On Monday I bought my annual supply of unleaded for the mower and stowed the five litre green plastic container on a shelf in the garage.
Sitting up here half an hour ago reading the hottest July thread when Mrs B chimes up from downstairs with her alarm call. Strong smell of petrol round front of house she says, distinctly odd I think, as we run a brace of diesels. Then remember the mower fuel.
Check reveal that petrol vapour has "blown" the container splitting the seam, fortunately only extent of a pinhole, but nonetheless shelf is well damped and paint bubbled. Five litres of petrol donated to neighbour's Audi and container isolated at bottom of garden.
One spark (from freezer thermostat?) and whole lot could have gone woof. Bromptonette's bedroom is over the garage.
Three days later and we'd have been away for three weeks on our hols.
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Aren't these things supposed to have vent holes?
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we went through this a few weeks ago where someone had left a container of fuel on the floor of their (mondeo?) and the fumes went up the back of the dash and lighted as he drove.
I thought we all read this and the consensus of opinion is plastic containers whether approved or not are only suitable as an emergancy fuel carrier only..........
:-)
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Does anyone make diesel lawnmowers yet? (Apart from big ones for parks etc.) Safer fuel to store.
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Does anyone make diesel lawnmowers yet?
Have you ever tried starting a small diesel engine?
I can see the sales pitch now - "Yes sir all you have to do is hold the inlet valve open catch with this hand while you frantically try and spin the crank round as fast as you can with this handle. When you release the catch it will either fire up straight away or you will strain your wrist as it bounces back on the compression."
Nasty, nasty thing it was ...
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Mike Farrow
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> Have you ever tried starting a small diesel engine?
30 year old 2 litre Petters twin on an old dumper
I can see the sales pitch now - "Yes sir all you have to do is hold the inlet valve open catch with this hand while you frantically try and spin the crank round as fast as you can with this handle. When you release the catch it will either fire up straight away
True, it takes a while to get used to...but the first few 'DOOF.....DOOF.....DOOFs' when you realise it's caught and started turning over are great. :^D
you will strain your wrist as it bounces back on the compression."
You were holding the handle wrong - keep your thumb on the same side as your fingers ;o)
Nasty, nasty thing it was ...
Never went wrong in over 10 years of non maintenance!
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Some of those 2-wheeled "Kubota" type hand tractors have small diesels - as you say, once you've knackered yourself cranking it, if you don't pull the handle out quick enough it'll pull your arm out of it's socket!
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I thought we all read this and the consensus of opinion is plastic containers whether approved or not are only suitable as an emergancy fuel carrier only..........
I certainly take this approach.
My mower petrol is in a 5L jerry can type.
I also have a very expensive flat can that is filled with mesh to prevent it exploding.
Somewhere I have a plastic approved type which has never been used. I would certainly only use it in an emergency.
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I buy petrol for mowers and other garden tools a bit more often than once a year. It gets stored in CE approved plastic cans in a detached garage. In this sort of weather the power to the garage goes off at the fuse box and the plastic cans have their tops cracked open to allow the fuel to breathe. That done all I have to worry about is the muppets throwing their fag-ends over the yard wall from the street ...
Hawkeye
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Stranger in a strange land
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I think if you allow more expansion space in the plastic containers, the pressure will remain lower, try keeping 3 litres max in them. Also henryk, we had a flat one with mesh in it and it seemed worse, as if left somewhere hot such as in the sun, the mesh which wasn't submerged would heat up then if the can was moved, the fuel would wash over it and boil.
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Ashok
Thanks for your comments. I have not used it since I bought it quite a few years ago.
I bought it as It seemed a very good price. Only later did I discover that it was wrongly priced as if a normal can.
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Nalgene make a durable heavy-duty 10 litre plastic jerrycan that has served us well chez Gromit for storing fuel for the mover, strimmer and rotovator. Its type approved, too, so there are no objections to filling it at the local service station.
(I've also used them to store solvent waste in the laboratory, where they were equally trustworthy)
We only ever use the green can of the type you see in most service stations to mix petrol and two-stroke oil immediately before it goes in the strimmer.
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