How much waste oil does your resort produce each year? Consider everything from collected fryer oil from on-mountain restaurants to engine oil, transmission oil, and gasoline and diesel fuel—mountain resorts can accumulate large amounts of waste oil over short periods of time. That waste oil must then be transported and disposed of in a very specific fashion, costing the resort even more than typical waste management.

Waste oil heaters can cut the waste management cost and reduce overall heating bills. By recycling the waste oil, transport costs (both financial and environmental) are dramatically reduced. And once the waste oil is recycled, or filtered, it can easily be used as a heating source for other areas on the mountain. Heating with waste oil guarantees much lower energy costs compared to regular heating oil; it can reduce heat-related energy bills by almost 100 percent.

And the environmental benefits are substantial. Using recycled oil reduces the demand exerted on environmental resources, which encourages sustainable resource utilization. It also eliminates the need for recycling or disposing of waste oil in more traditional ways.

The efficiency of a waste oil heater is impressive. A typical gallon of waste motor oil contains 153,000 to 180,000 BTU per gallon, which can be more than two times the energy potential per gallon of Liquefied Petroleum (LP) gas. A typical gallon of waste vegetable oil contains about 128,000 BTU. LP gas has a potential for 92,000 BTU per gallon.

In addition, waste oil burners are also extremely durable. They can last up to 25 years when maintained properly. Maintenance typically consists of vacuuming residual ash and dust from the burner to maximize efficiency. The minimal emissions of smoke and other wastes during burning—similar to those of a regular oil burner—help maintain a clean system for a longer period of time.

Location options for waste oil heaters can vary depending on the intended use. Some waste oil heaters are best for sides, ends or corners of shops, while others can be located anywhere—some waste oil heaters are standard unit heaters, and some are ductable, allowing heat to go wherever it is needed.

Wachusett Mountain in Massachusetts purchased a waste oil heater for its approximately 4,500-square-foot vehicle operations building. The resort will be running the waste oil heater for its third season in 2013-14.

The resort puts roughly 2,500 gallons through the waste oil heater each winter. The tank is located on the shop floor, with the burner unit up on a mezzanine. It uses about 1.4 gallons per hour, averaging 20 gallons a day. Wachusett uses a blend of about 80 percent vegetable oil from its on-mountain restaurants and 20 percent petroleum oil of various grades.

And it’s efficient. Even though the area experienced a few trial and error hiccups with pump placement, oil filtration and oil dispersing techniques, the waste oil heating system paid for itself in just under two seasons. The cost of the heater was $7,900. Compared to what the area used to pay for propane, the cost of removing old vegetable and vehicle oil from the facility, and the costs to store the old oil until it was removed, Wachusett realized measurable savings in a building that was costly to heat.

Depending on the unit size, cost and total amount of oil recycled, the average payback is no more than two years. Typically, an operation that generates 500 to 700 gallons of waste oil annually has enough waste oil to justify a purchase. The more you generate and recycle, the more you save.