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Pending Incident becomes a non Issue


Safety Officer

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.........................You should also have a fire extinguisher around when fueling.

 

What size and type of fire extinguisher do you recommend for putting out 100+ litres of burning petrol coming from two containers above your head?

 

Personally I'm running in the opposite direction as fast as I can!!

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What size and type of fire extinguisher do you recommend for putting out 100+ litres of burning petrol coming from two containers above your head?

 

Personally I'm running in the opposite direction as fast as I can!!

 

If it all goes up, it's a total loss. But contained gasoline can't really burn, it needs air. There's a good chance in a fire it would just be flames from the fuel cap hole and from whatever fuel sloshed before you panicked and dropped the fuel can (which you *will* do!). You could get that much fire out with a good extinguisher. I think this is the one I have in my hangar:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Kidde-466204-Fire-Extinguisher-Rated/dp/B0017TE8BK/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1383060569&sr=8-4&keywords=kidde+10lb+fire+extinguisher

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Do we have any professional firefighters on the forum? I'd really be interested in an informed view.

 

My fear would be that inadequate resource for putting out a fire is actually worse than no resource at all as all you are doing is putting yourself at too high a risk.

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Hi Ian,

 

I'm a 30 year firefighter with a sick since of humor. The sick humor developes with the job, but I've been told I came on the job with it. :) Gasoline vapors are too rich and not enough oxygen down in the tank. To high above the tank and they are too lean and too much oxygen. But get down in the right vapor range and you have a nice flammable liquid fire. Since the hole on top of the tank is small it shouldn't be an issue to extinguish when done reasonably quick. Any fuel you spilled on the ground when you had your heart attack when the fuel ignited should also be reasonably easy to handle. This said if you are untrained and waste your available extinguishing agent or your extinguisher was too small to start with then it certainly would be easy enough to get overwhelmed and let the fire get away from you. In that case yell loudly......

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Fred,

 

In your scenario, If the fuel truck is bonded and the bond cable from the truck is attached to your plane at the exhaust, then the potential is now the same.

The fuel hose and nozzle from the truck are bonded to the truck through a stainless streel bonding wire within the hose, so the potential is still the same.

 

When fueling, If you don't keep the nozzle in contact with the filler neck, you've broken the loop and the fuel flolwing from the nozzle can create a static charge. Retouching the nozzle to the filler neck "may" possibly discharge this build up.

 

Metal or plastic doesn't matter.

Plastic fuel containers can retain a static charge also, and pouring while not in contact with the filler neck can create a charge.

Watch out for the Mr. Funnel which has carbon in its make up. (BLACK in color)

 

When I fuel from plastic containers my exhaust stack is bonded to my fuel container and funnel. My plane has a grounding cable from the framework to earth ground. Even with all this bonding to ground, I still keep my fueling container in contact with the funnel which is in contact with the filler neck.

 

Rich

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Hi Ian,

 

I'm a 30 year firefighter with a sick since of humor. The sick humor developes with the job, but I've been told I came on the job with it. :) Gasoline vapors are too rich and not enough oxygen down in the tank. To high above the tank and they are too lean and too much oxygen. But get down in the right vapor range and you have a nice flammable liquid fire. Since the hole on top of the tank is small it shouldn't be an issue to extinguish when done reasonably quick. Any fuel you spilled on the ground when you had your heart attack when the fuel ignited should also be reasonably easy to handle. This said if you are untrained and waste your available extinguishing agent or your extinguisher was too small to start with then it certainly would be easy enough to get overwhelmed and let the fire get away from you. In that case yell loudly......

 

Cheers Roger - so my scenario, I have a jerry can on the floor with a hand operated pump and a hose going up to the inlet on the wing - I'm pumping with one hand and the other hand is holding the hose over the fuel inlet - say for some reason there is a spark as I put the hose to the inlet

 

jjc_fuel-transfer-pump.jpg

 

(BTW, there is an extension to the hose - without that the whole exercise would be a tad more tricky!!)

 

What then? Wet tea towel over the fuel inlet (as though it were a chip pan fire in the kitchen), fire extinguisher (what type, what size?) or trust my instincts and as you say "shout loudly" - which I think in my case might well be "run screaming" and find the insurance claim documents?

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There are ten static related fires at gas stations per year across the country. How often do they happen at airports?

Definitely important to be prepared, but evidently not a high incidence of accidents. Aviation Safety magazine has a good article on fueling this month. The greatest danger ( other than smoking, and running engines(??) is fuel vapor pushed out by filling.

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