oil tank removal
 

Hi guys I am selling a old bungalow and we were told we need to take out the oil tank before we could list. And I have been doing some research on this and there's so many scary stories out there costing up to 200k for soil remediation. Anyone done this or have any experience with this.

Once we decide to take the tank out we have to finish the soil clean up if tank leak. And the company can charge a fair bit.

When my parents sold the place we had to do this, can't remember the company but it was one that was recommended by the relator.

They dug it up, out and cleaned it up. I wasn't 200k for sure can't remember the exact cost but it wasn't pretty and and took couple days.

Do you know what range around 20k 50k?
There's few article on line ppl in west van pay like 100k and that's still a lot.

Oil tank removal can be as little as a few thousand dollars assuming it is buried in an open area for easy extraction and there is no tank leakage. The figures you're pulling are from homes with leaking tanks leeching into the soil causing contamination to the subject property and could be as severe as contaminating neighbouring properties down the block. The homes in West Van/North Shore with catastrophic bills are the result of contamination into the creeks, water system and neighbouring properties notably exacerbated due to the slope grade.

Oil tanks are usually buried along the perimeter at the back of the house. You can get an idea where it could be by looking for oil fill lines running into the home and a vent pipe within the vicinity. For bungalows, if you have a garage (notably an attached garage) they can actually be buried underneath it especially if the garage was erected after the construction of the home so obviously the concrete would need to be dug up.

The same oil tank removal companies tend to used by homeowners so it comes down to preference.

Here's a few off the top of my head you'll need to find their contact info:

West Coast Tank Recovery
Tri-city Tank Tech
Cerc Oil Tank Removal
Action Oil Tank
Stormworks
Perimeter Oil Tanks

Removing an oil tank like Bonka said can be fairly cheap. Prices normally start at around $2000-$2500 depending on machine access.

usually the problem lies if the oil tank has been leaking for years. When the oil starts leaking, the oil leaks into the soil in a cone shape and really messes up a large area. Remediation and hauling gets pretty pricey from there as its dig as deep as needed till you don't smell fumes.

I was a contractor earlier this year for a new development on W.41st in Vancouver where it had a serious leak from the oil tanks in 2 out of the 4 properties. The leak was so bad that it went under the house and stalled the demolition of the properties till the engineers decided what to do next.

http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...ps19a85a18.jpg
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...psf9df6696.jpg
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...ps1ea1aa8a.jpg

That must've cost a fortune... you know the final bill for that with remediation?

Those are the scary stories I'm talking about.lol. bonka put me at ease with his comment but now I can't sleep again seeing those picture.:heckno:

There are loads of properties in Victoria with oil tanks and most of them were just berried and forgotten about. It's not uncommon over there to have huge bills to remove these tanks as many people filled them because they were leaking and then left them to rot in the ground.

When are you having the extraction done? Unless it's so bad that you can see oil leech into the topsoil there's nothing you can do until they start digging. Good luck :)

In 2 weeks. Getting couple companies to come look at it. Thank you.

its really not a big deal.... most tanks where emptied and filled with water. Usually cost 2000-2700 for removal. If there is a pipe thats sticking out try putting something down it and see what comes out..

I got one removed from my house in vancouver and it cost $3800 and that was with no leaks and clean soil

So I got the tank out. Soil is being tested now gotta wait a week. There's some contamination but not too bad the guy said, at most maybe 1bin needs to take out since he can see brown soil already. I have 1 picture here what do you guys think

i believe thats the grey stuff is just blue clay

yup the grey stuff is clay, the test came back a pass, some leak but very minimal so just covered it and done. hope this thread is useful for people who needs to do this in the future.