MetroPark recycles oil to heat offices

Using reclaimed motor oil saves money, time and carbon emissions.

Richard Alder, a park technician at Englewood MetroPark, is seen with the park system’s new Clean Burn furnace on Monday, Dec. 14. Five Rivers MetroParks installed the furnace that burns reclaimed motor oil from its fleet to heat the 2,400-square-foot offices and workshop at Englewood MetroPark.

Staff photo by Chris Stewart Richard Alder, a park technician at Englewood MetroPark, is seen with the park system’s new Clean Burn furnace on Monday, Dec. 14. Five Rivers MetroParks installed the furnace that burns reclaimed motor oil from its fleet to heat the 2,400-square-foot offices and workshop at Englewood MetroPark.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Staff photo by Chris Stewart Richard Alder, a park technician at Englewood MetroPark, pours used motor oil into a storage tank on Monday, Dec. 14.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Photos: Furnace fueled by old oil

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By Dave Larsen, Staff Writer Updated 10:01 PM Monday, December 14, 2009

ENGLEWOOD — Since 2005, Five Rivers MetroParks has heated its Englewood facility with used motor oil from its fleet of service vehicles, and officials like the results.

The recycling initiative saves the park district money and reduces carbon emissions, said Dave Spitler, assistant manager for Englewood MetroPark. He could not provide specific figures.

A Clean Burn furnace installed four years ago at Englewood MetroPark is fueled by spent oil from the district’s nearly 200 motorized vehicles, which range from tractors to lawn mowers.

Previously, the 2,400-square-foot office and shop facility was heated by two wood-burning stoves, which required workers to cut, split and dry wood, as well as tend the stoves.

“You had a lot of man hours involved in keeping heat back in the shop area where we do our mechanical work,” Spitler said.

MetroParks started collecting used oil in 2006 from its regional facilities. The district recycles about 550 gallons of oil annually, Spitler said.

The initiative also saves the district money by eliminating transportation and disposal fees for used oil.

The used-oil furnace cost about $5,800, said Clayton Gingerich, owner of Gingerich’s Clean Burn, the Plain City, Ohio, distributor that installed it.

The furnace burns oil at 1,800 degrees, creating low emissions, said Kathy Ziprik, spokeswoman for Clean Burn Inc. of Leola, Pa.

Furnaces that burn used oil on site are becoming more popular with U.S. park districts, Ziprik said.

“It has been popular with any place that has a large amount of used oil,” such as car dealerships, oil change businesses and transit companies, she said.

Several Dayton-area businesses donate their used motor oil to MetroParks.

“We pretty well keep our tanks full with the process that we have here in recycling within our own district,” Spitler said.

Other area MetroParks have embarked on similar “green” initiatives.

Germantown MetroPark this month installed new tables and chairs made from about 1,800 recycled milk jugs. The items were purchased with a $4,297 grant from the Montgomery County Solid Waste District, said Val Hunt, MetroParks spokeswoman.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2419 or dlarsen@Dayton DailyNews.com.

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