[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township of Pennsauken 3-13-1978 by Ord. No. 78-3 as Ch. 183 of the 1977 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Fire prevention — See Ch. 162.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
APPROVED
Listed by the Underwriters' Laboratories of the National Board of Fire Underwriters and the Chief of the Fire Department of the Township of Pennsauken, or either of them.
DOMESTIC HOT WATER SYSTEM
Any device which provides the customer with year-round automatic hot water requirements.
FUEL OIL
Any hydrocarbon oil refined and produced for use in oil heating equipment.
HEATING EQUIPMENT
Any device used as a source of generating heat for heating hot water, steam or warm air.
INSTALLER
Any person licensed by the Township of Pennsauken to install, or cause to be installed, or to service and repair any oil burner or oil-burning equipment.
LOWEST STORY
The basement or cellar and if there is no basement or cellar, the first story.
OFFICIAL
The Oil Burner Inspector of the Township of Pennsauken or other person designated by the Township Committee of the Township of Pennsauken as authorized to approve sketches, grant permits, make inspections and otherwise assist in the enforcement of this chapter.
OIL BURNER
Any mechanical device for burning any grade of fuel oil.
PERMIT
A required permit issued by the Oil Burner Inspector for installations or replacement of oil-fired heating equipment as defined in this chapter.
PERSON
Includes a natural person, partnership, corporation or association. Whenever used in any clause prescribing or imposing a penalty, the term "person" as applied to partnerships or associations shall mean the members of such partnership or the members of such association and, as applied to corporations, shall mean such corporation and the officers thereof.
A. 
No person shall install or use oil burners or oil-burning equipment relating thereto in the Township of Pennsauken except in conformity with the standards, provisions and requirements provided in this chapter.
B. 
Approved burners. Only approved oil burners listed as standard by the Underwriters' Laboratories of the National Board of Fire Underwriters or approved by the Oil Burner Inspector of the Township of Pennsauken shall be installed.
C. 
Permits. No oil-burning equipment shall be installed until an application has been filed with a permit secured from the Oil Burner Inspector. Such application shall set forth in detail the specific proposed installation, based on the provisions hereinafter prescribed, and such application shall be accompanied by plans showing the relative location of the building, oil burner, storage tank and equipment. The permit must be displayed in a conspicuous place on the front of the premises while the installation is being made and shall remain there until removed by the Oil Burner Inspector.
D. 
Sketches of locations. Before installing any oil-burning equipment in any building, sketches showing the relative location of burners, tanks and pumps must be submitted for the approval of the Oil Burner Inspector.
E. 
Construction of tanks.
(1) 
Underground tanks and tanks inside buildings shall bear an Underwriters' label and shall be constructed of steel or wrought iron of a minimum gauge (United States Standard) in accordance with the following table:
Capacity
(gallon)
Minimum Thickness
275
14 gauge
276 - 550
12 gauge
551 - 1,000
12 gauge
1,001 - 4,000
7 gauge
4,001 - 12,000
1/4 inch
12,001 - 20,000
5/16 inch
20,001 - 30,000
3/8 inch
(2) 
Joints shall be riveted and caulked, brazed, welded or made tight by some equally satisfactory process. Tanks shall be tight and sufficiently strong to bear without injury the most severe strains to which they may be subjected in practice. The shells of tanks shall be properly reinforced where connections are made.
(3) 
All connections to underground tanks and tanks inside buildings shall be made through the top of the tank above liquid level, except that tanks of not over 275 gallons' capacity may have one bottom connection for gravity feed.
F. 
Tanks inside buildings. Oil supply tanks shall not be located in buildings above the lowest story, cellar or basement, unless specifically approved by the Oil Burner Inspector. In no case will oil supply tanks be installed under cellar steps without extra precautions as approved by the Oil Burner Inspector.
G. 
No part of any storage tank shall be located within 10 feet of any fire, fireplace or open flame unless it is enclosed with brick, cinder block or cement block and securely anchored to the ground. The wall of any such enclosure must be carried at least six inches above the top of the tank. Tanks shall be at least four inches from the enclosure wall.
H. 
It shall be permissible to use a single-fill pipe and a single vent for dual tank installation, provided that they are piped with a fill line at least 1 1/2 inches in diameter and a vent line at least 1 1/4 inches in diameter, and piped in an approved manner. There shall be installed in each tank an approved fuel supply gauge.
I. 
