Makeshift Plastic Gas Tanks

[Bingster]

Most every "Will it start?" video on YouTube has some sort of temporary hook-up to the fuel pump usually with a rubber hose jammed down the throat of a red plastic gas tank.  Sometimes they even drive the car with the tank strapped to the fender. 

 

A boat gas tank is ideal, they say.  Safe.  Nobody wants to be blown across the yard by an errant spark hitting vapors from a makeshift tank.  However, can this type of arrangement be made safe?  Does a plastic tank need to be vented with the pop-off tab?  Some with no "capped vent" say that they are vented, but not very well.  Seems that there would need to be a more permanent arrangement at the plastic tank opening with the fuel line properly plumbed to the portable tank.

 

Anybody have a good set-up?

[Los_Control]

I just use the same 2 gallon gas can I use to fill my riding mower.

It sits on my front bumper and use tie wire to hold it in place while I drive the truck around the yard.

I have a rubber line running from the fuel pump to the gas can .... no cap on the tank so it is vented .... no headlights installed before paint so the line just runs through the headlight hole.

 

Yeah it is a hokey pokey mess .... I recently finished welding in the floor, there is a bit more welding to do for the seat  .... I have a new fuel tank & a new line.

I just feel safer with a old hokey plastic tank on the front bumper then welding on the floor over the gas tank.

[Sniper]

Halfway thru the four days of no electricity snowmageddon brought me I remembered I had a generator, yeah I know, lol.  I pulled it out of storage and went to fill the tank.  the tank was rusty.  Mid you I had only ever fired it up once, about three years earlier, right after I bought it, drained the tank and put it in storage.

 

So I fabbed up a temp tank, used a two gallon plastic tank I had, drilled a hole in a bottom corner to screw in a barbed hose fitting and plumbed it to the carb.  Bungee corded it to the top of the original tank and filled it up, put the cap on and ran it.  No issues, I think the cap self vented, or at least allowed air into the can in a vacuum situation, in any case it needed the cap on otherwise it would splash gas out the opening.  Ran just fine. 

 

Not sure I'd use something like that on the road, for a static test run, yes.

[Dan Hiebert]

Same as Los_Control here, I use the same gas can that I use for my outdoor equipment.  Not the metal 5 gallon Jerry can, but the 5 gallon plastic can because it is cube shaped and more stable sitting on the cowl, fender, bumper, etc.  I would think how much thought (read: "safety") you put into it would depend on how you intend to use it.  I've only done the get-it-running thing, never drove with a can strapped to the vehicle.  Always uber temporary (and minimal cost) to see if I need to work on something in the engine compartment while I ensure I have a clean fuel tank to engine set-up.  Main thing I worry about is venting so I don't get the vacuum in the can as Sniper mentions.  Keep it away from any exhaust or other potential source of ignition, remember it's the fumes that burn, not the gasoline itself.  What they don't show in those "will it run" videos are the times they burn a car to the ground from careless handling of the field expedient fuel system.  

[Marcel Backs]

I would go with the outboard motor tank as the safest alternative since they do not tip over and the tank itself vents through the cap which is much safer. You have a primer in the line to get gas to the carb. Also keep in mind to only fill it with the minimum amount of petrol required & keep tank as far as possible from all sources of ignition while motor is firing. Safe Tuning! M

[Bingster]

Do I have to use the same diameter hose from the plastic can to the fuel pump as the original metal connection that ran between the pump and the carb?  I assume that the fuel pump automatically compensates for more fuel entering in than going out.

 

 

[Sniper]

The pump will only pump a maximum amount per stroke.  As long as the feed line doesn't restrict it.  At idle, the engine uses the least amount of fuel, if you wanted to try a WOT 5 mile long test, then yeah, you should probably use the same size, otherwise I wouldn't worry about it.

[Bryan G]

I've used various lawn mower cans in the past, but then found a cheap outboard tank at a yard sale. It turned out to be a project in itself, as the pickup tube had rotted away. It took me a while to fashion a good replacement (eventually I managed it by using some copper tubing and solder.) I haven't had to use it much, but it does work.

