Diesel in outboard gasoline tank

[deblen]

Originally Posted by Stu Jackson

Yeah, doesn't happen. Good on you.

However, read this, scroll down:

The Hall of FAIL Photo Gallery by Compass Marine How To at pbase.com

Thank you for the pictorial warning. I will act accordingly

[jacktheflyer]

[QUOTE=(if it starts to wear thin, just remark it).[/QUOTE]
Does that make it 'remarkable'??

[shakey doug]

Many light weight harbour racers use them as their main diesel fuel tank.

[valhalla360]

If you are the only one to ever-ever-ever fuel your boat and you re-mark the tank as soon as the marker fades the slightest, it should be fine.


Just remember...it all works great until your buddy decides to help you out and goes with the standard convention that red is for gasoline.


It's a standardized convention so that anyone steps on your boat, they instantly know what is in the fuel jug. Using a marker is like putting up a giant sign at a traffic signal that red is green and green is red...as long as everyone reads the sign it will work.


(probably more critical not to put gas in a yellow diesel jug as that can trash the engine. A little diesel in a gas engine, you just need to flush the diesel out of the fuel system and it should run fine)

[MCOS]

Paint it blue to indicate it is diesel

[MCOS]

Or yellow ?

[hd002e]

Thank you all for your responses!


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[leftbrainstuff]

Originally Posted by hd002e

Is it OK to store diesel fuel in one of those red outboard gasoline tanks used for dinghies? Is there some chemical oroprty of diesel that could damage/eat through the gasoline fittings etc?


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

They are either polyethylene or polypropylene. The only difference is color. Sometimes the gasoline tanks would have some carbon embedded to provide an earth. The newer ones probably dont.

You can store either gasoline or diesel in either.

The trick is not to inadvertently forget.

Sent from my SM-N900T using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Dave22q]

Paint the tank. Leaving it 'as is' is an accident waiting to happen. Why gamble to save a few bucks in paint.

[Whitebread117]

My purchased-in-Mexico 5 gallon jerry cans (half made by sceptre, half made by wedco) all are labeled "diesel" (molded into cans from factory) and all are red. So the "standard" color scheme isn't quite so standard. The blue jugs people use for water is also the standard color for kerosene in many places, but that's a different topic.

As for the buddy borrowing your gas can, if he can't open the top and do a sniff test he deserves what he gets. Who's to say you don't have premixed 2 stroke gas in your can and he runs a 4 stroke? Nothing worth worrying over imo.

[hellosailor]

"all are labeled "diesel" (molded into cans from factory) and all are red. "
If you were in the restaurant business, used to be you could always buy Dixie cups like that. They never threw out the mistakes (like a wrong phone number or logo) they just sold them off to someone who really didn't care what the cup said, as long as it was cheap.
That's how places like Big Lots and Job Lot got started, selling mistakes and overruns. Wouldn't bet that someone in a Mexican factory had no idea what the English stamped in a jug mold meant.(G)

[Whitebread117]

Good call. I forgot to add in my original comment how "purchased in Mexico" means total knockoff junk to so many "'Muricans". Thanks for the insight.

In the meantime, for the rest of the world, my previous comment might prove useful.