Project Details
Client: Mick Wood Heating Services Ltd
Location: Banbury, Oxfordshire
Project Site: Domestic Property, Buckinghamshire Village
Tank Installed: Tuffa 1650 Litre Steel Bunded Fire-Rated Oil Tank
Sign-off: Stroma Building Control
Banbury based Mick Wood Heating Services Ltd recently completed an oil tank replacement for their client in Buckinghamshire. The job was to replace the existing 2500 litre single skin tank with a compliant solution, utilising a Tuffa 1650 litre steel bunded fire-rated oil tank.
Project Overview
Oil-fired heating is relied upon as the primary source of heating and hot water for the Buckinghamshire village residents due to there being no natural gas supply. The existing tank had been in use for over 20 years and had showed significant signs of wear and tear, including heavy white fading on its surface thus the customer reached out to installation company Mick Wood Heating Services Ltd for a solution.
Site Assessment and Challenges
On initial inspection, installer Sam Wood identified a number of non-compliance issues with the existing tank installation:
- The tank was less than 1.8 meters away from a building opening (window).
- The tank was less than 1.8 meters from non-fire-rated building eaves.
- The tank was positioned adjacent to a manhole cover.
Relocating the tank was not an option for the client; the customer wanted a compliant solution without having to move the tank and in addition wanted a tank that would offer the maximum capacity with the smallest footprint.
Solution: Tuffa 1650 Litre Fire-Rated Tank
The decision was simple. Installer Sam put forward the Tuffa 1650 litre steel bunded fire-rated oil tank to the client based on his clear requirements. This Tuffa fire protected oil tank would offer the ideal size, in terms of footprint, as well as optimum capacity whilst adhering to Building Regulations.
Delivery and Installation
The delivery aspect proved to be one of the significant challenges on site due to poor access at the client’s property. Tuffa’s regular delivery company were not able to undertake the delivery since this project required a small vehicle that could provide offloading from the rear, as opposed to a side offload.
This was no problem for Tuffa Sales Representative, Dee who quickly found Stoke-on-Trent based delivery company, Shifters. Shifters had the right vehicle for the job and could ensure the tank could be lifted directly onto the new base from the delivery vehicle.
Customer Satisfaction
A smooth delivery and a sound installation, the tank is now successfully in operation and is providing hot water and heating to the homeowner’s at the Buckinghamshire village property.
Sam at Mick Wood Heating Services expressed his satisfaction with the entire process and provided some valuable feedback:
“Tuffa is a company who I have dealt with before in similar scenarios and I have always found them very easy to work with, and a very amenable company,” said Sam Wood.
“We were called out to a new customer to quote for replacing their existing 2500L single skin, plastic oil tank. The customer lives in a village that doesn’t have a natural gas supply, and as with the majority of villages in our area, most people opt to use oil-fired heating as their primary source of heating and hot water. With the tank being over 20 years old and signs of wear showing over the tank’s surface – heavy white fading etc, the customer decided it was time to replace it.”
Recommendations
Mick emphasised the importance of understanding current regulations when replacing an oil tank:
“I would advise that anyone considering replacing their tank, to do a small amount of research prior to getting a quote, so that they have a basic understanding of the current regulations, so that they don’t end up with a new tank that still doesn’t comply with regulations and potentially causing them issues when it comes to selling their house, or with their insurance company.”
Conclusion
This project highlights the importance of researching regulations and choosing the right tank for the intended location. The Tuffa 1650 litre steel bunded fire-rated oil tank, one of six in the range, provided the client with a compliant solution for their customer that could replace the old tank in its existing location. The installation was signed off with ease using Stroma Building Control – a simple option to FirePro tank sign-off.
Find more details on the range of FirePro oil tanks in our guide to fire rated oil tanks, or for your oil tank quotation send an online enquiry here.
