# Pumping gas while the engine is running?



## buzzy (May 28, 2011)

I had never seen this before, but the other day when I was at the gas station I saw someone doing it.

I can think of a few reasons someone might do it, say, if you had an old vehicle that was difficult to start or if you wanted to keep the interior of your vehicle warm/cool while you were outside pumping the gas (no need to do that, if you ask me).

I'm not the brightest bulb on the chandelier but it doesn't seem like a very good idea to me. (To put it mildly.)

I think some jurisdictions have rules against idling as well.

Thoughts?


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## J S Moore (Feb 18, 2006)

I think most if not all have rules against that. I've never personally seen anything happen and I can't recall any instances, but why take the chance.


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## 10409 (Dec 11, 2011)

i've done it myself when i had a car that had starter problems. it's not any more dangerous than filling up normally aside from the idiot clause where someone might accidentally put the vehicle in drive while fueling or something.


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## washburned (Oct 13, 2006)

I remember when that was the norm, but I'm old.


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## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

I have seen people try to pump with a smoke in their mouths. There is relatively no danger in a vehicle running, its just a rule that the engine be turned off


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## keto (May 23, 2006)

I worked at a gas station when I was a teenager. My idiot buddy worked with me, he would make a point by leaning right down to where the handle was pumping into the car with a smoke in his mouth, to make a point. Never did it on a hot summer day though.

I got busted the other day for putting my gas cap into the handle to keep it flowing while I washed my windows. Like with idling, I see no danger in this except in the most extreme remotely possible circumstances. Just nanny state BS.


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## 10409 (Dec 11, 2011)

smoking while you fill up also has a relatively low danger rate. for the vapours to catch you need an open flame. at least that's what i was always told, not the kind of thing i was ever curious enough to put to the test. makes me wonder about the movie scenes where people light a gas fire by flicking a smoke into the puddle.


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

keto said:


> I worked at a gas station when I was a teenager. My idiot buddy worked with me, he would make a point by leaning right down to where the handle was pumping into the car with a smoke in his mouth, to make a point. Never did it on a hot summer day though.
> 
> I got busted the other day for putting my gas cap into the handle to keep it flowing while I washed my windows. Like with idling, I see no danger in this except in the most extreme remotely possible circumstances. Just nanny state BS.


Keto, there should have been no problem doing what you were doing as it is simply not a dangerous thing to do. However, there are some things that are a no-no when it comes to filling up your gas tank or auxiliary gas containers.

1) Do not put the gas cap under your gas handle and then get back in your car to stay warm while filling your tank. The reason for this is when you get back out of your vehicle when the gas tank is full, you're rubbing the seat of your pants off the car seat and causing friction. Especially in cold weather this creates static electricity. If you touch any metal around the gas nozzle you can cause a spark and create an explosion. There is enough gas vapour around the gas tank cap, to create an explosion strong enough to knock you off your feet and perhaps burn some facial hair. This has happened. If you fill up at Petro-Canada stations most of them have warnings about this for this very reason

2) If you are filling gas cans, take them out of the trunk and put them on the ground. This grounds the containers and removes any static electricity from the tanks which again, could cause an explosion if left in the trunk or the back of your truck bed.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

I always thought it was a big deal, so I always turn my car off - even if it's stupid cold outside . I'd get heebie-jeebies watching people switch propane tanks with a smoke in their mouth at work.


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

I did it a cpl times this winter when my old truck was having battery problems.

i think the fear is exaggerated, perhaps from old days when cars ran poorly....carburetor s backfiring etc.

Gasoline isn't that easy to ignite without an open flame.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

It's as easy as this, why take the chance?

[video=youtube;ufcQd1qoDAs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufcQd1qoDAs[/video]


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## Guest (Mar 24, 2013)

this is why that happened.



Steadfastly said:


> .. get back in your car to stay warm while filling your tank. The reason for this is when you get back out of your vehicle when the gas tank is full, you're rubbing the seat of your pants off the car seat and causing friction. Especially in cold weather this creates static electricity. If you touch any metal around the gas nozzle you can cause a spark and create an explosion.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

Yes, it was static electricity, but it shows how easily that it can happen.

Running the vehicle isn't a chance that I'll take.


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## mrmatt1972 (Apr 3, 2008)

Wow, that video was wild. She handled it well, my wife would have panicked and fled the nozzle still in the car. But, shouldn't the pump be grounded to prevent static charges building up? Also, FWIW when I was young I worked in auto parts, often as the guy who fetched parts for the mechanics. I got into an argument with a mechanic about smoking around gas and he said a lit cigarette would not ignite a pool of gas. He even proved it to me outside throwing his lit smoke into a small tray of gas! Basically he said an ember wouldn't do it, but a spark would.

Same garage a different tech was changing out a gas tank, spilled some gas, didn't mop it up right away, proceeded to drop his trouble light and when the bulb broke and a spark ignited the gas he promptly lost his job...


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## washburned (Oct 13, 2006)

Here's what a little ststic electricity can do. Caught in fire while pumping gas in a gas station - YouTube


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

mrmatt1972 said:


> Wow, that video was wild. She handled it well, my wife would have panicked and fled the nozzle still in the car. But, shouldn't the pump be grounded to prevent static charges building up? Also, FWIW when I was young I worked in auto parts, often as the guy who fetched parts for the mechanics. I got into an argument with a mechanic about smoking around gas and he said a lit cigarette would not ignite a pool of gas. He even proved it to me outside throwing his lit smoke into a small tray of gas! Basically he said an ember wouldn't do it, but a spark would.
> 
> Same garage a different tech was changing out a gas tank, spilled some gas, didn't mop it up right away, proceeded to drop his trouble light and when the bulb broke and a spark ignited the gas he promptly lost his job...


