Raymond LeFlyr

My Feedback: (2)

Valiant comrades,

The subject is fuel storage.

For years and years I kept my "active" containers of glow fuel (and gas for the yard tools) in the garage.

My unopened (plastic bottle) glow fuel cases are in the guest room closet - to maintain a stable temperature since they might stay there for a year or more.

yes, I thought about what would happen if we had a house fire. I decided that the low combustion temperature of the alcohol wouldn't make that much difference and everybody keeps their yard-gas in the garage with the cars (and their much larger fuel tanks) so I wasn't too concerned.

However, I have recently resurrected two diesel-powered projects and recently purchased some fresh diesel fuel. I bench-ran my old engines at the field (they started right up and ran pretty durn good - why have they lived in a box for the past decade or so?). After that I put the metal quart fuel can and rags in a big zip-lock bag and left them in the trunk of my car. The decision at that time to keep that "baggy" out of the house and what passes for a workshop was based on odor - not safety.

However, I opened the trunk of my car a week or so later and was greeted by a strong diesel odor - very strong. Since I am writing this from our humble palace here in North Carolina the temperature has been quite moderate lately. Even so, the odor really got my attention. Enough so to cause my concern about the possibility of an explosion should a spark be introduced. So that stuff is out in the garage now.

So, my confessions are over. Here are my questions:

How, in what, and where, do youse guys store glow and diesel fuel?

And can anyone tell me of an actual experience with house/garage fire and did model fuel make it worse?

ajcoholic

My Feedback: (10)

Raymond,
I buy my glow fuel in 8 to 12 gallons (2 or 3 cases ) at a time, as I cant buy it locally and get enough to last me a summer when I am down near a hobby shop (a days drive).

I store my unopened glow fuel in the shed I built for my model storage right next to my home (unheated, winter and summer) and have not had a problem. The semi used jug i keep indoors, to prevent the condensation from repeated heat/cool cycles contaminating the fuel.

I store my gasoline (for my giant scalers) also in the storage shed withmy other flight gear, and my 5 gallon kerosene jug for my jets also. Ileave the vent open to prevent expansion/contraction of the containers.

Now, for my diesel fuel... I store it in a metal can, in the freezer of the fridge I use at work for my pop and juice (for break time). It stays very cold, and that keeps the ether in the container. When I am ready to fly, I transfer some to a smaller pint size can and go fly.

I dont know if you want to keep it in the freezer at home, as you do still get a bit of a smell.

AJC

combatpigg

My Feedback: (3)

HI RAYMOND! Como va tu? Diesel has to be the most dangerous. Back in the day before mufflers, I was flying with a fellow fire alarm installer, and a guy who is pretty high up in the Seattle Fire Dept. We used to douse our engines in the exhaust port, sloshing fuel all over, and back fires were pretty common, but on this day we had an invisible fire get out of hand while we were looking at the plane, and ended up calling the SFD to bail us out. It was slightly EMBARRASSING! I have seen a glow plane on fire at 200 feet also. It was crashed luckily in a drainage ditch[nice shot by the pilot], and I can still "see" that plume of steam !

fastlash

My Feedback: (7)

Dont store it next to your hot water heater!! or your furnace, any of it, fuel soaked rags can combust on there own in the right conditions, when in a bag or container, I drive fords and they have a nasty habbit of igniting and leaking fuel on the 90's injected models so I ownly put then in the garage after they cool off, I have seen a few houses lost to a hot ford, and a few on the early cads, I keep every thing in a shed in the back yard, one of those cheap prefabs, the $300 or so is cheap peace of mind.

XJet

With model diesel fuel I would avoid mixing up more than you can use in one session -- and store the components separately.

Kerosene it pretty safe to store, as is castor oil -- it's really only the ether you need worry about due to its low flash point.

Another downside to storing diesel fuel is that cold temperatures can cause the oil to separate out and undergo some kind of chemical change that makes it refuse to mix again. The whole thing turns into a kind of vinegrete and when you shake it up the oil won't mix, it just forms thousands of tiny droplets.

Raymond LeFlyr

My Feedback: (2)

Honorable Advisors,

This person is humbled by your attention to my insignificant questions. The English version: thanks.

Your responses have triggered the following:

Open exhaust fires. Back when I used to pit CL racers for different people, one guy insisted that I use a difficult fueling system and I often squirted fuel on my arm. Since it was fashionable to strap the Glowbee battery to one's arm there were a few times when an alcohol fire would cause the hairs on my arm to curl up and disappear. As a result some of the people in Winston-Salem, NC gave me an unflattering nick-name. R/C is great fun, but I miss flying CL combat and racing with those guys.

I never thought about diesel fuel gelling, but now that you mention it, isn't Napalm or some other military horror made from gelled kerosene? I've had the fuel lose its ether and I used something from Davis Diesel or someone called a "booster" some years ago to perk it up.

Knock on wood, the only time that I can remember that I've had a problem with condensation in my fuel is when I foolishly threw away the metal cans I had been using for a decade or and just used the plastic bottles the fuel comes in. I guess that plastic stuff is the cheap option for transportation, but either metal cans or the red gasoline gallon "cans" seem to minimize the condensation problem.

My wife has been after me for years to get one of those garden sheds, "outhouses", to reduce the number of "unsightly" items in the the garage. It has been low on my priority list. Perhaps I should move it up.

jessiej

[isn't Napalm or some other military horror made from gelled kerosene? ]

Napalm is gelled Gasoline. Though I don't recommend trying it at home, a reasonable facsimile can be made with gasoline and soap (not detergent) powder.

jess

Big Al-RCU

Raymond,
Just a couple of additional comments.
Metal cans are ideal for fuel storage but be careful about putting them in your flight box. All it takes is a careless moment like say the engine starts and the starting leads are tossed back toward the box. If they make contact with the fuel can it could cause a dead short. Even a small nicad can produce a hot spot on the can and result in an explosion. It HAS happened with tragic results.
Also (I got this tip from Eric Clutton) pour off just enough fuel for the current flying session into a small plastic container for the field box and then reseal the gallon metal container by wrapping the threads of the metal can with Teflon tape and then tighten the cap. He claims diesel can be kept fresh for years if it's well sealed.
al