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mogas storage container

D

drmax

Well Known Member
Hello. Anyone here keep bulk fuel in the 55 gal plastic drums? I can get fuel for $3.70 a gal. locally and am considering getting 110 gals at a time. It wouldn't sit around for very long, so I'm not worried about this. Let me know if anyone is doing what I am about to do.
Thx DM
 
Well, I "know" a guy that does it then pneumatically pressurizes it up to 2psi to pump it into a high-wing Cessna. Not saying I would do that, just what I saw. I think Harbor Freight sells a transfer pump.
 
Bill_H said:
Well, I "know" a guy that does it then pneumatically pressurizes it up to 2psi to pump it into a high-wing Cessna. Not saying I would do that, just what I saw. I think Harbor Freight sells a transfer pump.
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Thanks for that info. I'll need to get a receiver winch and a drum attachment to get in and out of truck. should work just fine.
 
Bill_H said:
Well, I "know" a guy that does it then pneumatically pressurizes it up to 2psi to pump it into a high-wing Cessna. Not saying I would do that, just what I saw. I think Harbor Freight sells a transfer pump.
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Why not? I don't see anything wrong with doing that.
 
55 gallon drum fueling

Your idea will save money and be more convenient.

Research:
1) some airports forbid self fueling.
2) some states forbid transportation of class 1, 2, or 3 flamables in over certain amounts in non approved containers such as 55 gallon drums. In our state I think it is around 30 gallons in a non mounted fuel container.

I have known a few that have installed 50 & 100 gallon tanks with electric pumps in their pickup and that was legal.

Just a heads up on researching it. Many here do it anyway although if they get cought they could loose their lease on their hanger.

Too many rules now a days!
 
I've thought about it, but haven't tried it yet. One thing to consider is whether you are in an area where DOT (either state or fed) might see them & have something to say about it.

FWIW, you might check with some of the high volume oil change/brake job/tune up retailers in your area for metal drums. A friend owns several & has offered me empty metal drums for free.

Charlie
 
Just be careful how and where it is stored. You need to consider venting and ANYTHING around it that could have a spark. In a plastic drum, not designed for gas storage, you could have trouble. One of my sub contractors had a couple of 5 gallon plastic tanks vent fumes and they were ignited by a water heater. He lost 2 tractors, a bunch of tools, and a 24x40 building. Lucky, nobody was in it at the time.

A truck bed or trailer tank are not that expensive and could save your hard work from melting in a fireball.
 
Static is more of an issue with plastic tanks also. How do you get a solid ground on the plastic tank? I would spend the time to at least find some 55 gallon metal tanks. Call some of the places that make race fuel for cars/motorcycles of check to see if you have a local racetack. Race fuel comes in drums quite often and they are all set to carry fuel legally.
 
Local Oil Distributor

I checked with out local aviation oil distributor (and all other oils etc) and they were selling brand new 55 gal fuel drums for $35.00 or so. Go with new metal barrels made for fuel.

DOT say any thing single tank over 119 gal requires a haz mat cdl.
 
Gravity Fixture

My neighbor had a Stinson and used a homebuilt wooden fixture to store the metal tanks higher than the aircraft. Then, he just used gravity to fill the plane. Believe it or not, he used his hydraulic door to lift the containers onto the stand.
 
thx

good replies and thx. i keep my airplane at home attached to house. fuel tank with wheel that i could pull? YES, that would be the ultimate...uh, but they are not cheap. With that, I could keep outdoors and safe away from everything, but not thieves. I will research that ave. again though. I see the point of metal over plastic. I have it in my head, though that metal will rust. That's why i orig. was thinking of a 110 gal alum tank. They are $600 and nowhere to keep it, thus back to the drum idea. I won't keep a regular transfer tank in truck, for i don't believe in always toting around extra, unneeded weight. Which goes back again to the drums. I was thinking of a gantry crane type set up, which I could hoist the drums on and off of truck when needed. Could be built with a welder and some steel, and not that huge....here is my example...http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result?q=gantry.