Another garage story: I was visiting this man who worked at this body shop. We stepped outside the large bay doors and a few seconds later there was this minor explosion inside the garage. One of the men inside was using a torch and either a propane or acetylene tank had been leaking and had built up enough gas that the torch ignited the gas and ka-boom. No one was hurt but there was no dust left on the rafters either.


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## TA462 (Oct 30, 2012)

99.9 % of new cars have a pressurized fuel system. If you run your car while filling it up then there is no pressure in the system and your check engine light will most likely turn on. That is why when your car is emission tested they test the pressure of your fuel system too. Bad gas caps are the number one cause of check engine lights. Talking on your cell phone is bad too.


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

TA462 said:


> 99.9 % of new cars have a pressurized fuel system. If you run your car while filling it up then there is no pressure in the system and your check engine light will most likely turn on. That is why when your car is emission tested they test the pressure of your fuel system too. Bad gas caps are the number one cause of check engine lights. Talking on your cell phone is bad too.


I agree with the gas caps part.
The cellphone part IMO is a myth.


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

TA462 said:


> 99.9 % of new cars have a pressurized fuel system. If you run your car while filling it up then there is no pressure in the system and your check engine light will most likely turn on. _*That is why when your car is emission tested they test the pressure of your fuel system too.*_ Bad gas caps are the number one cause of check engine lights.


My Blazer kept stalling after running for awhile, especially when the gas tank was getting low. Turns out it was the gas cap. Such a simple fix but it took months to figure it out and then by accident.


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## TA462 (Oct 30, 2012)

Diablo said:


> I agree with the gas caps part.
> The cellphone part IMO is a myth.


I thought the cell phone thing was a myth too. Next time your pumping gas look at the stickers on the pumps. A cell phone with a circle around it and a slash through it is on every pump or a warning sticker that says not to use a cell phone.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Not to diminish the importance of what has been discussed, but I suspect the various legitimate sources of risk vary in their riskiness as a fnction of climate. Flammable fumes are more likely to form, one would think, during warmer weather. Or at the very least, during winter months they would behave differently.


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

mhammer said:


> Not to diminish the importance of what has been discussed, but I suspect the various legitimate sources of risk vary in their riskiness as a fnction of climate. Flammable fumes are more likely to form, one would think, during warmer weather. Or at the very least, during winter months they would behave differently.


It's actually more dangerous in the winter because there is a much greater risk of static electricity in he dry cold weather than in the hot, humid air of the summertime. It's the static electricity causing a spark, rather than more volume of vapour.


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

TA462 said:


> I thought the cell phone thing was a myth too. Next time your pumping gas look at the stickers on the pumps. A cell phone with a circle around it and a slash through it is on every pump or a warning sticker that says not to use a cell phone.


IMO that just means its a myth that's been adopted by the oil Industry.
pretty sure that the cellphone industry would disagree that there's significant risks of a cellphone emitting sparks while near a users head.
even the notion of cellphones interfering with airplanes is pretty far fetched. Modern day planes have adequate shielding of wiring and electronics.


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## loudtubeamps (Feb 2, 2012)

Diablo said:


> IMO that just means its a myth that's been adopted by the oil Industry.
> pretty sure that the cellphone industry would disagree that there's significant risks of a cellphone emitting sparks while near a users head.
> even the notion of cellphones interfering with airplanes is pretty far fetched. Modern d


Try that discussion with a demolition expert! Page #2
http://www.nclabor.com/osha/etta/indguide/ig11.pdf


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

loudtubeamps said:


> Try that discussion with a demolition expert! Page #2
> http://www.nclabor.com/osha/etta/indguide/ig11.pdf


Page 1 is good enough for me:
"The possibility of premature explosions of electric detonators due to RF energy is remote. Each year throughout the continental United States approximately 100 million such detonators are used with few mishaps"


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

Diablo said:


> Page 1 is good enough for me:
> "The possibility of premature explosions of electric detonators due to RF energy is _*remote*_. Each year throughout the continental United States approximately 100 million such detonators are used with _*few*_ mishaps"


To me it seem ridiculous to argue about safety.
I swear, some of you guys wouldn't last a day underground, 
whether it'd be due to you doing something stupid,
endangering your life, or the life of someone else.

Why take the chance?


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## loudtubeamps (Feb 2, 2012)

Diablo said:


> Page 1 is good enough for me:
> "The possibility of premature explosions of electric detonators due to RF energy is remote. Each year throughout the continental United States approximately 100 million such detonators are used with few mishaps"


Good safety record eh? Odds are that in the majority of blast sites, all and every safety precaution is observed accounting for the low numbers.
Not too many guys priming a load and calling home to find out "what's for dinner?" I bet.........just a guess.........what, no witnesses??

" approximately 100 million such detonators are used with _*few mishaps"*_


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

sulphur said:


> To me it seem ridiculous to argue about safety.
> I swear, some of you guys wouldn't last a day underground,
> whether it'd be due to you doing something stupid,
> endangering your life, or the life of someone else.
> ...


Exactly! Life is too precious to take unnecessary risks.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

It's not just the oil companies that have adopted this "myth".

You're required to shut off your phones through road construction areas where they may be blasting.
They just recently banned them in certain areas where I work, where powder and caps may be present.


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## loudtubeamps (Feb 2, 2012)

I remember seeing these signs when I was a kid. 








Thank god they had this one at the other end,









I would have never turned my CB back on for fear of being arrested!!

So, nothing new here except for the massive number of wireless devices in use these days.

73's and 88's


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