Getting gas without blowing up question.

[Frank's Trailer Works]

Years ago I learned to not engage here. It usually just leads to removed posts and people disliking each other. I do not really care for that.
I have run up against a few folks here. I never wanted it to happen. I forget how much knowledge can be gained by posting 3.57 a day for 6 months straight. Generally, on the ground, first hand experience is trumped by posting regularly.

This 'blowing ones self up because you left an appliance on' has become rather an obsession now. I have currently gone 68 Google pages deep in this quest. I just cannot let it go.

I did indeed see the article of 5 years ago when I searched. I did not feel it pertained to a discussion about travel trailers since it was a van. I also could not include it since the driver shot gas into the appliance directly. Personally, if my gas fill and my water heater were on a van I would NEVER think to fill up while it is running. The real tell however was the very last paragraph;
Houma Fire Inspector Mike Millet said he was able to recreate how Binder explained the gas spill, and said it was possible. But Millet noted that’s a first for the department and he’s unsure if that’s how the fire started.
So, my search(quest);
I did find a bunch of Motorhome and travel trailers fires. I hope this NEVER happens to anyone reading this. Just like in the world of boats, 95% of the time, the fire was electrical by cause. The remaining fires occurred with filling up onboard propane tanks. Mostly when overfilled the excess propane, hovering inches off the ground, is ignited. There were some "unexplained" however none I found were at the gas pump.
I endeavor to continue searching till I find one or I reach the 100th page that Google presents me.
Would honestly like to be proven wrong about all this.

To just restate from my first post;
I do not encourage you to break the rules.
I do not encourage you to do ANYTHING you are not comfortable with.
I do not turn off my refer when I tow.
Don't use me as an example.

And on a final note, YES, that van would NEVER have caught fire had the appliance been 'off'
it probably would not have occurred had the driver remembered to pack his common sense before he left for the trip.
Perhaps the fire was less accidental than it first appears, the fire inspector thoughts so.

[SCOTTinNJ]

I wonder why there is a need to drive with the fridge on in the first place. I've towed through 95+ degree temps for 350-400 mile days with the fridge OFF and when I arrive at my destination the contents are still cold. Frozen foods are still frozen.

Under more normal temps and distances I can't see there being an issue.

[coairstream]

Ok guys I found it! This is what NOT to do. You have to watch the entire clip.

http://youtu.be/_SSbFjK_gnY

[jdalrymple]

Funny.

And relevant .


Best Regards,


JD

[markdoane]

Originally Posted by Frank's Trailer Works

I have run up against a few folks here. I never wanted it to happen. I forget how much knowledge can be gained by posting 3.57 a day for 6 months straight. Generally, on the ground, first hand experience is trumped by posting regularly.

Frank, you're looking at the wrong statistic. Look at the Friends Count.

[MacPDX]

Actually, I think you are more likely to start a fire with your cell phone at the pumps then your fridge. I always run my fridge. Sometimes turn it off, sometimes not, depending on circumstances.

[crazylev]

I leave fridge on only when traveling. My gas fill up is on opposite side of propane appliances. I'm more concerned about the 60# of propane + car gas going 55 mph on a highway.

[alantbird]

[QUOTE=Frank's Trailer Works;1727717]I am not telling anyone to break the rules...
However...
I challenge anyone to find a report of a trailer blowing up because the fridge was on, at the gas station. Out of boredom I tried. I went 30 pages deep into Google trying. Not one case of a trailer blowing up due to the fridge being on at a gas station. I did find many cases of trailers blowing up due to onboard propane fill ups going wrong, gasoline fill ups gone wrong, and or connections being made inside the trailer even though code does not allow it.

I am more worried about the smokers I see at the pumps ALL THE TIME! I run all my gas appliances while on the road and while fueling up and in 18 years have never had or seen an issue!

Like you say. its all about your own comfort zone!

[n2916s]

Count me in , Frank. Been towing forever, always with the reefer going. Never give it a second thought.

However, since I tow with a half-ton, I am doomed anyway, as is the bus load of orphans and trial lawyers I take out with my runaway vehicle.

Mike

[aftermath]

Frank, sign me up for your club. I agree with you 100%. I also respect your position on this by saying that each of us can make our own decisions about this issue. What I have trouble with are those who say that people who don't do exactly as they do are somehow misinformed and even worse, putting everyone on the highways at risk. This attitude can be seen in hitch discussions, "how big is my truck" informational posts and of course, running with the fridge on.

I tow a trailer. I don't own or drive a motor home or a van. If I did I might have a different attitude. I am one of those who has asked for some proof that a running fridge caused a fire at a gas station. No one, to date, as provided me with any proof what so ever. That and the fact that the manufacturers have not posted any instructions and or warnings regarding the topic puts me at ease. Again, to each his own.

