Petrol Station Con?

cutandshut

Well I'm so old I can remember getting 4 gallons (18 litres) for a pound and have enough change to buy a packet of woodbines.

EssexExile

4/11 a gallon of Esso Super. Do I win a prize?

charliewocka

Cornucopia wrote: »

I assume the Tesco pumps still require you to dispense the fuel manually using the pump "trigger"?

I have a small metal rod on my key-ring which I use to restore the automatic fill capability on UK petrol pumps. Had it for years, never had a spillage or been challenged for using it.

The automatic fill capability was removed for safety issues - people could get into a car or build up static discharge withour grounding themselves and this could result in ignition of the fuel vapour at the mouth of the tank. By removing the capability of doing so it ensures that you are kept grounded and potential remains the same between yourself and the hose, making it safer.


Google some of the videos showing real life CCTV showing this. One in particular of a girl who auto fills her car, gets back in the car because it's cold and then when she gets out to touch the hose again the spar results in a large fireball.

Iceweasel

Do they have many filling station catastrophes in Germany and the USA where the pump nozzles work as they were designed to?

charliewocka

Not necessarily a 'catastrophe' but a serious incident involving individuals, yes, plus even a brief fireball generated at source has potential to ignite surrounding materials.

BeenThroughItAll

flosswoss21 wrote: »

Google some of the videos showing real life CCTV showing this. One in particular of a girl who auto fills her car, gets back in the car because it's cold and then when she gets out to touch the hose again the spar results in a large fireball.

I can't find any, can you point me in the right direction?


Wouldn't be a problem for diesel pumps to be fitted with the fill-lock though, would it?

charliewocka

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6VKxmUPb3g

BeenThroughItAll

flosswoss21 wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6VKxmUPb3g

Silly me. I was looking for 'petrol station'.

Strider590

flosswoss21 wrote: »

Google some of the videos showing real life CCTV showing this. One in particular of a girl who auto fills her car, gets back in the car because it's cold and then when she gets out to touch the hose again the spar results in a large fireball.

Have you ever tried to light petrol? It's actually not as easy as hollywood might have you think. Without air, fuel and compression you'd find it quite hard to ignite petrol using an electrical spark.

This for example http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2007/feb/27/smoking.film

Now I tried 3 days ago to ignite some super unleaded petrol, which i'd poured into my BBQ **, using a BBQ lighter (like a long cigarette lighter) I could not ignite the petrol pooled in the bottom of the BBQ, the only way I could get it to ignite was by soaking kitchen paper in petrol and lighting that. This creates a wicking effect similar to oil burner or paraffin candle.

**It had been removed from a carburettor into an old jar and was not clean enough to put back into the tank.

charliewocka

I know how combustion works - it's part of my career. Once the vapour concentration is at sufficient levels then yes, it will easily ignite with a low energy source.