This was in the comments earlier.
Well, two is one so four must be two, right? I ordered up a four pack, w/ gasket and spout, for $241, w/ ‘free shipping’. (In quotes because, really, shipping isn’t free…they just fold it into the price.)
Anyway…ordered up this afternoon and had a FedEx tracking number four hours later. So..fingers corssed, but looks like a decent deal that is good to go.
Since I’m beating the topic of fuel cans to death with these last few posts, lets get all the fuel can related stuff done:
Spouts v. Funnels – I don’t usually bother with spouts. Unless they fit and seal perfectly 100% of the time (which they never do) they are just a bother. I use long, plastic funnels that you can usually pick up at an automotive store for five or six bucks. I buy one for every two fuel cans and paracord them onto one can so they are always there. (I am told, but have not tried it, that you can improvise a funnel in a pinch from a plastic pop bottle.) Some people prefer to use a siphon pump of some type, and they certainly have merit if you have trouble holding a 40# jug of gas at sternum height for the time required to fill your tank. I don’t have that problem (yet) so I just use a funnel.
Date tags – Anything you write on is going to fade in the sun and rain. I cut a small metal tag of soft aluminum from a pop can and use a nail to ‘engrave’ the date on the tag. Tag gets corded to the can so I know how old the gas is. Its worked quite well for me.
Can preservation – the bottom of the can comes into contact with the ground, concrete, truck bed, etc. That constant contact, impact, and friction will wear and chip the paint away after a while exposing bare metal. I bought a spray can of that rubber coating they use for ..well..whatever you normally rubber coat…and sprayed the the bottom third of the cans all around. (Didn’t have it when I originally did it, but FlexSeal would probably work well for this.) It doesnt change the dimensions of the can enough to cause problems fitting in a gas can rack or holder, but it protects the bottom of the can from damage and moisture.
Lock and cable – Gas cans will walk away under the most benign and peaceful circumstance. In a crisis, when everyone needs fuel, they’ll fly outta your truck the minute your back is turned. I use a bike cable and a ‘Sesame’-type padlock to keep things from going away. I dislike keyed locks because the keys are a failure point. Yes, these types of locks are susceptible to picking but so is a keyed lock. When I need to grab fuel and go, go, go, I don’t want to be scrambling for keys. And don’t say “Just keep the key on the same ring as the truck key”. There are plenty of scenarios where I’d need the fuel but not the vehicle, so having the truck keys with me at that moment is not a sure thing. Or I have the keys and am elsewhere and someone needs the fuel outta the truck. And its easier to tell someone a combination in texting or over the phone than it is to arrange a key drop.
Cover – Up to you, but a cover of some type to protect things and perhaps conceal them a bit might be in order. Google “jerry can cover” and you’ll see a nice mix of ideas and products. Getting outta Dodge, in your Dodge, is a lot easier when the five jerry cans ratcheted against the tailgate in the back of your truck are obscured or hidden from view by some type of non-gas-can looking cover.
STFU – When it really comes down to a crisis where people are desperate for fuel, you really don’t want everyone in the neighborhood knowing you have some tucked away. It doesnt have to be TEOTWAWKI….even something as mundane as a blizzard or hurricane can put your neighbors on your doorstep asking (or demanding) ‘just a little bit’ of your fuel. Only you know the level of discretion and camouflage youre going to want. What you don’t want is every idiot in the area coming by because they bought a generator ‘just in case’ and completely neglected the fuel side of things.
Stabilizer – I’ve gone over this a buncha times but short version is: I use PRI-G. Stabil probably works just as well but I’ve read more good things about PRI-G than I have Stabil. Really, either one will work but I’ve used PRI-G and since I’ve never had any problems, even with six year old gas treated with the stuff, that’s good enough for me.
Inspection – You absolutely must do this. Must. MUST. I’ve had surplus military cans that were quite serviceable but had a dent or two here and there. After a couple years of expansion/contraction from being out in the heat/cold there would sometimes be a pinhole leak develop if the dent exposed the metal, it got rusty, and time went on. Inspect every can, especially the bottoms. Try to store them on a surface that lets air flow beneath them. If at all possible, store them in a manner that protects them from weather exposure and ground moisture. Heck, build a little ‘gas can coop’ or something. I built a rack out of 2×4 that is nothing more than a crib that holds five cans side-by-side a few inches off the ground. I cover them with a vinyl shower curtain and use a couple bicycle inner tubes as giant rubber bands to keep the vinyl wrapped around them,. Cover with a camo tarp and call it a day.
