How do I know if a house I am buying has an abandoned underground oil tank?

Check with your local town to see if they have a record, if not it's hard to tell.


If you do in fact have one, find out before you sign the papers or you own it.


See if you can get something in writing from the seller stating that there is'nt one there.


If they're apprehensive about that, back out of the deal!How do I know if a house I am buying has an abandoned underground oil tank?
Do a little detective work. If there was an underground oil tank, there had to be an oil furnace. If so, you should be able to see some evidence of that. Look for holes in the wall where pipes might have gone. You can also use a metal detector to locate a tank.How do I know if a house I am buying has an abandoned underground oil tank?
Clues, rural area with no gas available, it would have a pipe on it above ground--I had one a 500 gl size--when I went to electric from oil I filled the tank with sand and cut off the stand pipe. Even if the home you are looking at has one--what is the issue??
You should be able to check with the building permit department of the city or county that the house is in. If you don't have luck there, check with your state or the federal EPA. Good Luck.
if you have a plot plan, it should be on it, If not, no realy way to tell. If the houses in the area all look alike, check with a neighbor.
ask the owners and realtor, and go back to city records.


You have to dig it up and properly dispose of it if there is an empty tank underground.
I would ask the seller first and maybe make a call to the local fuel oil dealers to see what the records might show and if you don't find the answerer your looking for,


I would check and see if I could see any soft copper line coming through the basement wall or through a floor where the heat system is located. If I remember they were 3/8s size or maybe a 1/2 OD size.


The other way is if there is one there may still be the filler and vent pipe coming out of the ground where it is located. These were usually 1 1/2'; in size and galvanized pipe.


They also were to be placed with in a certain distance from of your drive way so there filler hose could reach.