Oil supply tanks located inside buildings shall not exceed 275 gallons' individual capacity, and not more than two such tanks with 550 gallons' aggregate capacity shall be used in one building, unless installed in an enclosure or casing constructed as follows:
(1) 
The wall of the enclosure shall be constructed of reinforced concrete at least six inches thick or of brick at least eight inches thick and shall be bonded to the floor.
(2) 
The space between the tank and the enclosure shall be completely filled with sand or well-tamped earth.
(3) 
Where the floor or other construction immediately above the tank is of fire-resistive construction capable of safely sustaining a load of 150 pounds per square foot, the walls of the enclosure shall be carried to a height not less than one foot above the tank and the space filled with sand or well-tamped earth to the top; otherwise, the enclosure shall have a top of reinforced concrete at least five inches thick or of an equivalent construction.
J. 
Storage tanks may be placed in a protective enclosure having solid masonry walls not less than eight inches in thickness and of dimensions not less than 15 inches greater on all sides than the outside dimensions of the storage tank. The walls of the enclosure shall be carried to a height not less than two feet above the top of the tank. A fireproof access door shall be installed in the enclosure above the point where the enclosure has a capacity equal to the tank, and for each additional 10 feet or fraction thereof by which the longest inside dimensions of the enclosure exceeds 35 feet, an additional fireproof access door shall be similarly installed at one or more intervals of not less than 10 feet. The ceiling above the tank shall be either fireproof or of approved fire-retarding construction.
K. 
Instead of an enclosure as above described, the tank may be encased in reinforced concrete not less than four inches in thickness applied directly to the tank so as to completely eliminate any air space.
L. 
No tank to be used for storage of any liquid petroleum product having a greater capacity than 300 gallons shall be installed or erected above the ground without the specific approval of the Oil Burner Inspector.
A. 
Installation of underground tanks. Underground tanks shall be installed with the top of the tank below the level of all piping to which the tank is connected to prevent the discharge of oil through a broken pipe or connection by siphoning.
B. 
Underground tanks shall be so buried as to have a cover of earth not less than two feet thick or shall be covered with not less than one foot of earth on top of which shall be placed a slab of reinforced concrete not less than four inches thick. The slab shall be set on a firm, well-tamped earth foundation and shall extend at least one foot beyond the tank in all directions. Where tanks are buried underneath buildings, such a concrete slab shall be provided in every instance.
C. 
Where the basement or cellar is over 10 feet in depth and the tank is within 15 feet of such basement, cellar, vault, pit, elevator shaft, cesspool, sand trap or other excavation, tanks for other than residual oils shall be set on a four-inch concrete slab and an eight-inch masonry wall shall be placed around the tank and carried at least one foot above the tank with the top of the tank no higher than two feet below the normal surface of the ground. The enclosure shall be filled with clean earth or well-tamped sand. In place of the above enclosure, the tank may be completely encased in six inches of concrete.
D. 
The enclosure or encasing of outside tanks shall not be required for residual oil storage.
E. 
Tanks buried under private driveways, roadways, alleys or similar private ways must have a six-inch concrete slab on top extending at least 12 inches from the outer edge of the tank, and all pipes leading from such tanks must be similarly protected. If manholes are used, covers shall be securely fastened or sealed in order to make access difficult by unauthorized persons. No manhole shall be used for filling purposes. If more than one tank is buried, each tank must have its own fill and vent pipe.
F. 
Underground tanks must be kept at a minimum distance of four feet from all outside or inside walls.
G. 
When excavations are below the foundation, the edge of the ditch must, as a safety precaution, be outside the sixty-degree line when measured from the bottom of the foundation.
H. 
Inside tanks shall be buried at least four feet from the boiler and two feet below the floor. If the tank is within 15 feet of any vault, pit, elevator shaft, cesspool, sand trap or other depression, the top thereof must be no higher than the bottom of such vault, pit, elevator shaft, cesspool, sand trap or other depression. The top of the tank must be covered with solid concrete at least four inches thick. No openings to the tank shall be permitted inside of any buildings. If manholes are used, they are to be covered with a concrete or cast iron manhole cover sealed in place. If more than one tank is installed, separate fill and vent lines are to be used on each.
I. 
All tanks buried inside of buildings shall be provided with an approved measuring gauge or device.
J. 
When the top of any underground tank is above any piping to the burner, the suction line shall have a siphon leg consisting of a section of pipe, at least three feet long, with a diameter of at least twice the diameter of the said suction line.
A. 
