Draining fuel tanks

[rogerbum]

[mcc272]

I have faced this question and built myself a relatively inexpensive and highly useful little device sort of like Dr. Bob's fuel polisher. It consists of a 12V fuel pump from NAPA and a Racor filter. I mounted the pump on one side of a pine board and the filter on the other. The pump is wired to an on/off switch in the positive wire. The wires are 12 feet long and have alligator clips on the end. That keeps the battery, and any potential sparks in clipping to it, some distance from the fuel to be pumped. Add in some fuel hose to stick into the tank to be drained and into the receiver and you are good to go. No priming needed as it primes itself. The NAPA pump is not fast but it clicks away and drains out old fuel, cleaning it in the process. It can also be used to transfer fuel form the boat at the end of the season to the truck or vice versa especially since it goes through a good filter. All in all, the cost was relatively miniumal and the utility is high

[oldgrowth]

I have not tried it but I would think those vacuum pumps that suck out engine oil would also work for fuel. Usually your fuel level is not full at the end of the season so you would not be extracting a lot of gas. I know they make a 3.5 gallon size, maybe larger.



Dave
www.tolandmarine.com

[Matt Gurnsey]

Mythbusters tried very hard to get a shop vac to ignite fuel- and couldn't.

Still, it is not the prefferred method of extracting fuel.

[thataway]

If you go to the Mythbusters web site, you will find that the first vac they used had a motor which was isolated from the fumes. The second short circuited,but did not ignite--my guess there is that the ratio to air and fuel was not proper. The third vacuum, did ignite fumes--an older model.

There are plenty of law suits and people in burn units who have suffered the bad results of using a shop vac and any explosive mixture.

Don't take the chance that the optimal ratio is not present or that the shop vac does not produce sparks which will ignite fumes.

I sat in a major burn unit waiting room for 6 weeks, with the wife of a very close friend who had been badly burned. I developed a good relationship with the head of the burn unit, and the most common cause of burns was some explosive fumes, set off by a spark--next most common cause was open heaters. Shop vacs played roles in at least 2 cases which were in the unit at that time.

As with Jim's post above--my fuel pump set up has any battery connections far from the fuel source, an ignition protected switch, and a fuel pump which is ignition protected. For example, I would not use my 12 volt oil change system to pump gasoline (although I have for diesel). It is not designed to specifically prevent ignition of fumes.

[jimcinfra]

Can we all agree that a miracle happened when I was protected from being blown up. Again I publicly proclaim that my Lord Jesus protected me from harm. Thank you C-brats for setting me straight. I will use a smarter method next time.

[Almas Only]

Delta Belle, you’re right on – PTL. I second Dr. Bob’s implicit rejection of the Myth Busters conclusion, and will pass along my observations and opinions on the subject of getting gasoline out of tanks.
It is my strongest recommendation that you never, under any circumstances, use mechanical or electric powered pumps, or oil extractors, to get gasoline out of tanks, unless you REALLY know what you’re doing and are using an explosion-protected system. I know that establishing and maintaining a simple syphon can be a pain in the butt, and is slow going, but consider a couple of things about gasoline before you get too bold.
First, gas doesn’t burn, but it’s vapors do so with explosive force.
Second, gas vapors are heavier than air, which means that they don’t just go away into the atmosphere. Instead, they accumulate on the ground, around your feet, or in the oil extractor container, just waiting to be ignited.
Third, gas vapors in the right mixture with air are very easy to ignite, and just about any spark, even one generated by static electricity, will do the trick.
Fourth, when the vapors ignite, they will do so with sufficient force to vaporize gas that is still liquid, and make your problem even bigger.
Perhaps an example would help bring this home, and here’s one that I mentioned in posts some time back, and relate again from personal experience, not merely an unproven urban legend. A fellow working in an autobody repair shop wanted to cut apart a 55 gallon drum so it could be used on-site. He first confirmed that it was empty, with the top plug off, and then put a cutting torch to the side. The explosion of the residual gasoline vapors blew him across the room, and up against a concrete wall. He collapsed to the floor, stood up, said something to the effect of “I’m o.k.”, then collapsed again with brain damage sufficient to put him in a nursing home, where he spent the rest of his life sitting in a wheelchair, drooling on himself. Again, this incident, and its aftermath, are for real.
I think of this guy every time I want to take gasoline out of a tank, which is why I usually leave it right where it is, and just stabilize the snot out of it. That’s worked well over the winter. If I have to move it, it’s with a syphon, which probably isn’t risk free, but about the best I can do.
Good luck.

[DaveS]

[rogerbum]

On a similar note relating to static electricity, fuel pumps at airports have a grounding cable that should be connected to the plane to discharge static electricity prior to fueling. Some planes even have small brushes that touch the ground on the taxi way to accomplish the discharge. Planes can build up a fairly high charge depending on air conditions. Gas cans on carpet in the car can also build static, especially the plastic ones. As Dave mentions above, placing them on the ground prior to filling discharges them.

[lloyds]

I replied to this thread but it went into never never land, but my comment was that the neighbor kid used a shop vac to "borrow" fuel from his moms' car. It cost him his hair, his dirt bike, his moms' car, and their garage. Why Mythbusters couldn't start a fire with gas and a shop vac is truly a mystery.

[Doryman]

Anyone have experience with the Safety Siphon?

Warren

[fisherkb]

I have siphoned manually in the past but got sick of inhaling fumes even when being careful to have a dip to avoid the gas directly. I got a simple hand pump from harbor freight that worked out nicely and it was inexpensive. Here's a link to what I got:

http://www.harborfreight.com/multi-use-transfer-pump-66418.html

regards,

Karl

[Sea Wolf]

If time is not a consideration, a siphon is the safest and easiest solution, providing you don't have to go uphill!

I've made my own out of a marine fuel squeeze bulb (tasteless prime) and a couple of sections of tubing for years. (Plus the hose clamps!)

Tygon tubing, which is clear, seems to work just fine, and seems to be gas and ethanol tolerant.

It really helps to be able to see what's happening through the clear tubing.

I've thought of adding some copper, steel, or aluminum tubing at the ends for weight, but never done it.

Air it out to dry before you store it below decks!

Why complicate it any more?

Joe.

[oldgrowth]

[thataway]

Warren,
I own one of the safety siphons and have used it on occasion--I also have a plastic syphon set with a squeeze bulb use to fill the Wallas stove container.

The point about static electricity is well taken--and It is always a concern when filling any gas tank.