 

When I was a kid there was an old man who went around picking up aluminum cans. He drove a fifties Jeep pickup truck whose fuel pump had long ago gone bad. He mounted some sort of tank to the roof and used gravity feed. He drove that thing for years like that, until finally he cashed in all his cans and bought a brand new truck!

[Sniper]

13 minutes ago, Bryan G said:

He mounted some sort of tank to the roof and used gravity feed.

 

I was visiting my GF's grandparent and they had a Model A, it had a cowl mounted fuel tank that gravity fed the carb, stock.  That was an interesting setup.

[9 foot box]

   This is what I have used for temporary starting and running a few vehicles. It fits on the cowl and is gravity feed. Rick D.

[Eneto-55]

Some place or another I recall seeing a video of a truck (1 1/2 ton, as I recall) going down the road with the hood off, and a guy sitting on the cowl, dribbling gasoline into the intake - no carburetor installed....

 

Anyway, what about the issue of static electricity caused by the plastic container?  The "bush pilots" in Brazil never filled the tanks from plastic containers - always metal.  Also, would a bit of pressure help?  Like using a small garden-size pressure sprayer?

[Bingster]

Wouldn't actually using the fuel pump solve the pressure problem?

[soth122003]

1 hour ago, Bingster said:

Wouldn't actually using the fuel pump solve the pressure problem?

Depends on if the old fuel pump. The rubber could be dry rotted or the ethanol gas could eat it up real quick. Ask me how I know. For testing purposes I have bypassed the fuel pump and just used a gas IV bottle. 

https://www.amazon.com/ALPHA-MOTO-Motorcycle-Professional-Compatible/dp/B004NV42PQ/ref=sr_1_2?crid=Z1I4MHGUZJJV&keywords=fuel+iv+bottle&qid=1694549176&sprefix=fuel+IV%2Caps%2C163&sr=8-2

 

Joe Lee

 

[Bingster]

I've actually just rebuilt the pump which is why I'm anxious to see if it leaks.

[Young Ed]

Dad had an international scout with a bad tank. He drove it all around with a boat tank in the bed. It had a homemade wood bed to I think that would have negated the static issue. 

[Sam Buchanan]

On 9/12/2023 at 7:50 AM, Eneto-55 said:

Some place or another I recall seeing a video of a truck (1 1/2 ton, as I recall) going down the road with the hood off, and a guy sitting on the cowl, dribbling gasoline into the intake - no carburetor installed....

 

Anyway, what about the issue of static electricity caused by the plastic container?  The "bush pilots" in Brazil never filled the tanks from plastic containers - always metal.  Also, would a bit of pressure help?  Like using a small garden-size pressure sprayer?

 

The static issue arises when there is a difference in the electrical potential between the tank and vehicle which can result in a spark during fueling. The plastic tank sitting in the bed of the truck, even if it is wood, would drain potential and come to equilibrium with the truck so static discharge wouldn't be a concern.

 

The danger with filling aircraft (or boats) with a plastic can (and I've done this many times) is the aircraft immediately after flight can be holding a static potential that built up while rapidly passing through air molecules in flight. The plastic can isn't grounded to the airframe and a potential difference between airframe and can may exist resulting in a spark. The solution is to either use metal cans that are grounded to the airframe or make an effort to have contact between the plastic can and the airframe (or boat) so hopefully a potential difference is dissipated. I've used a welding rod inserted into the can and connected to the airframe with a cable and clamp to dissipate static potential.

 

This is why the gas pumps at your local station have a placard warning us NOT to fill our plastic cans when they are in the bed of our truck. They should always be on the ground which puts them at the same potential as the grounded pump so static discharge won't occur.

 

Now back to your regular programming. 

Edited September 13, 2023 by Sam Buchanan

[vintage6t]

One thing that I don't think was mentioned is to use a filter with the temp tank. Just like a permanent tank it can introduce debris into the carb. resulting in running issues.

[Bingster]

So as long as the plastic tank is on the ground all is well?

[Sam Buchanan]

1 hour ago, Bingster said:

So as long as the plastic tank is on the ground all is well?

