Oil & Fuel Store diesel in plastic?

   / Store diesel in plastic? #1  

oldboyscout

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Location
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Is it okay to store diesel in a food grade blue plastic barrel?
 
   / Store diesel in plastic? #2  
Is it okay to store diesel in a food grade blue plastic barrel?

I assume that you are speaking of the heavyweight (about 1/4" thick sidewall) barrels? If so, yes, the barrel will work for you. I suggest you use some sort of wobble type pump that you can install a water separating fuel filter on. The threaded bung hole on the top of the barrel may not support the pump enogh to prevent it from eventually breaking the area around it from the top though. The key here is to prevent moisture in your fuel, your equipment fuel filter should have water separating capacity which will help, but if you can't use a source filter then I would suggest retrofitting a drainable fuel strainer on the equipment.
 
   / Store diesel in plastic? #3  
Wait for it!!!!

Wait for it!!!!

:laughing::laughing:

Wedge
 
   / Store diesel in plastic? #4  
I store diesel and petrol in plastic containers, no chance of sparks;)

My car has a plastic diesel tank:)
 
   / Store diesel in plastic? #6  
I store diesel and petrol in plastic containers, no chance of sparks;)

My car has a plastic diesel tank:)

Well.... Not really true. Be real cautious if you leave you plastic gas tank in the back of your trunk or truck when you fill it with petrol. The static electricity caused by the gas flow build up a charge and can ignite the gas.

I'm sure it is not a problem with diesel since that is a bit harder to ignite.

Wayne
 
   / Store diesel in plastic? #7  
Is it okay to store diesel in a food grade blue plastic barrel?

Check the bottom of the barrel and see if it's marked HDPE. If it is you should be good, HDPE is the same plastic they use to make plastic gas cans.
 
   / Store diesel in plastic? #8  
I'm in the minority, but I think storing diesel in plastic containers is not a good idea, and the larger the container, the worse the risk.

Plastic melts. If you have even a small fire in a storage area, the plastic vessel will fail, draining the liquid onto the floor, creating a huge fire.

In a metal drum, anything short of a plasma cutter or blow torch will simply heat the material in the drum till it boils, then will vaporize it. As soon as the external flame is removed, the contained material will stop boiling/burning (assuming the drum is vented in some way, so it doesn't rupture in the fire).

If you ever see the results of a failed-by-fire diesel plastic storage vessel, you will remember it. It is spectacular, in a car wreck sort of way.

Chris
 
   / Store diesel in plastic? #9  
I'm in the minority, but I think storing diesel in plastic containers is not a good idea, and the larger the container, the worse the risk.

Plastic melts. If you have even a small fire in a storage area, the plastic vessel will fail, draining the liquid onto the floor, creating a huge fire.

In a metal drum, anything short of a plasma cutter or blow torch will simply heat the material in the drum till it boils, then will vaporize it. As soon as the external flame is removed, the contained material will stop boiling/burning (assuming the drum is vented in some way, so it doesn't rupture in the fire).

If you ever see the results of a failed-by-fire diesel plastic storage vessel, you will remember it. It is spectacular, in a car wreck sort of way.

Chris

I'm ok with plastic, as long as it's in decent condition with a lid that fits.

No matter what, a fire amid your fuel cans is pretty bad juju.

I wouldn't count on anybody's storage drum being vented, and if it's not, stand back and enjoy the BLEVE
Boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
   / Store diesel in plastic? #10  
One can have a pretty significant fire with metal cans, and the fuel in the cans will be contained for a long time, even if they aren't vented. Diesel doesn't BLEVE in sort of way typically discussed, classically.

I have personally seen a 5 gallon plastic diesel container melt through in a very small fire, at which time it torched a wide area. There is a huge difference in risk between plastic containers and metal containers. I can't imagine what the sudden release of 55 gallons of fuel would do.

I have also seen smaller steel drums(30 gallon) not fail in bigger events, though they had motor oil in them.

When I had the need for this sort of thing(quite a while ago), I used 55 gallon metal oil storage drums, with lockable vented bung stoppers. The stoppers were about 5$, and purchaseable at any farm store

It is odd to me, though, that you can't buy small metal fuel containers, and believe their absence flows from the stupidity of standards writers(mainly epa sourced). Again, I could be wrong.

As I said, I am clearly in the minority.

Chris
 
 
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