In a nutshell, I would rather keep a small 150 gal tow tanker outdoors, away from my pride and joy...so if any of you can find this, send me a link. What I have found is over 3K. I won't go that price. Most likely a tanker will cost me more in insurance, and some sorta IN state screwed up fees.
Let me know any other thoughts.
 
5 Gallon cans

I have considered all of your scenarios and none is better than buying gas when you need it. 5 Gallon cans on the way to the airport or in your case on your way home.
On the positive side:
1. Fresh gas
2. No storage problems, fire hazard, theft, spillage, heavy lifting, etc.
3. No storage expenses, trailer expense, trailer registration maintenance and
on and on.
4. Price may go lower, if you buy when you need it you average out vs.playing
the market for the lowest price.
5. No pumps needed. 30 Gallons of fuel out of 5 gallon cans takes less than
5 minutes.

On the negative:
1. You may not be comfortable with 30 Gallons of fuel in your trunk on the
way to the airport.
2. Price may go up.
3. No conveniently located gas station.
4. Can't think of any others.
 
Consider a flofast system. http://flofast.com/. I use it for my RV12. I keep the 15 gallon unit at the hangar and fill it with 5 gallon tanks from the service station as needed, auto premium fuel. Get the translucent ones rather than the red ones. I use a Mr. Funnel when transferring into the 15 gallon one. The fueling point on an RV12 is high on the fuselage not the wings, so the pump on the flofast is much better than holding up the SLOW 5 gallon plastic cans. BTW if you buy new 5 gallon cans you will find that they come with mandatory self venting nozzles (no separate vent on the can) that are SLOOOOOOOOW. You could get more than one 15 gal flofast tank but they are heavy when full.
 
BTW if you buy new 5 gallon cans you will find that they come with mandatory self venting nozzles (no separate vent on the can) that are SLOOOOOOOOW.
Click to expand...

You have built your airplane, surely you can "improve" that SLOOOOOOW EPA
approved nozzle. You'll need a hacksaw to cut the nozzle down to one inch
and remove the guts if you want to use the nozzle, add a hose if you must.
Better yet, use a high volume Mr.Funnel or other funnel and dump the contents of the can without a nozzle. Don't forget to ground yourself and the airplane.
 
55 gallon drum fueling vs 5 gallon cans.

5 gallon cans are an affordable and simple way to transport and transfer fuel with out any extra equipment or cost. It has worked well for generations in aviation. It works easy with low wing planes like RV's.
I use a towel on the wing and just set the fuel can on the towel then let it pour. This way I don't even have to hold it while pouring. Easy and simple.
For safety, if moving can from vehicle you want to ground it prior to pouring. Fuel cans in vehicles are not grounded and pick static electricity. Also, it is good to touch the filler spout of fuel can to the filler neck of the aircraft fuel tank filler neck. This grounds the fuel can to aircraft tank preventing any spark from stacitic electricity while transferring the fuel.
Always ground your aircraft first.
 
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5 gal cans are fine, if it were not for the fact that 9 months outta the year I ride my motorcycle to work, which goes past the gas place. I just wanted to have a qty of fuel on hand, on site without having to take the old 17 year old tacoma out, when not necessary. It's just a personal preference thing. I suppose after the dust has settled, I will have realized I wouldn't be flying as much to make up for the difference of cost, doing anything other than gas cans. I'll mull it over. Take care. DM
 
Fuel storage

A friend has a 200 gallon farm fuel tank he mounted on a simple trailer. It has an electric pump, hose and nozzle. The whole thing cost him about $600.

I understand the motorcycle issue. My friend with the tank on the trailer fills my bike when I visit. He uses his tank for his aircraft as well as his vehicles, riding mower, boat and tractor. He has a delivery truck come out to fill the tank and says it still saves him money. That is all I know about it. He is satisfied with his setup and he leaves it outside, but always locks the nozzle.
 
I went the 5+ gallon container route and built a small caddy. This gives me the flexibility to fill the empty ones as needed and I can use the cans elsewhere. The rotary hand pump is pretty quick but not as lazy/easy as an electric pump.

