Tiger Loop & Oil Tank Question

[stripedone]

Hi All

I have an oil fired heating system which has been a constant problem for the last 2 years. Basically the problem has been muck and water getting into the bunded tank somehow. This has resulted in us having to change the oil pump in the boiler about 5 times to date.
We now have a temporary single skin tank connected to the system and touch wood everything seems to be OK. However, I've always noticed that the tiger loop has condensation in the glass bowl. It always seems to be there. Is this normal?

Also, what sort of distance can I position the tank away from the tiger loop?

Thanks for any helpful comments.

[ecowarm]

Hi Stripedone welcome to the forum,

The water and muck must have been in the tank before installation or you've had contaminated oil delivered!

Tank to boiler / tiger loop depends on output of boiler and correct sizing of oil pipe, long distance requires a larger pipe.

Eco

[martinwinlow]

Stripedone,

Don't understand how the tank muck has got past the tank filter...? The Tiger Loop instructions have a table giving max distance between tank and loop for a given head (if tank is below boiler oil pump) and pipe diameter. If your boiler is average sized and the pipe is ~8mm internal (10mm ext) then it should be good for about 40m. Best to mount the TL as close to the boiler as you can, regs permitting.

[kimbo]

The filter on the tank is not good enough. You should have one with a paper filter after the tank and before the pump.

[martinwinlow]

Right, I'll order one with the servicing kit and check the PC. Thks. MW

[WHPES]

You probably don't need to be told this, but what you need to do is thoroughly clean everything out. Pump out the tank fully (tip it onto one corner to suck the very last dregs out). Flush the pipework. Add an extra filter in the line before the boiler (Crossland type with paper element). Take the tigerloop off, give it a good shake and flush out. Don't forget to clean the filter inside the oil pump. Re-make all the joints. Carefully pump most of the oil back in, then when you are down to the last couple of inches, pump into a plastic barrel, allow to settle, then pump out of the barrel into your tank being careful not to allow any of the dross in. For the remainder, I usuall separate off the remainder of the water using a catering fat strainer which is a kind of large plastic jug with spout coming from the bottom which allows you to run off the water from the oil.

Finally check all the lids and connections on the top of the tank to ensure no water is getting in.