 

On the ground at the gas station, in contact with the car when using it for test running.

Edited September 13, 2023 by Sam Buchanan

[Los_Control]

People have been using both metal & plastic gas cans since the automobile has been invented.

Static electricity is certainly a possibility  I'm 61 years old, never in my lifetime had I seen or heard of a gas can igniting from static electricity.

Under normal use as a temporary fuel source on a vehicle. ...... I'm not saying it is impossible .... just not very likely.

My plastic gas can is sitting on my front bumper, using metal tie wire ran through the grill to hold it steady.

 

I watch a youtube channel JohnathanW ... His job is a tow company that hauls, does recovery for the state/county cleaning up accidents on the roads. Including semi trucks.

He builds his own wreckers and has since he was a very young man decades ago. He has built Hot Rods from scratch owns many rare old cars.

Last week I watched him start up a 55 Studebaker, he just put the motor back together no gas tank yet. .... He used a plastic can on the cowl.

 

Youtube is a very tough crowd, if you do anything wrong someone will call you out on it and tell you the proper way .... Even if they are right or wrong.

Almost entertaining just reading some of the comments after a video. ..... Nobody ever complains about using a plastic can on the cowl for a temporary fuel source.

It is simply accepted practice by tradesmen.

 

Cutting, grinding, welding on a gas tank is dangerous .... static spark from a tank is possible I suppose under certain circumstances ..... would it be enough to light the fuel? Probably not. .... If the spark was in just the right spot at the right time & was unusually large .... possible it would light the can.

It's also possible a airplane will crash into my house killing me ..... about the same chances.

 

Just my opinion on it ..... best not to make something out of nothing.

[Sam Buchanan]

Yep, sitting on the cowl, fender or bumper is "in contact with the car". 

 

Boat and aircraft fires from using plastic cans is a reality, especially in low-humidity climates. There also has to be a reason for the federally mandated placards on gas pumps. 

Edited September 13, 2023 by Sam Buchanan

[harmony]

On 9/13/2023 at 9:52 AM, Los_Control said:

People have been using both metal & plastic gas cans since the automobile has been invented.

Static electricity is certainly a possibility  I'm 61 years old, never in my lifetime had I seen or heard of a gas can igniting from static electricity.

Under normal use as a temporary fuel source on a vehicle. ...... I'm not saying it is impossible .... just not very likely.

My plastic gas can is sitting on my front bumper, using metal tie wire ran through the grill to hold it steady.

 

I watch a youtube channel JohnathanW ... His job is a tow company that hauls, does recovery for the state/county cleaning up accidents on the roads. Including semi trucks.

He builds his own wreckers and has since he was a very young man decades ago. He has built Hot Rods from scratch owns many rare old cars.

Last week I watched him start up a 55 Studebaker, he just put the motor back together no gas tank yet. .... He used a plastic can on the cowl.

 

Youtube is a very tough crowd, if you do anything wrong someone will call you out on it and tell you the proper way .... Even if they are right or wrong.

Almost entertaining just reading some of the comments after a video. ..... Nobody ever complains about using a plastic can on the cowl for a temporary fuel source.

It is simply accepted practice by tradesmen.

 

Cutting, grinding, welding on a gas tank is dangerous .... static spark from a tank is possible I suppose under certain circumstances ..... would it be enough to light the fuel? Probably not. .... If the spark was in just the right spot at the right time & was unusually large .... possible it would light the can.

It's also possible a airplane will crash into my house killing me ..... about the same chances.

 

Just my opinion on it ..... best not to make something out of nothing.

I've watched Johnathan for a few years now.  He's had some really interesting stuff on his channel and for a back yard mechanic he knows a fair bit about cars and old machinery.  It's a meat and potatoes channel.  No BS.  Kind of like old school you tube if there is such a thing.  He explains what he's doing really well,  and usually gives a lot of background and history about what he's working on.

Edited September 18, 2023 by harmony

[OUTFXD]

I used a windshield washer resivior  as an emergency gas tank to get me the last couple miles home once...  Zip tied it to the hood support so it would be above the carburetor,  no fuel pump needed.