On Wed, 07 Dec 2005 08:19:16 GMT, Bruce L. Bergman
wrote:

On Tue, 06 Dec 2005 16:13:20 -0600, Rex B
wrote:
Pete Snell wrote:

I've heated my 22'X 24' garage/workshop successfully with oil fired
forced air furnace from a house trailer. It's small, easy to install and
works great. I flip the switch when I walk in and it will go from -15°C
to +10°C in about 20 minutes. Uses about $50 of stove oil a year for my
irregular use. (few hours in the evening a couple of times a week.) My
present unit was nearly new when I got it and it cost $400. The previous
one was free but died after 4 years or so. Contact your local heating
contractor, as they remove the tanks and furnaces from local Mobile
homes and replace them with gas furnaces.

Would those be available in Texas? We don't generally heat with fuel
oil. I presume one could use diesel and get reimbursed for the road taxes.

No, you bring a few empty drums to the local fuel supplier and pick
up (or call up and have them deliver) the dyed "Off-Road" diesel fuel
sold for use in farm tractors and industrial equipment - no road taxes
on that, and it runs just fine in oil burners.

Actually it's not that simple in Texas anymore. You do have to file
for a permit or license (I forget what they call it). They changed it
a while back probably because so many farmers cheat. You also don't
want to burn it in a unvented heater. That dye definitely puts out
some bad fumes.

Lots of small industrial users here in California use it because
'fuel oil' is rarely used here, but off-road diesel is common. You'll
remember this the next time you go to Disneyland - the Disneyland
Railroad Steam Trains (steam-jet venturi burners) and the Mark Twain
Steamboat (Beckett-style flame-retention burner, 120VAC from the
diesel Onan genset hidden at the stern) are running on red diesel.

If the local authorities suspect you are running off-road fuel in a
road vehicle to evade taxes, they either look at the water separator
bowl or draw a sample. The red dye will tell on you.

Yep. They can tell if you run red diesel for a long time after that
tank has burned up and green diesel ran in it.

Wayne Cook
Shamrock, TX
http://members.dslextreme.com/users/waynecook/index.htm