Stove Oil vs Furnace Oil vs Diesel

[outdoor]

what are the differences? I'm told not much other than dye.

So could i use furnace oil at $ .70 per litre on my Diesel inboard instead of paying $ .95 - $1.05+ at gas station or marina?

[fishwife]

I'd guess that you are in Europe. Heating oil in essentially the same as road diesel. The red dye is to show that VAT has not been paid on the fuel. Until about four years ago it was legal to use this on a boat but the EU derogation was withdrawn. It's still possible to buy fuel for use on board free of VAT, provided that it will not be used for propulsion. You have to make a declaration that a certain percentage of the fuel you buy will be used for domestic purposes. Usually up to a 60/40% split is allowed with the 40% going to heating and generating, provided you have the machinery on board that will generate electric power and/or heating.. The Customs can check this and if you are found to be using red diesel without adequate reason, a stiff fine or even the confiscation of you boat can result. N.B. This is the situation in the UK, elsewhere in the EU it may be different.

P.

[knottybuoyz]

Depending on whee you are in the world furnace fuel likely doesn't have any lubricants. Last ship I was on we had to add paraffin to the fuel because all we could get was furnace fuel. We pulled into a Shell dealer in Owen Sound Ontario one fall and asked for a fill up. The guy at the counter asked how much that would be. 750,000 litres I said. He almost fell off his stool!

[outdoor]

I live in Ontario, Canada. I use furnace oil to heat my home, so if I could use it here and there to fill the boat up it would be much cheaper.

or even if Stove oil worked I can get that as well right down the street for cheaper than the diesel at the Marina.

I believe all the farmers use stove oil in their diesel trucks, tractors etc.... And I thought Stove oil was the same as Furnace oil just has some additives for colder weather in winter months?

[klem]

The base stock is all #2 but what is done to it and what additives it has is what changes. In the US, road tax only applies to road diesel which is not dyed while everything else is. In addition, sulfur requirements have been different for the two fuels. When OTR diesels went to having diesel particulate filters in '07, they had to bring the sulfur level down to 15ppm for those filters and home heating oil stayed at 500ppm if I remember correctly. I believe that home heating oil is still at 500ppm and that you are no longer allowed to use it in engines in the US but I have not looked recently to see whether something has been changed. The other difference is additives. Until the sulfur requirements started very recently, lots of people used home heating oil in boat engines. Unless you have a DPF (OTR only), burning home heating oil won't hurt the engine. The question is whether it is legal.

[ConradG]

Use the home heating oil (number two diesel)! Much better for the engine. It still has the lubricating properties that have left the road fuel with the removal of sulfer. Take some between your fingers and then compare to diesel. While it used to be lubricating (and diesel engines lasted a long time) the new low sulfer diesel is now a solvent. When a farmer orders off road diesel for his bulk tanks it is number two heating oil. There are no winter additives so starting in subzero temps will be harder unless you add a winterizer.

In the US you may be able to reclaim the road tax paid on diesel if you use it in your off road vehicle. Farmers do all the time. I know that in airplanes approved for using auto fuel (mogas) you can save your reciepts and file for a refund of the state portion of the road tax (about .26/gal in most states) because you aren't burning it on the road. Not really worth it except for the statement though unless you aren't sailing and motor alot or cruise in a motorboat.