I am more worried about the risks of driving on the interstates, problems with tires, getting hit by lightning and having a stroke while behind the wheel. So far, so good.

[rmkrum]

Yeah, I would bet that smokers and fuzzy sweater static discharge are easier ways to ignite gasoline vapor while refueling.

I'll stick to situational awareness. I don't wear fuzzy sweaters, I don't smoke or allow smokers near me. The chance of me spraying fuel all over my AS near the fridge vent is vanishingly close to zero. Besides, it's way behind me.

I agree in a van or motor home it's a much bigger risk. I'm not driving a motor home. I'm careful, but not over the top obsessed with it.

Typically I refuel with family and dogs in the truck with all windows shut. It's not an issue to leave the fridge running 10-15 feet from the fuel fill, IMHO


Sent from my pocket Internet using Airstream Forums

[J. Morgan]

We have so many knee jerk reactionary laws and rules because "something happened" once (or very rarely), (and the circumstances don't matter), that it is sickening.

Take as an example the laws in some states where it is illegal to fill a propane tank after dark.... Really?

Brevi tempore!

[MelGoddard]

[QUOTE=joemikeb;1727903]

Originally Posted by Frank's Trailer Works

I take it you have never heard of Murphy's Law?

There is also: "GODDARD'S LAW OF POSSIBILITIES"
"IT HAPPENED, THEREFORE IT'S POSSIBLE!"

[nrgtrakr]

Searching for another RV topic I stumbled onto something that said a lot of information related to RVs simply isn't tracked by anyone on purpose.
With that in mind, one could read the following report, but not have enough information to reach a conclusion.
http://www.nfpa.org/~/media/files/re...ions.pdf?la=en

[Frank's Trailer Works]

Thank you for the link, after 100 pages of Google, I am done with this whole topic. I simply do not care enough to read anything else, especially a government document. I doubt I will even discuss it when a client asks me about it...

Please, EVERYONE do not do anything you are uncomfortable with. It is very simple to turn off your propane. It is also very easy to just leave it on. Do what you feel is right.

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by Frank's Trailer Works

[snip]
Please, EVERYONE do not do anything you are uncomfortable with. It is very simple to turn off your propane. It is also very easy to just leave it on. Do what you feel is right.

Well said, with the added footnote IMO that anyone who chooses -- to leave the propane appliances ON at a gas station -- is willing to live with the very low probability consequences of his or her own conscious choice. [a catastrophic fire]

Personally I turn them all off.


"Very Simple" being the operative words . . .

[rideair]

I wish, I had the problem to even decide!

Mine keeps blowing out as I drive down the road ;-)

I know the old saying about someone else's problems, but in the case of this one, I wish I did.

Enjoy,

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by rideair

I wish, I had the problem to even decide!

Mine keeps blowing out as I drive down the road ;-)

I know the old saying about someone else's problems, but in the case of this one, I wish I did.

Enjoy,

Paul.

Blowing out when the trailer moves down the road, indicates a problem.

Could be that the burner orifice needs cleaning, which it does every 3 to 4 years, perhaps a low LPG pressure, or the metal shield for the burner/pilot light is missing.

What make and model reefer do you have ?? I will try to help you eliminate the blow out issue, which in itself should never happen.

Water heater blow outs, those with pilot lights, are also unnecessary, and can very easily be prevented, at a cost of less than 2 dollars.

Andy

[nrgtrakr]

For much of my career time I was dual hatted as the safety officer. That included a lot of formal training seminars exploring the world of being "safe" - everything from vehicles to home and the work place (industrial, health care, office jobs, construction, etc.)
Safety officers (and OSHA etc) came into existence because many work places were terribly unsafe and people were dying as a result. So from accident investigation (seeing what NOT to do), safe practices like no smoking or open flames within a certain distance when transferring fuels were adopted.
Safety officers and that whole world tends to err on the side of, you guessed it, "safety". One of my favorite examples was wearing goggles, face shield, rubber gloves and apron when inspecting electrolyte batteries.
How many of us actually do that?
Similar to the grey area of turn off RV appliances when fueling.
Insurance companies hate to pay and their lawyers will side with safety reports and accepted safe practices when deciding to pay a claim.
I agree with Frank, do what you are comfortable with.

[Inland RV Center, In]

Doing what you feel comfortable with when refueling is "some what OK".

Of course, be mindful of open flames and refueling, in terms of how close are those two.

Then, also be mindful of what may be parked next to you. If it's a travel trailer or a motorhome, then be aware of how close they may be to your fuel filling, as well as their filling near your sources of flame.

Being "cautiious" should always be practiced for safety reasons, anytime a person is close to something flameable. Unfortunately, many others are not, and they in turn, can cause a safety problem for you, because of their carelessness.

Safety, can never be used or practiced in excess.

Andy