Project: Oil Tank 1.0

Project: Oil Tank 2.0
Project: Oil Tank 3.0
Project: Oil Tank 40

You've heard the phrase "putting lipstick on a cow?" Well, that's kind of like my current project.

Last year when the nights were beginning to get really nippy, we scheduled to have our heating oil tank filled. When I got home that day I knew something was terribly wrong. The air outside wreaked of heating oil and inside the house was just as bad. It turns out that our oil tank was too old to handle the weight of 240 gallons of heating oil and sprung a tiny leak. This is the hard way to find out that your heating oil tank needs to be replaced.

The old tank was in our basement which caused the whole house to smell. The new tank is installed outside to avoid this kind of problem. After installation, we were informed that the tank had a primer on it but would need to be painted within a year to ensure longevity. Paint, you say? Sounds like a canvas to me.

I immediately hatched a plan to paint a mural on the oil tank. I just love this idea of private graffiti.

Since the tank sat for almost a whole year before I started the project, it had already developed some rust. First step, sand away the rust with a wire brush and some medium grade steel wool pads.

The next step was to spray Rust-oleum Professional Gray Primer on all the scoured places.

The background color of my mural is black so I put one coat on the entire tank using a roller and paint brush of Behr Premium Plus Ultra Exterior Satin Enamel that Home Depot mixed to a shade of Lamp Black.

Next I will need to trace my design onto the tank using a projector. This will be followed by painting the design with artist acrylics, and then sealing it with lacquer.

Stay tuned for updates on this project. Currently it's raining.

(As I write this I'm enjoying a bowl of Ben & Jerry's new flavor, Imagine Whirled Peace, and a cup of Krankies Decaf Costa Rica Cafe Vida.)

Project: Oil Tank 2.0
Project: Oil Tank 3.0
Project: Oil Tank 4.0