20121201-065724-575x575.jpg
 
NickAir said:
A friend has a 200 gallon farm fuel tank he mounted on a simple trailer. It has an electric pump, hose and nozzle. The whole thing cost him about $600.

I understand the motorcycle issue. My friend with the tank on the trailer fills my bike when I visit. He uses his tank for his aircraft as well as his vehicles, riding mower, boat and tractor. He has a delivery truck come out to fill the tank and says it still saves him money. That is all I know about it. He is satisfied with his setup and he leaves it outside, but always locks the nozzle.
Click to expand...
I'm thinking I'll go it with a cheap trailer that will hold maybe 500 lbs. Just enough gal. capacity to stay under the limits of all the placards and fees. I think that will be about 100 gals. I have another trailer with a tag and will just swap that tag onto this trailer when I need to make a fuel run. At $3.70 a gal, vs mogas sold at the airport at $5, it will quickly pay itself off. Now to find a trailer. I'll find something off craigslist, be thinx. Later...
 
I've been looking for a better method but I also use 5 gal cans and a siphon tube. I get a towel, put it on the wing and prime the tube (has a check ball valve on one end so all you do is shake it up and down a couple times). Then while its fueling itself, I do my walk around. Works out to be finished fueling roughly when I'm done with the walk around.
 
If you use a pickup truck, a 25 or 55 gallon steel drum is ideal.
For the Cessna, I used a Fill-Rite 12 volt pump which looks like a gas station hose & nozzle. That's my wife's favorite.
For a low wing plane, I mount the drum in a cradle, sideways. The big bung on top, the 3/4" pipe bung at the bottom takes a ball valve and Camlock hose connector. the hose, has a valve, pipe nipple & cap at the end.
I fill the drum to below the upper bung, about 40 gallons. The fuel gravitates easily from the tank in the truck bed to the wing tank of the plane.
Secure the drum to the truck. Ground the drum to the truck and plane. Remove hose from drum and cap the valve in transit.
If you feel you must transport the drum upright, get a barrel hand truck so you can lay it down to decant the fuel.
This is the cheapest and maybe safest way to transport & decant fuel. A drum, and the hose + fittings is cheaper than buying the equivalent gallons worth of 5 gallon gas cans.
 
I've got 6 5 gal cans, works pretty well and 30 gal lasts a while. That said, I'd do a 55gal drum if I had a pickup truck..... The local fuel depot said that they'd basically give me a drum if I wanted one.
 
That 55 gallon drum setup sounds nice.

Where I am, a 55gal drum in a truck is not legal to fill up. Fuel containers either must be removed from the vehicle, permanently installed, or a trailer tank. It's why I ended up with 5+gal containers.
 
I don't think it's technically "legal" in many places to fill containers in the back of a truck. If anybody says anything, just ask them to help lift the 375lb drum into your truck after you filled it. I've never had any trouble with it.
 
I don't know...I called the local fuel farm (ethanol free) and asked about buying a drum of fuel.
They said I could buy an empty drum and fill it at their pump.
 
Weight!

A 55 Gallon drum is a nice set up until you have to lift it off your truck, about
350 pounds.
It certainly depends where you are located but you wouldn't want to be seen at our airport with a 55 Gallon drum full of fuel in the back of a truck.
Strictly going by the book, I don't think we are even allowed to keep fuel in our airplane tanks.:(
 
Drums are easy to unload off the back of a truck. Just tip it over and roll it off the back onto an old tire. Roll it where you want and stand it up again.

I work with drums fairly frequently with work, in and out of airplanes and pick-ups. Feel free to shoot me a PM if you've got any questions.
 
container

The marine catalogs have Fuel Caddies. I think they hold 26 gal. have wheels and can be laid down or stood up. You would need to elevate it for gravity flow. They would haul real nice in the back of a pick up. Might be of interest. Ron
 
harbor freight aircraft supply company has a 40x49 870lbs trailer for 179.00 on their web site. That, a little time with a welder and a couple of new 55 gallon barrels and you have a really nice set-up.

bob burns

RV-4 N82RB
 
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