Dedicated Fuel Storage Shed

[Diamondpilot]

While all of these ideas are very good and valid, some of them seem very expensive and elaborate particularly where diesel fuel and motor oil are concerned. Millions of houses around the country have a few hundred gallons of diesel fuel in the basement in a simple steel single wall tank. This is not to say a fuel shed is not a good idea, just providing perspective.
Matt.

Thats kind of what I was thinking also. After getting new home owners insurance last May I was worried about it. My agent did a walk through and asked a lot of question but was not concerned about the 300 gallons of Diesel Fuel in a storage tank I had in my barn, the 200 gallons of gas between my boat, machinery, and 100 gallon storage tank, and the aprox 50 gallons of gear, hydro, and motor oils I had on the shelf.

Chris

 

[dave1949]

While all of these ideas are very good and valid, some of them seem very expensive and elaborate particularly where diesel fuel and motor oil are concerned. Millions of houses around the country have a few hundred gallons of diesel fuel in the basement in a simple steel single wall tank. This is not to say a fuel shed is not a good idea, just providing perspective.
Matt.

Yah, I wasn't planning on a Taj Mahal fuel shed. A garage is a little different than a house as far as what fire hazards get created, but your point is a good one.

For my purposes and the small volume (less than 50 gal.) of stored fuels involved, I would consider the fuel shed expendable if a fire happened. I am mostly interested in not destroying larger and much more expensive buildings and their contents than anything else.

We don't have the forest/grass/brush fire dangers here like in the West, so that would be a much different environment to deal with. The most common cause of fire here is Operator Error. I just would like to get the majority of the highly combustible stuff a reasonable distance away from the Operator

Thanks for all the good advice and very useful ideas people have posted. I would be glad to hear more.
Dave.

 

[Cidertom]

Good topic, if even just to get people thinking.

A couple of ending points from my view:
Rarely is the fuel storage the prime cause of losing a building. However, it can be the difference between saving and losing the building if a fire happens from another reason.

Fueling and using solvents away from ignition sources will do more to prevent fires than many more elaborate solutions.


One additional item that is frequently overlooked.

Remote fire protection/detection. I have found myself banging on a home-owners doors to telll them that their garage/shed/barn is on fire. Consider some sort of alarm system. I don't recomend any particular brand, but with some of the wireless systems out now it is fairly simple to get notification. I'm not refering to a monitored alarm system, just something that will let the occupants know. Monitored alarms are great, but the cost is fairly high. Different types of alarms for different needs are available.

Have fun, stay safe.

 

[LBrown59]

For my purposes and the small volume (less than 50 gal.) of stored fuels involved.
1*I would consider the fuel shed expendable if a fire happened.
2**I am mostly interested in not destroying larger and much more expensive buildings and their contents than anything else.Dave.

1*That's what I use mine for.
I'm not foucsing on protecting the fuel or the shed .
2* That's my purpose too.

 

[dave1949]

Good topic, if even just to get people thinking.

A couple of ending points from my view:
Rarely is the fuel storage the prime cause of losing a building. However, it can be the difference between saving and losing the building if a fire happens from another reason.

Fueling and using solvents away from ignition sources will do more to prevent fires than many more elaborate solutions.


One additional item that is frequently overlooked.

Remote fire protection/detection. I have found myself banging on a home-owners doors to telll them that their garage/shed/barn is on fire. Consider some sort of alarm system. I don't recomend any particular brand, but with some of the wireless systems out now it is fairly simple to get notification. I'm not refering to a monitored alarm system, just something that will let the occupants know. Monitored alarms are great, but the cost is fairly high. Different types of alarms for different needs are available.

Have fun, stay safe.

A remote detector would be great. I can't see my tractor garage from the house. I suppose if the wind was right, I could see black smoke rolling by

I will definitely check into those. Thanks.
Dave.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

I've thought about a small separate shed for storing gas cans, more of an outside cabinet with a lock for a couple 5 gal cans.

 

[Opti-Mist]

I agree and I need to do it again. At the last place I built a little shed that was open at the eaves at the low and high ends of the shed roof. The treated floor boads were spaced for good air flow (it was raised about a foot off the ground). I only made that one large enough to accomodate the number of gas and diesel cans, 5-6 Gallon, that I had at the time. It was located under some trees so it was in the shade all of the time (right next to the 500 Gallon propane tank). This time there will be considerable space between them.