Posted: 1/31/2011 6:22:29 AM EDT
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Egypt has me waking up to just how close we could be and am working on storing SOME gasoline. Thouhg I think part of me would love to store in my garage I have space and safety issues there.
I also have a garden shed and thought that would work. If using seafoam and/or sta-bil is there any reason not to store in the shed given the temp changes that will occur? |
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I store in my unheated, partially attached (by an enclosed porch thing) garage. Most on this site will advise against it. My cans are all tightly sealed NATO cans, and similar containers. My nose, being the finely tuned analytical instrument that it is (no joke), has never smelled ANY gasoline fumes from my cans, even on the hottest days of summer. My vehicles off-gas some fumes by nature of being in the garage.... my cans don't. YMMV, IANAL, etc. ETA: I also don't have a shed. |
| I have an above ground tank outside. I store diesel underground. I would recommend to have it outside to keep the fumes at a minimum. Remember the vapors are at least as flammable as the liquid. Be careful I have seen first hand what storing it in a shed can do. |
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I built a Generator Shed and frankly I have not used it as a generator shed since it was built but it makes an ideal fuel shed as it is VERY strongly built, it is ventilated so no gas fumes build up, and if there was ever a house fire I can tell the firemen to get that fuel away from the house or at least put a hose on there. Here is the archived thead with pics: http://www.ar15.com/archive/topic.html?b=10&f=18&t=626894 I normaly have eight 20L gas cans filled, plus three 20L cans with Kerosene (40 gal gas, 15gal Kerosene) but the shed is large enough I could store a hell of a lot more in there if needed. Note, I don't keep propane with the gassoline anymore - they have another small shed away from the gassoline.    I am glad I got this gassoline out of the house if for no other reason then fire safety! Note teh fan in there is for when teh Generator is in the shed (with gas cans moved elsewhere) and the fan is run off the generator to keep the generator cool. It does NOT run with the gas cans in there (seems I get asked eery time I post these pics). Also, my shed is on the NORTH side of the house so it is shaded all day, every day which helps with heat during the summer. |
As a Firefighter my advice would be to please not store it inside. There's nothing worse than about getting or getting your ass blown off by a bunch of flammable anything people have decided to store inside that you didn't know about  . Seriously though outside if it's at all possible.
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Is there really a problem storing gas in a garage? I mean, I already have a 35 gal tank on my truck, what's the difference? (serious question, not trying to be a smartass)
I currently store 40 gals in 8 NATO cans in my garage, should I not do this? I don't have anywhere else to put them (no shed or anything). |
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Personally I don't see any problem with a few gas cans in the garage and have had more than a few in mine a time or two.
However, should something happen, more than likely your home owner's insurance is not going to cover it if they can prove that you were storing an "unusual amount" of gasoline in your garage. They constantly look for reasons not to pay. I have no idea what quantities the insurance companies allow for gasoline storage so it might be worth a phone call. If you don't have any shed or similar to store the cans you can do what I did and place a wooden pallet or two (or three) on the ground and place a tarp over the cans. It's a pain with a winter like we're having now, but at least I don't have to worry about possible insurance problems. |
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There are a lot of good reasons not to store cans of gasoline in your garage. It's not unheard of for people to have accidents inside their garages and run into and split a can of gasoline. Or have a couple stacked and knock one over and have it leak. Fumes from normal venting are not really a problem as garages tend to be pretty well ventilated. I don't understand why people obsess over normal venting and how great their cans are sealed up as a safety measure. It's not really a safety issue at all.
The more cans of gas stored, the higher the chances of an accident, especially if you end up stacking them to save space. Plus garage fires are not unheard of. The last thing you want is volatile fuel in great quantities that can be easily ignited when the can heats up and ruptures. Think major fire ball. Some cans are made to vent when they heat up and are safer, but it is far safer to store them elsewhere, as far away from your house as you can. The thing is that if you put them out in a shed that you rarely go in, the chances of you having an accident with one is remote. You are in and out of your garage all the time. It's really just a numbers game in some respects. Think about it. You may be using power tools in your garage. In a moment of inattention you might well set a circular saw that is still running down on top of a gas can. You might well cut into the gas can. Don't say it cannot happen to you because you are paying attention. These kind of stupid accidents happen all the time. That's why you use safe storage methods that do not rely heavily on you being perfect, because you are not. Nor are your kids, spouse, friends or anyone else that might be in your garage. The gas tank in your car is about as well protected by the car frame as it can be. That's why it is about the safest way to store gasoline. |
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Quoted:
As a Firefighter my advice would be to please not store it inside. There's nothing worse than about getting or getting your ass blown off by a bunch of flammable anything people have decided to store inside that you didn't know about . Seriously though outside if it's at all possible.as a homeowner, my advice is to let my house burn to the ground. i don't want you blown up trying to save my stuff that i'm insured on. i know how much firefighters love playing around fire (be honest) but really......let it burn. |
Here is a shop & shed I built last summer... I store the gasoline with lawn equiment in the small shed. It is vented top & bottom so zero fume danger, yet provides sun & elements protection. I use PRI-G in NATO cans for long term, cheap gas cans for everyday use for equipment... Plus, if it ever did go up, at worst I would loose the shop, but my home & garage would be safe...
Rmpl |
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Quoted:
Quoted:
As a Firefighter my advice would be to please not store it inside. There's nothing worse than about getting or getting your ass blown off by a bunch of flammable anything people have decided to store inside that you didn't know about . Seriously though outside if it's at all possible.as a homeowner, my advice is to let my house burn to the ground. i don't want you blown up trying to save my stuff that i'm insured on. i know how much firefighters love playing around fire (be honest) but really......let it burn. Well they don't really pay me to spectate. With that said I don't want to blow up trying to save property you are insured on and I'm not going to endanger my life (beyond a small extent) to protect property. But you can't tell me I should sit there and watch from the outside; a very small room and contents fire spread throughout your entire house when it could have been contained to one room. This is a case where a little fire that looks inherently safe to put out could be in a room next to a lot of gasoline, propane, etc that could make what would seem like an inherently safe fire to attack a bad bad day. I hope I'm making sense. But you wouldn't want your entire house to burn because I didn't go in to put out a small fire in your garage would you? (Be honest) Our lives > Your life > Your Property. And no I don't "love playing around fire" ETA: I understand what your saying and I may have taken it the wrong way originally. My father has had quite the same point of view of it "let it burn". While I understand your way of thinking, there's something inside of me that can't just watch something that can be saved be destroyed. Sorry if I sound a little defensive above after thinking about it I know your intent was good. |