Gravity-feed tanks to burner. Gravity feed shall be used only with burners arranged to prevent abnormal discharge of oil at the burner by automatic means specifically approved for the burner with which it is used.
B. 
Gravity-feed tanks shall not exceed 550 gallons' aggregate capacity.
A. 
Storage tanks shall be equipped with an open vent arranged to discharge to the open air. Vent openings and vent pipes shall be of ample size to prevent abnormal pressure in the tank during filling, but not smaller than 1 1/4 inches in diameter. Heavy oil (No. 5 and No. 6) storage tanks shall have vent lines not smaller than two inches in diameter.
B. 
Vent pipes shall be arranged to drain to the tank. The lower end of the vent pipe shall not extend through the top of the tank for a distance of more than one inch.
C. 
The vent pipe shall terminate at a point outside of the building. Outer ends of vent pipes shall be provided with a weatherproof hood and shall terminate sufficiently above the ground to prevent their being obstructed with snow and ice.
D. 
All vents for basement fuel tanks shall be equipped with an audible signaling device installed in such a manner as to prevent the overfilling of the tank.
E. 
Tank fill. Storage tanks shall be filled only through fill pipes terminating outside of the building, and fill terminals shall be closed by a tightly-fitting metal cap. No fill line shall be less than 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Residual oil (No. 5 and No. 6) storage tanks shall have fill lines not less than three inches in diameter.
F. 
Oil gauging. Gauging devices, such as liquid level indicators or signals, shall be installed so that oil or vapor will not be discharged into the building from the fuel supply system. Stick gauges on inside tanks are prohibited.
G. 
Piping. All piping shall be standard full-weight wrought iron, steel or brass pipe with standard fittings or copper tubing with fittings, except that approved flexible metal hose may be used for reducing the effects of jarring and vibration or where rigid connections are impracticable. Such flexible metal hose shall be used on industrial installations only and shall be tested to twice the operating pressure.
H. 
All fittings on suction and return lines shall be either malleable or copper.
I. 
Piping shall be rigidly secured in place and protected from injury in a workmanlike manner. Pipe joints and connections shall be made tight. Unions requiring gaskets or packing and left and right couplings shall not be used on oil lines.
J. 
Proper allowance shall be made for expansion, contraction, jarring and vibration. Pipe lines other than tubing and test wells connected to underground tanks shall be provided with swing joints arranged to permit the tank to settle without impairing the efficiency of the pipe connections.
K. 
Valves. Readily accessible shut-off valves of first quality shall be installed in oil supply lines close to gravity tanks or gravity tank enclosures.
A. 
Oil burners shall be installed in a workmanlike manner in accordance with the manual of instructions of the manufacturer unless such instructions are inconsistent with this chapter.
B. 
Boilers and furnaces shall be connected to flues having sufficient draft to assure safe operation of the burner.
C. 
Rooms in which oil burners are located shall be provided with adequate ventilation to assure sufficient air supply for continuous complete combustion of the oil.
D. 
Oil pumps. Automatic pumps on domestic burner installations not an integral part of the burner but supplying oil by gravity to a burner or burners shall be arranged to stop automatically in case of total breakage of the supply line to the burner.
E. 
No vaporizing pot-type oil burners shall hereafter be installed, regardless of whether or not they are approved by any nationally recognized standard testing laboratory.
F. 
Gun-type oil burners shall have the blast tube pitched toward the combustion chamber in such a manner as to allow oil dripping from the nozzle to drain and to be discharged into the said combustion chamber.
G. 
Each fully automatic oil burner having a firing rate of more than 10 gallons per hour and less than 35 gallons per hour shall be equipped with a type of combustion safety control which shall shut off the oil supply to the burner within 12 seconds after flame failure.
H. 
Each fully automatic oil burner having a maximum firing rate in excess of 35 gallons per hour shall be equipped with a type of combustion safety control which shall cut off the oil supply to the burner within four seconds after flame failure.
I. 
Where a stack relay control is used, it shall be so installed that it can be readily removed from the stack mounting flange for inspection of the metallic element without disconnecting the wiring.
A. 
All manually operated dampers shall be removed from the heating unit or smoke pipe on oil-fired installations. An automatic draft control or its equivalent shall be installed on all oil burner installations, except where the equipment is so designated as to otherwise control the draft.
B. 
Smoke pipes shall be securely fastened with at least three sheet metal screws in each joint and smoke outlet of the heating equipment, plus hangers of metal or wire from the joint or ceiling.
C. 
Smoke pipes shall be of the size recommended by the manufacturer of the heating unit.
