How to siphon gas

[Dee Rambin]

I wasn't there unfortunately, but my brother called me one day hysterical about what had just happened to him. He was attempting to remove the old gas from a fixed gas tank in a Nitro bass boat to replace with new as it was several years old. He was using a piece of small diameter air hose to siphon the gas out when he suddenly decided how much quicker this would be if he used the shop-vac. Needless to say, after filling the shop-vac with several gallons of gas - it erupted into a fireball. He went on to explain that he was able to get the top off the canister through the flames but when he went to put the fire out with the water hose, it just blew flaming gas all over the driveway. All the while he was cussing the stupid shop-vac saying that it must have been defective. Not being the sharpest knife in the drawer, I asked him if he read the warning label "not for use on flamable materials". His response... "didn't see that, it must have burnt off..."<br /><br />Oh, we also got him a T-shirt that reads "don't forget the plug"... written upside down of course so he can read it!

 

[DJ]

Re: How to siphon gas

So, when is he suing the shop vac maker? There's a bizillion dollars in that one.<br /><br />They should have fire proof labels. <br /><br />Yikes, that could have been a disaster.

 

[brother chris]

Re: How to siphon gas

Good thing he wasn't hurt.<br />I just wish I was there to watch it. It would have been so hilarious.

 

[beezee28]

Re: How to siphon gas

That's a good one! Read instruction first.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: How to siphon gas

On a related note - Those drill powered pumps will also catch fire - It was a friend of mine - I swear!<br /><br />Overtons sells the "Shake Shake" Siphon for $10. It has a 3/8 hose and will transfer gas safely at 4 gal/min. No more gas in the mouth!

 

[Formula1974]

Re: How to siphon gas

I hate the taste of gas. he was lucky the shop vac wasnt in the boat at the time.

 

[ndemge]

Re: How to siphon gas

I like to presurize the tank with air hose with a shop towel to hold back pressure to get siphon started....<br /><br />Slap him in the back of the head for me would ya!<br /><br />Chris.... I will say, I wouldn't expect one of those to ignite, thanks for the insite

 

[dcwm]

Re: How to siphon gas

Lots of static charge in a shop vac. I know a feller who was removing top fuel from his race car using a shop vac and BOOM! He was somehow unhurt.

 

[jtexas]

Re: How to siphon gas

yeah, ndemge, I thought the packaging on those drill pumps says okay for defueling - or maybe it's oil changes?<br /><br />anyway, a string just longer than the hose with a small weight like a nut or other hardware on one end and a piece of fabric on the other will usually prime the siphon.

 

[jofish]

Re: How to siphon gas

I use an "retired" primer bulb and couple of chunks of 3/8 fuel hose two mini clamps, ain't real fast but no gas in mouth and works every time.

 

[one more cast]

Re: How to siphon gas

Those drill powered pumps will also catch fire - It was a friend of mine - I swear!

 

[speedwrench]

Re: How to siphon gas

Left out most important rule: Wait until after dark!

 

[d67bart]

Re: How to siphon gas

I do fire and water insurance restoration work in and around Jacksonville Florida. We did a restoration at a motorcycle shop that had burned the whole shop, store room/ warehouse, motor cycles, seadoo's, go-carts and covered everthing in the show room with soot. Seems one of the mechanic's used a wet/dry shop-vac the clean-up a gass spill.<br />The right tool for the job is the one that gets it done without causing more work.

 

[self taut]

Re: How to siphon gas

i use a walmart special waterbed pump attached to a hose.works very well too.not very expensive and keeps the hair on my eyebrows unsinged.

 

[funpilot]

Re: How to siphon gas

I have a hand pump which is esentially a roller pump (rollers pass over a plastic tube, compressing it, moving the liquid along).<br /><br />By starting the pumping action, and then backing off a quarter turn, the siphon starts on its own. Slow, but effective. I've used it on my jet boat when I got it (FREE BOAT FROM BROTHER-IN-LAW) after it had sat with a siezed engine for four years and hence, had bad gas in it. I've used it on snowmobiles in November after two season of no snow... just a handy thing to have around. Electrics and fuel... no thanks!

 

[berniehansen]

Re: How to siphon gas

I know a guy around here who actually used a shop vac to siphon gas out of the bilge of his 32' boat. Boat burnt to the water line after the explosion and he ended up in ER with 3rd degree burns and ended up losing his job

 

[achris]

Re: How to siphon gas

Speaking of fire, I heard of an incident that ran something like this....<br /><br />spanner was too wide to get into the space to tighten a fitting. "Easy fixed" thought this person, "I'll just knock a bit off the edges with a bench grinder". As he was grinding, the spanner became hot (as they do!). "No problem, I'll just cool it down" and sprayed it with "Contact cleaner". POOF! Flame shot right up his arm and singed all the hair off! <br /><br />I can't name this person, for obvious reasons!<br /><br />Chris............

 

[NES]

Re: How to siphon gas

I once saw a guy removing gas tank straps with a torch....

 

[beezee28]

Re: How to siphon gas

Academy sells a gas siphon which cost about $15.00. It is like a non-return valve attached to a 3/4" hose and all you have to do is just lower the valve end into the tank and move the hose up and down a few time to get the gas flowing into the hose and then lower the other end into a container that is lower than the tank and gravity will take over.

 

[skeezx01]

Re: How to siphon gas

Yeah, theres this guy in tennant who is the only person around who will weld fuel tanks. prefers them to be full, from around the corner you can hear the fuel boiling as he welds, glub, glub, glub.... guy goes by the nick-name of kaboom-bob