Does gas stored in closed metal containers go bad?

[tom slick]

There are still plenty of metal gas cans available, you just have to think industrial and military, not consumer.
Link
Link
jerry can


Plastic cans will not store gas long term and keep it fresh. the types of plastics used for gas containers is not considered an air or water barrier. Metal and glass are the only suitable long-term containers, I don't think I'd store it in glass myself.

excerpt from the Blitz website about expansion and closed plastic containers:
Quote:
Q: Why does my can expand in heat and contract in cold temperatures?
A: Fuel vapors expand when hot and contract when cold. Our plastic containers are designed to have the resilience to accommodate for these phenomena. Underwriter Laboratories (UL) tests our cans to an ASTM F852 standard which includes a 20 psi test to allow for the expansion caused by fuel. The can will return to its normal state when at room temperature. If you need to use your can under expansion or contraction, you should release any built up pressure or vacuum by slowly loosening the collar temporarily. Only do this in a well- ventilated area away from any flame source and on a flat surface.

 

[Saturn_Fan]

On the construction sites I worked on, we bought dozens of various metal gas cans from http://www.grainger.com

 

[doitmyself]

I don't want to beat this dead horse too much more. But, I want to thank Junior for posting follow up information that paints a less negative picture regarding E10 and phase separation.

I want to believe that the '95 government paper that Junior provided a link to might have been somewhat self serving to promote the use of ethanol fuel. In the same breath, it seems that the doom and gloom E10 links that permeate the web might also be self serving as they all come from the marine perspective (and fuel testing/additive companies). For instance, this site:

http://www.osmb.state.or.us/OSMB/news/E10.shtml

states: "E10’s ability to absorb water has yet another drawback; it can absorb water directly from the atmosphere through the vent while simply sitting in the tank. In just 100 days at 70% humidity, E10 can absorb enough water to phase-separate. The shelf life of E10 is only 60-90 days if left without treatment."

Having just received our first 500 gallons of E10, my search to find out the truth was just starting. I have a lot of equipment that sits idle over the winter. Plus, we had some issues when we first switched over to Bio diesal.

Thanks again, Junior for the posting the EPA link.

Sorry to derail your question a bit Kestas, but maybe we all learned a bit.

 

[Kestas]

I never expected a 'yes' or 'no' answer on this board.

 

[doitmyself]

I have not found the answer to your question of whether gas deteriorates when stored properly.

I googled "gasoline storage" and came up with lots of conflicting info. Some companies claim their additive can rejuvenate old gasoline and some say that you can put more additive in every now and then and keep the gas alive for 5 to 10 years.

The Chevron site has good info, check the background link:

http://www.chevron.com/products/ourfuels...m_gasoline.aspx

One new aspect I learned is that you should consider "winter" blend vs. "summer" blend. If you save summer blend, it may not work as well during the winter, vice versa. Another reason to rotate your stock spring and fall.

 

[Kestas]

I believe the winter blend is easier to process. The summer blend removes some of the volatiles that can cause vapor lock on hot days.