Waste Oil Heater Basics

With today's rising energy prices, one of the things inventive homeowners and business owners are doing to reduce energy costs and to reclaim our environment is to use a waste oil heater. What is it?

A waste oil heater (or waste oil burner) does just what it says. It burns waste oil (often used motor oil, but also used cooking oils, for example) that would normally have to be discarded. Most of the time, this oil is free for the hauling or is available at very minimal cost from companies that use a lot of oils, such as restaurants that generate a lot of used cooking oil or auto repair shops that generate a lot of used motor oil. In general, these companies must pay a third of the cost of disposing of these oils, so it is both of benefit to them and you if you buy your oil from these sources. This makes this energy source nearly free, very economical, and very easy on the environment, since you're using up something that would normally be garbage.

In general, waste oil heaters are very clean burning. The newest models of waste oil heaters generate absolutely no smoke, and the only waste they produce is some ash. The ash and dust will need to be vacuumed out regularly, to maintain efficiency. There's also a reusable oil filter that will need regular cleaning and maintenance. If you wish, you can also make your own waste oil heater. If you choose to buy yours commercially, in general, you'll pay several thousand dollars. You can visit any number of sites and check out what they have. Because their information is proprietary and will also be affected by set up, installation, and the like, exact prices aren't generally listed on these sites and you have to call for an exact quote. However, you can be assured that you'll make up whatever investment you put into your waste oil burner very quickly, simply by the savings on heating costs you'll incur. In addition, if your business produces waste oil, you'll further save money because you can use up the waste oil you produce instead of having to pay to have it disposed of.

Where can you get a waste oil heater? There are many places online that now sell these, competitively priced. In addition, one site in particular, http://journeytoforever.org, has instructions on how to make your own waste oil burner for as little as about $40.

A waste oil heater is especially useful for businesses such as auto repair shops that generate a lot of waste oil. Because you're charged to dispose of it, this is not only a way to heat your business effectively, but to avoid those fees (not to mention that you can make a little money as well by selling your surplus to other waste oil users). And of course, you're helping the environment, since you're using up discarded oil that would normally simply pollute the environment. What could be better than that?