OK ! You have an extra gas can or two now . Keep at least one empty . Why ? When it comes to a longer term or the worst case scenario and you come across some gas where will you put it ? I keep two 5 gallon cans and two 2 1/2 gallon cans empty and ready . They weigh very little and the room they take up is minimal . So next comes transferring the gasoline from where you find it to where you need it .
I use the hand squeeze siphon commonly associated with kerosene heaters . Yea the one with the 18 inch straight , long , hard plastic tube that goes into the kerosene can and it has the flexible tube on the other side of the ” red ” hand squeezy pump thing . Yea that one . I cut off 14 inches of the long straight tube . I have 5 feet of clear plastic tubing – very flexible / soft plastic and coils up nicely . I used a common hose clamp available at any auto parts store to attach the new flex hose . A small piece of rope ties it to keep it coiled . I keep one in the back of the pick up truck , one with the boat , one in the bug out utility trailer tool box and one in the garage .
Gas is in your ride mower / lawn mower / boat / ATV / motorcycle , etc. Why leave it there if you need it for the vehicle that will take you far away from the disaster area ? Ash from Mount Saint Helens clogged air intake and air filters but a ways from the mountain sealed gas tanks ( and the gas in them ) were not affected . If you have the yard equipment and a few toys it could add up to 7 to 20 gallons or more especially if you have a boat in the yard .
Remember if there is a disaster capable of knocking out the electricity – NO GAS STATIONS WILL WORK . Other options are small battery operated pumps for siphoning . I , personally , am not a big fan of needing to carry around a lot of extra D Cell batteries or any other type of batteries . The hand siphon may take a wee bit longer but it is QUIET and does not require solar energy , batteries or a college degree to operate or fix .
If you are networking and traveling with others or hunkering down with others you may need to siphon gas from one of the vehicles – should consolidating vehicles come into play . In your group if everyone has a hand siphon and 1 or 2 extra Five gallon fuel cans – perhaps the need to leave a vehicle behind won’t have to become a choice . There are larger and heavier fuel pumps that require a 12 volt car / marine battery but – they are larger and heavier and how does one keep the 12 volt at peak charged performance ? Two of my siphons are over 15 yrs old now . Out of the sunlight the plastic is still good .
Now to preserving the gasoline . Gasoline is an organic product , from dead forests 100 trillion years ago and all that . It will begin to break down 50 to 60 days after being refined . It will get thicker like a varnish over a long period of time and foul the engine . There are a few gas stabilizers on the market that maintain the ” freshness ” of gasoline from 5 months up to 1 year or more depending on the brand / type .
The shelf life of the cheaper brands ranges from 1 to 2 years . Well “Sta- Bil” brand gas stabilizer is the most well known . CRC and Gum Out also make one . A survivalist should always have a few 8 ounce or larger bottles on hand to take if need be . I keep mine 8 months maximum and when some is left I put it in the truck – I hate to throw it out or waste it . Remember to” ROTATE STOCK ” same as food or ammo.
Crazy Joe in South Jersey
Comments on this entry are closed.