D. 
If the smoke pipe is within 18 inches of combustible material, fireproofing consisting of minimum one-fourth-inch thick asbestos millboard shall be installed with at least two inches of air space between the millboard and the combustible materials and shall be extended a minimum of 12 inches beyond the limits of such proximity, except where masonry walls interfere. In no case may the smoke pipe be less than nine inches from the combustible materials without extra precautions as approved by the Oil Burner Inspector.
E. 
Smoke pipes shall be cemented in the chimney using a mixture of sand and cement.
A. 
Electrical installation performed in connection with oil-burning installations shall be in accordance with the National Electrical Code, and every installation shall be inspected and approved by the Middle Department Association of Fire Underwriters and an electrical certificate shall be obtained and filed with the Oil Burner Inspector of the Township of Pennsauken.
B. 
No automatic oil burner shall be installed without a master control switch located outside of the furnace room or at the nearest entrance to the basement where the oil burner is installed, and such switch shall be marked OIL BURNER EMERGENCY SWITCH.
C. 
There shall be installed in the motor supply circuit a disconnect switch placed in such close proximity to the oil burner that the operator can start and stop said oil burner while adjusting or viewing the fire.
D. 
An oil burner used in connection with a hot water, steam or warm air heating system shall be equipped with an approved automatic device that will shut down the burner in the event of undue pressure in the steam boiler or overheating within the hot water boiler or warm air furnace and shall be so wired in the ungrounded circuit to the burner to directly disconnect the burner circuit from its power supply in said emergency. In all cases where an automatic oil burner is connected to a steam boiler, a low water cutoff shall be installed and so wired in the ungrounded circuit to the oil burner that the power supply to the oil burner will be automatically disconnected in the event the water in the steam boiler becomes too low for safe operation.
A. 
On all tanks inside of buildings, whether above the floor or buried, no sounding or measuring device which must be open to the cellar to ascertain the level of oil is permitted. On installations of this kind, an approved gauge must be provided.
B. 
No oil tank used in connection with an oil burner shall be equipped with a glass gauge, the breaking of which will permit the oil to escape from the tank.
C. 
No oil shall be kept or used in any fuel oil burner which emits an inflammable vapor below 135º F. to be ascertained by a standard closed cup tester.
D. 
The use of acetylene or any other gas possessing a wider range of explosiveness in admixture with air than coal gas, water gas or oil gas is prohibited for use in the gas pilot of an oil burner.
E. 
On all burners that are using electric and gas connections, tags bearing the following inscription must be attached to the electric or gas meter: OIL BURNER ATTACHED, DO NOT SHUT OFF BEFORE NOTIFYING OCCUPANT, BY ORDER OF THE CHIEF OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT OF THE TOWNSHIP OF PENNSAUKEN. The background of these tags shall be red in color and the tag shall be not less than two inches in width and four inches in length, printed on both sides.
F. 
All installations are subject to the inspection of the Oil Burner Inspector. When the installation is satisfactorily completed, it shall be the duty of the Oil Burner Inspector to issue to the licensed installer a certificate of approval on all oil burner installations for which a permit has been issued.
A. 
The following schedule of permit fees is hereby established:
(1) 
For a light fuel oil installation, including one tank of 275 gallons' capacity, the sum of $4.
(2) 
For a light fuel oil installation, including two tanks of 275 gallons' capacity, the sum of $7.50.
(3) 
For a light fuel oil installation with tanks of a total capacity of from 551 to 999 gallons inclusive, the sum of $10.
(4) 
For all installations with tanks of a capacity of 1,000 gallons or more each, the sum of $20 for each tank.
B. 
Payment of the installation fee entitles the applicant to not more than three visits by the Oil Burner Inspector to any installation. Responsibility for arranging the date and time of inspection shall rest with the applicant. If more than three visits by the Oil Burner Inspector to any installation are required, whether due to inability to gain admission or defective installation, the applicant shall pay for each additional visit an additional permit fee equal to 1/2 the regular permit fee for the installation.
A. 
Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction, be subject to one or more of the following: a fine not exceeding $1,250 or imprisonment in the county jail for a term not exceeding 90 days, or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days, in the discretion of the Municipal Court Judge.
[Amended 9-12-1984 by Ord. No. 84-26]
B. 
Each violation of this chapter shall constitute a separate and distinct offense, thereby subjecting the violator to a separate penalty for each such violation. Each and every day that any violation continues shall be considered a separate and specific violation of this chapter and not as a continuing offense.