Your fuel oil tank capacity is 20,000 gallons and you have 10,000 gallons remaining. How many gallons will you order to remain within safe levels?

To determine how many gallons of fuel oil to order to remain within safe levels, it’s important to consider the tank’s capacity and what is deemed a safe operational reserve.

The total tank capacity is 20,000 gallons, and there are currently 10,000 gallons remaining. To maintain safe operational levels, it's prudent to avoid letting the tank go below a certain threshold to ensure that there is a buffer for usage and to prevent running out.

Ordering 8,000 gallons would bring the total in the tank to 18,000 gallons (10,000 + 8,000). This leaves a buffer of 2,000 gallons, which is a reasonable amount to ensure the tank is not overfilled and that there's still margin before reaching critical low levels.

The other quantities would either bring the tank too close to full capacity with less buffer (if ordering 10,000 or 12,000 gallons) or would not adequately top up the tank to allow for safe operations and fuel usage (if ordering 6,000 gallons). Ensuring there is always a safety margin is a critical aspect of fuel management, making the choice to order 8,000 gallons the best option to achieve a well-balanced operational level.