Fuel Conversion Underground Storage Tank Removal/Replacement

The Hospital of Central Connecticut needed to upgrade their backup fueling system. Though the hospital’s main system is natural gas, their backup heat was provided via an underground storage tank (UST) that supplied No. 6 oil. This project presented three challenges:

1. Removal and replacement of two large USTs that were located both near the maintenance and service area of the hospital and in close proximity to the hospital’s emergency entrance.
2. Conversion of piping and burners, as the original UST provided No. 6 fuel oil and the new UST would be providing No. 2 oil.
3. The site was an active hospital, so there could not be any downtime of backup systems and all deliveries into and out of the hospital could not be interrupted.

The Hospital of Central Connecticut hired Fuss & O’Neill provided design-build and construction services for this critical project.

To overcome the major challenges of this project, the design-build team designed a creative approach. To ensure that the hospital had backup fuel to its burners in the event that the hospital’s natural gas supply was interrupted, a temporary 4,000-gallon tank was installed to connect to one of the facility’s three boilers.

Once the conversion was complete, ensuring that emergency fuel (heat) was readily available and that the piping and burners were ready to receive No. 2 oil, the old UST could be removed and replaced. The location of the buried UST was limited in space, requiring shoring to safely excavate it, and was near both the emergency entrance and multiple service entrances. To ensure that personnel, equipment, and vehicles were never blocking the emergency entrance, we coordinated with the hospital to learn the schedule of services (laundry, patient transfer, trash, food, medical supplies, air, gas, etc.) that used the loading docks.

This project included:

• Temporary backup fuel source during construction
• Asbestos abatement of insulation surrounding former No. 6 oil lines
• Hazardous waste storage shed removal/replacement
• Converted boilers from No. 6 oil to No. 2 oil
• Additional concrete pads and paving as requested
• Expedited delivery to pressure back up fuel source to hospital
• New burner controls system installation and integration

The original UST was No. 6 fuel, which has a high sulfur content that increases its polluting effects. The new UST is No. 2 fuel, which is a much more environmentally-friendly fuel. The new tanks provide reliable backup heat, and they do so in a way that is less harmful to the environment.