Second, any home that has had oil deliveries for the past 18 months can enroll in a free insurance program administered by Washington state's Pollution Liability Insurance Agency (PLIA) since 1996.
PLIA is funded primarily through a self-imposed tax on heating-oil dealers. Contamination cleanup expenses not covered by your homeowner's insurance (meaning most, if not all of it), up to $60,000 is covered under this program. Coverage is not automatic, it requires signing up. PLIA is available at www.plia.wa.gov/ or 800-822-3905.
For perspective, PLIA has about 58,000 tanks statewide under contract, with about 100 claims per year. The claims have been almost without exception here on the soggy side of the mountains. This low claim rate doesn't necessarily reflect a true industrywide failure rate, as many other tanks are replaced without a claim being filed or are decommissioned.
The average remediation expense incurred by PLIA is about $13,000. Free vs. $13,000: Now that's a no-brainer!
The third action I would advise is to buy tank-replacement insurance. While not as good as free, this insurance is pretty darned cheap at $1 to $1.50 per month, available from many full-service oil dealers.
Pacific Northwest Oil Heat Council Executive Director Lea Gaskill says the average oil tank in the Puget Sound area will last 20-30 years (with some up to 50), depending on the soil's mineral content and the environment in which it sits.
A new development in the field borrows from the sacrificial anode rod in water heaters. Oil tanks corrode from the inside-out, just like a water tank. Sacrificial zinc balls dropped into the tank every two years have been extending tank life for those owners who have been using them, Gaskill said.
Following up
I responded last week to a reader's question about a gas cooktop igniter that caused the dishwasher pump to start. My thinking was a miswired shared neutral could be the cause. I received the following from William J. Beaty, a University of Washington research engineer:
"Electronic ignition on gas stoves is high-voltage, with a short pulse. The igniters produce powerful radio waves, also called EMP, or Electromagnetic Pulse. Place an AM radio in the kitchen, start the igniters, and you'll hear the 'snap' of the pulses in the speaker, like old-time radio. Mechanical timers and cam-switches are immune to radio waves, but appliances with electronic controls are not. The wires leading to the dishwasher electronics are picking up the radio impulses, or the pulses are getting into the electrical lines and the EMP is sent to the dishwasher.
"A similar thing happens when a CB radio or cordless phone is operated near a poorly protected computer; the radio waves are picked up by the keyboard, and strange characters are typed onto the screen.
"Manufacturers are supposed to obey FCC laws and not produce igniters that broadcast radio pulses. In all likelihood there's a malfunctioning ground on the stove. Contact the stove manufacturer, since other consumers probably have had similar complaints. The company may already have a kit to silence the radio noise."
Good stuff! Thank you, Mr. Beaty.
Darrell Hay answers readers' questions. Call 206-464-8514 to record your question |