And although it is only tangentially related, when it comes to fuel for your vehicle, I always give a 50% margin. For example, if I have 10 gallons of gas and my vehicle gets 15 mpg, the math would say those two five-gallon cans will get me 150 miles of distance towards (or away from) whatever I need. I err on the side of extreme caution and calculate 50% of that… I figure between idling in traffic, having to backtrack, take detours, getting lost, having to ‘take the long way’, and all the other possibilities of what could go wrong ‘bugging out’, I’ll be using a lot more fuel than I would in ‘peace time’ to cover the same distance. So..I build in a 50% margin.
I’ll post about the arrival of the cans when they get here. Pretty confident these will be just what the Zero needs to continue the relentless slog towards resilience, but we’ll know for sure this weekend. (Assuming FedEx does their part.)
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Commander:
I store cans on a wooden pallet to raise them above damp, cold concrete. If I’m in any doubt about a can I spray the lower 2 inches in stonechip paint for extra protection. Luckily I’ve avoided problems so far – touch (pallet) wood…
Another experience adder on these cans. I have four of these that were purchased at two different times in pairs. The second pair has a slightly different pour spout than the first. The end of the spout has a plastic reducer that is friction fit into the end of the plastic flex nozzle. Long story short – this unknowingly came off in the filler neck of my Tundra and prevented filling the tank at anything more than about 1/4 gallon before the pump clicks off. A couple of trips to the mechanic and $200 later he asks me if I have any idea where this plastic piece he found came from.
The reducer is a great idea for fueling smaller mouth openings, but take it off before fueling your vehicle.
Would you send me a link(s) to the fuel can site and whatever other accessories you believe to be relevant? Thanks so much!
Don
Uhm…dude… I’m pretty sure the very first line of that post was a link to the fuel cans.
I second the use of forklift pallets under the cans to keep them from rusting. I store my chicken feed in 30-gallon metal trashcans. Those too, are sitting on pallets to keep them from rusting out.
Most metal gas cans actually rust out from the INSIDE. Keep the can as full of fuel as possible to minimize water condensation on the inside of the can. …Leave enough room for heat expansion though… When I empty a gas can, I store it inverted, cap off, for a couple of days in a dry location. This assures that the can will dry out. It also ensures that there are no explosive vapors in the can while it’s stored until being refilled again. The explosive force of the vapors in an empty gas can is roughly that of a stick of dynamite! I also found that when the can is dried out like this, I can shoot compressed air into it to blow any sediment and dirt out of the can. Watch your eyes doing this, kids…
my 2014 F150 doesn’t have a fuel cap. There is a trap door arrangement that the fuel pump nozzle pushes out of the way. The dimensions have to be exact to open it so a funnel or regular filler neck won’t go into the fuel tank. Had to order a Ford specific funnel to be able to fuel with a can. Something you wouldn’t want to find out at 2am in the rain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBJffild1FA
When storing fuel do you recommend staying away from the gas with ethanol?
I prefer it, but I don’t think that, for me, its a dealbreaker either way.
If at all possible, stay away from the gasohol versions of gasoline. It can be very damaging to some fuel systems, especially small engines. Theoretically any engine sold here in the US should be able to tolerate it, but that is not a guarantee that it won’t.
Another problem is that engines with a higher compression ratio may not run properly on it. I encountered this with a turbo Eagle Talon. Ran like crap, poor throttle response, lousy fuel mileage. The only fuel I could find that worked was Chevron.
In an emergency or SHTF scenario, you might end up having to fuel an unfamiliar vehicle or system. Better to have the best fuel you can find, instead of the local bargain gas station slop.
Thanks
I only use the premium without ethanol for any long term storage. The ethanol has two downsides; 1) less energy density than gasoline, not a huge deal at the quantities being discussed here, but still a fact. 2) ethanol’s affinity for water. Any moisture at all will be picked up and in your stored fuel. Rust, deterioration of fuel and clogging of filters are some of the bad things that can happen as a result.
YMMV, but these are facts that you can take into consideration if you desire when deciding what kind of fuel to store. If you spend $50 for a fuel can, add stabil or pri-g, and are depending on this as an emergency fuel supply, only you can decide if $5 extra to get 5 gallons of non ethanol premium is worth it or not. To me it is.
