed.

[@aiftikhar6273]

What was the stuff that you painted on the threads? I'm in the process of having to do this myself, though our tank is outside. Thanks for posting.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Pipe dope (thread sealant). You could probably get away with Teflon tape if you have some lying around the house already. kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y6qqg5qsZ8ufnNWIhanks for commenting.

[@mikemarcus8676]

1st question is why do you have the tanks inside?

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Where i live in NY you can't sell your house (its really hard to anyway) with a buried tank. There are bs environmental cleanup costs if it leaks etc. About 10 years ago we had an issue with water in the tank just after we bought the house. So as long as we were replacing the tank, we put the new ones Inside. Basically everyone around my house has them indoors. My neighbor that sold actually had to knock 5k or so off the price of their house so the new owner could move the tanks. If you mentioned the pipe dope, also- thanks. I didnt think of that but it makes sense.

[@corbana4743]

Wasn’t working because it’s not pointed right , most likely hitting tank wall , as u should point it the right way and hold the float as u are tightening it so it doesn’t turn , also point it away from the fill tube .

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Watch starting at 4:15. If it was hitting the wall, it would always show as full because it couldn’t sink. Trust me. It wasn’t hitting anything. It was fine for 9 years and then one day it showed as 1/4 full and that was a day or 2 after a fill up. If it appeared it was pointing the wrong way, starting at 4:30 should remove all doubt. Full tank and it sinks and shows empty. Didn’t watch the whole video again, but the day prior to me making this video, I had already removed the gauge and played with it. It’s possible I didn’t put it back facing the right way since I knew what the issue was and had already ordered a new gauge. Thanks for commenting.

[@TheJimbob1603]

The float is best installed AWAY from the fill pipe so that it does not get 'beat' every time the tank is filled. At this point, I recommend installing a 'smart' fuel gauge; no moving parts, much more precise, and you read your fuel level from your cell phone or tablet. I also recommend installing the gauge on the '2nd' tank (if your 2 tanks are plumbed in series) so that the gauge is not subjected to excessive pressure when the tanks are being filled. J

[@Samlol23_drrich]

I’ve been thinking about one of those wifi gauges for some time. When I have an extra couple of $$ burning a hole in my pocket, I’ll go for it! I agree with the float being installed away from the fill, but the installers of my two tanks ruined that option by placing the fill and gauge in such a way that they can’t be swapped. If I turn the float in any other direction, it will hit the tank walls and won’t work properly. I got about 10 years out of the first gauge. Hopefully this one lasts another 10. Thanks for commenting.

[@davelunger7413]

How does the "no moving parts" gauge the oil level? The "smart" gauges on Amazon seem to work by a mechanical float that moves vertically, weighing down/up some string/line.

[@RagazzoMafioso]

you have the float on the wrong hole. It should be installed on the tank's middle hole. What I think it happen, is that is crashing against the wall on the right or the center pipe.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

From what I understand the gauge can go into any hole. We had buried tank removed about ten years ago, and had them install these sistered tanks in the basement. For the last ten years the gauge and float have worked perfectly. I check the oil level a lot since my woodshop is right near the tanks in the basement. Always 100% after a fill, around 50% 6 winter weeks later when they deliver, and then the gauge shoots back to 100%. The float was not hitting the tank for the last 10 years. Im not sure it makes a difference which hole is the fill and which is the gauge. All I'm saying is fine for ten years, then broken for no reason, then fine since I replaced it and made this video. The float definitely went bad. No idea that could happen or why. Thanks for commenting. Luckily it was an easy diy fix for me.

[@eranorion]

@@Samlol23_drrich the gauge goes in the farthest hole from the fill hole, so the filling with oil doesnt bash around the float, causing premature failure.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

@@eranorion thank you. I had an outdoor buried tank replaced about 10 years ago and the guys who abandoned the old tank installed these. They put the equalizing filler in the middle hole so there wasn't much choice on where to put the gauge. , Thanks for commenting

[@andyoch6147]

when you screw the clear cap over the float, it turns the float in the tank. It is a poor design. What you need to do is put the float up against one side of the tank so when you screw the cap over the float, by the time it gets tight, it will only be turned inside the tank half way.

[@Samlol23_drrich]

You're right and thats a good idea. This particular gauge has an arrow embossed in that part that shows which way the float goes down so you don't accidentally put it facing a wall. Thanks for commenting

[@woofll]

am I the only person thats gonna comment on his vids? QwQ

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Not if i comment on my own. Told u theyre all over the place!

[@johnforte3466]

Sludge on the float mechanism

[@Samlol23_drrich]

Sounds like it would be right, except when I pulled the float out it was clean. Put it back in the same thing would happen. It’s been fine since I replaced it, and it was an easy fix. Just odd to crap out like that. My guess, since it was right after a fill, is that the pressure from oil shooting into the tank did something to the float. But again, guess. Thanks for commenting.

[@IPLAYATNIGHT]

The box tells you that you CANNOT install this gauge where the float arm will be directly under the fill line for the oil, it will damage the arm & gauge .....also theres an arrow when you unscrew the glass cover look for it on the silver place , that arrow is the direction of the arm movement and do not screw the whole mechanism as one unit........

[@Samlol23_drrich]

@@IPLAYATNIGHT you know what? At 9:48 part of the audio got edited out but I was saying the arrow was pointing away from the wall, and yes the nut is tightened and the inner mechanism isn't moving. Also, we have 2 tanks so the oil is delivered into the other one without the float. Thanks for commenting

[@woofll]

wEw