Have you ever called for diesel fuel only to have your generator red-tagged, or denied fuel by your supplier all because you didn’t have your fuel supply inspection report handy?
Well, you’re not alone. This is a fairly common occurrence that stems from the fact that diesel fuel supply companies are regulated by the Technical Safety Standards Association (TSSA), along with companies that build and service generators, elevators, fire panels, and a myriad of other life safety equipment found in facilities.
The B139 SERIES-15 provides the minimum requirements for installing oil-burning appliances such as generators, and is governed by the TSSA – which gets its authority from provincial legislation. There are 24 Fuels Industry certificates; three of which deal with Oil Burner Technicians as laid out in the TSSA Gas Technician/Oil Burner Technician Policies and Procedures.
While it is expected that OBT3 and OBT2 technicians will be working under the supervision of an OBT1 technician, it is the responsibility of the OBT1 to ensure that the oil (diesel) burning equipment meets the B139-15 Installation code for oil burning equipment. Note that it is the OBT1’s certificate number that should be on the inspection report posted in the generator room for the fuel supplier and other TSSA registered contractors to see.
The inspection report duly signed by an OBT1 with a valid registration number will remain active for 10 years, and grandfathers any installation when the code changes during that time. Fuel suppliers are obliged to ask for the OBT1 inspection report and risk their ability to operate if the TSSA pulls their license for not complying with the regulations.
If the fuel supplier is refusing to fill your diesel tanks because you cannot provide a recent inspection report, or, has red-tagged your equipment due to an obvious hazard, you have 30-90 days to comply and have any deficiencies rectified. The first step is to have an OBT1 attend and quote any deficiencies. If you require fuel right away, you are likely able to get fuel from a supplier if you can proof that action to upgrade your fuel supply is being taken.
Understanding the CSA 282-15 Emergency Electrical Power Supply for Buildings. Please note that these blogs were written as a general introduction to the applicable code or standard, and not intended to be complete or instructional.
Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this material or need some help planning out what is required to comply with the TSSA standards.