Thanks, I suspected that fuel with ethanol would be problematic concerning long term storage.
Were in the world do you find gas without ethanol in it these days?
You can find it in some locations here in Tennessee and Kentucky but I cannot attest for other locations. I don’t buy anything else for my small engines.
If in Texas or any place that has a Buc-ee’s, you can find it there. They actually have signs over the pumps that say which ones are ethanol free and are clearly visible so you can choose before pulling up.
Well, alas, I’m in Kalifornia…
Marinas have nonethanol gas for boats,also called Rec90. Look on websites for nonethanol fuel in your area. A possible use for cheap plastic cans is for barter/gift use-if you were to barter/gift fuel you would be far better off by using a cheap can than a expensive one if there was any question of its return. Bought 2 @$9 just for this purpose.
Cross the sand to FREEDOM!!!
Re: date tags
Hobby Lobby has a whole section in their beading section for making artsy craftsy tchotchkes by stamping aluminum and brass plates, bars, discs, etc.
While they intend for folks to stamp somebody’s name, or some sappy sentiment on them, there’s nothing preventing you from buying the stamping set, and a packages of the plates, and re-purposing them for preppish kinds of things, like serial numbers, use-by dates, filled/inspected dates, etc.
In fact, it’s highly recommended.
The tags are pre-punched with holes, so one can run cord or wire through them, and attach them to anything.
And add another vote to storing your cans on wooden dunnage, not on concrete floors. True for fuel drums, too. And anything else made of metal.
For the smaller jerrycans, Plasti-dip can be painted around the bottom edge for additional insurance. If you put it on the handle, it’s a lot more fun when grabbing a can on a really cold day or night.
Bonus: you can use their various colors (or paint) to code the cans for contents (e.g. inside the lid on Blitz cans, and/or rotation dates, and still leave most of the can a non-descript shade, if such is needful.
I appreciate your adversion to key locks but those master locks can be bypassed with no special tools in less time than it takes to put the code in. If the fuel is that important and theft such a high possibility then they need a better lock.
About the Sesame cable locks… Master padlocks, including the Sesame variety, are so easy to get open it’s almost not worth putting them on. For the Sesame locks, combination decoders are readily available and really easy to use. All you need is one of these 👇 and a light touch.
https://www.lockpickcanada.com/product_p/sultradecoder.htm
RE: labeling cans – (the dreaded) Amazon has 25-packs of stainless steel GI dog tags and wire-type keychains (both available from non-Amazon sources as well). A steel number/letter stamp set, a hammer and a solid metal surface, you can make the dog tag say anything you want, I use them on the gas cans and lots of other places (they will also work with an electric engraver tool). I use a regular grease pencil for dating the back of the dog tag, doesn’t rub off easily and holds up well.
RE: the Master 4-wheel combo locks – yes, they can be defeated in mere seconds. IIRC, ABUS makes a combo lock that’s harder to crack, but it’s spendy. Combo locks can be susceptible to “social engineering cracking” because people tend to choose easily remembered numbers, but spare keys for a good American brand lock (now owned by Master, I think) are about $1, and the newer locks are designed to be less susceptible to bump keying. I have a 5-number combo bicycle lock that I use for with some steel cables for short term and not-quite-as-valuable stuff because it’s cheap ($15), easy to use, and convenient because I don’t need a key (the only bicycle locks that are worth anything are the high end Kryptonite brand, and the best of those use keys). BUT it doesn’t offer much resistance to medium and large bolt cutters. The best ANY lock can do is increase the degree of difficulty to slow down theft, but when I found out how easily defeated the wheeled combo locks were I stopped using them.
I store only non-ethanol gas (premium is good if you can find it, the higher the grade of gas the more detergent compounds it has to keep injectors clean), and I really, really try to store for long term storage only gas produced after May 1 and before October 1 (give your local station a week or two after May 1 to get a couple deliveries of summer gas to make sure that’s what you’re getting). to avoid “winter gas” that has additional volatiles in it (like benzene) to aid engine starting in winter. To find non-ethanol gas, the “internet is your friend.” Try this: http://www.pure-gas.org, or search “no ethanol gas your city name”
Another options for date tags are these tags called “Impress-o-tags.” They can be written on with a ballpoint. I use them in the garden, but they would be a great option here too.