Damp winter leads to watery gas
JANESVILLE — With snow melting and more precipitation on the way, motorists might want to be careful where they buy gasoline.
Brian Frederick, service manager at Gordie Boucher Ford in Janesville, said his shop and the Frank Boucher Chrysler shop saw up to eight vehicles towed in Sunday and Monday that stopped running from watery gas.
“It all stems from the rain and ice melt-off,” he said.
It appears standing water seeped into the underground tanks at area gas stations, he said. The gas tanks in the stalled vehicles contained about 90 percent water, he said.
“There was very little fuel when we took fuel samples out of the cars,” he said.
Frederick said he didn’t know which stations had the problem, but he said there was one each in Janesville, Evansville and Milton. The stations paid the customers for the repairs on their vehicles, he said. He also heard a service center in Madison saw vehicles for the same problem.
No problems have been identified since Monday, Frederick said. If you’ve filled up your tank this week and didn’t notice any immediate problems, the gas should be fine.
“It would stop running,” Frederick said. “It’s something that’s going to happen real quick.”
By “real quick,” he means less than a mile. As you leave the gas station, your vehicle uses up the gas left in the fuel line and usually starts drawing from the bottom of your gas tank, he said. When the watery gas reaches the engine, it starts running poorly and stops.
Water is heavier than gasoline. It settles to the bottom, meaning water usually is drawn first by a vehicle’s fuel pump or a gas station pump because they draw from near the bottom of the tank, Frederick said.
The cost to repair a vehicle with water in the tank can run from $500 to $800, but each one is different depending on how easy it is to access the gas tank, Frederick said. One BMW that came into the shop racked up a $1,300 bill because it took six hours to access and remove the tank, he said.
Repairing a vehicle includes removing the gas tank and contaminated gas, installing a new fuel filter and putting the gas tank back in, he said.
Using additives such as Heet, which absorbs condensation in a gas tank, wouldn’t be effective with the amount of water in these cases, he said.
Matt Hauser, director of government affairs of the Wisconsin Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association, said gas stations are required by law to electronically monitor if water is in their tanks. Station attendants generally check those numbers each shift or day, he said.
When a reading shows fuel is contaminated, a bag is placed over the pump and steps are taken to correct the problem, he said.
“Generally, water in the gas is something retailers take very seriously,” he said.
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?
Local auto service managers offered these tips:
-- Fill up your gas tank before a storm that’s predicted to bring a lot of rain.
-- Avoid gas stations that have a lot of standing water.
-- Keep your receipt in case you have problems.
Feb 26, 2008 at 11:48 a.m.
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I was one of the victims of this. I will not give the name of the station as they are taking care of the bill as would be expected, but I would like to see some follow up on this story. Some valid points, concerns, and questions have been made by the readers. A bit of effort could land an interesting article, if not series.
I highly recommend this informative EPA memo:
http://www.epa.gov/oms/regs/fuels/rfg/wa...
Feb 24, 2008 at 3:33 p.m.
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At $1300, they ought to put it back together for free. Do you think a fuel filter for a BMW is gold plated?
Feb 24, 2008 at 3:19 a.m.
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back to the BMW the story said it took 6 hours to remove the tank, you do have to put it back in, which would take roughly about 6 hours. Also i would probably check to see how much a fuel filter is for a BMW i'm sure it's more than 20 dollars.
Feb 23, 2008 at 11:44 p.m.
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Weezer: Based on reading your previous posts, I have discovered that you had farm chores to do while you were an athlete in high school. It wouldn't be far fetched to think that you live(d) on a farm and that you might have a 500 gallon (or larger) above ground tank of farm grade diesel. If that 500 (or larger) gallon gas can has a bad seal at the fill point, there is a good chance that you could get water in the tank when it rains or when snow melts on the tank. How is this any different than the 10,000-15,000 gallon tanks that the gas stations have buried in the ground? The fill points for those tanks are located right at ground level. If there is standing water or melting snow around the fill points, the water can inadvertently get into the tanks during servicing or can seep into the tanks if the fill point has a bad seal. If you still think that these two tanks are not the same, please educate me on how they differ. I don't want to be told I'm wrong without being told why.
I agree that "WATER SHOULDN'T BE GETTING INTO FUEL TANKS", but there are several ways that water finds its way into the tanks. You are correct, you should be able to trust the people that you get gas from. I do not believe that it's the intent of the gas station owner or the attendant to "water down" your gas. I'm sure that the particular stations that were mentioned in the article probably need maintenance at the filler point. That's all I'
m getting at.
Feb 23, 2008 at 10:32 p.m.
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you dont understand that they are not the same. but it doesnt matter WATER SHOULDNT BE GETTING INTO FUEL TANKS. i dont want to go get gas and have my vehicle stall less than a mile down the road. we should be able to trust these people that we get gas from. thats all im getting at
Feb 23, 2008 at 9:55 p.m.
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weezer: My example of a gas can is no different than the underground tank. Both are containers designed to hold gas. I'm sorry that you could not see the parallel in my example. On another note, the article does not say that an underground tank had 90% water. The 90% figure was of a vehicle's gas tank.
Feb 23, 2008 at 9:25 p.m.
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this article has nothing to do with a "gas can."it has to do with underground tanks. it still should not be getting in no matter which way you look at it. especially the one that had 90% water.
Feb 23, 2008 at 3:28 p.m.
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Weezer: "If water is getting into the underground tanks, then gas should be able to get out."
If you have a gas can with an open lid, water could enter, but nothing will escape unless the can is overfilled. The lid to the underground tank is at the earth's surface. If you don't have a good seal at tank's opening, water can get it. The only time gas would come out is if the tank was overfilled or if the tank corrodes and develops holes. This second reason would be cause for concern.
Feb 23, 2008 at 3:26 p.m.
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garyprimer:
You can't empty a gas tank through a fuel line. Even when you run out of gas, the tank still has a gallon or two left in it. The fuel line enters the tank from the top and extends to the bottom, but not touching the bottom. The impressive thing about this story is that the only new part that needs to be replaced is the fuel filter, a $20 or less expense. The story cited a $1300 expense for 6 hours of labor and a filter, almost all of the cost is labor. $200+ an hour!!!
Feb 23, 2008 at 2:54 p.m.
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weezer, I put myself through high school and part of college working at various Kwik Trips and other gas stations. While this may not be indicative of all gas stations, this is my understanding.
A certain amount of room is required in any gas tank to allow for expansion and water contamination. Most stations go through gasoline quickly enough that this should not be an issue. I also believe that most have electronic monitors that alert staff when the tank is getting too full from water or even being overfilled by the gasoline delivery driver. Gas stations are also required to check water levels somewhat frequently (twice a week?) so there should be some warning.
I would be a bit concerned about stations that are less busy and those that have older tanks that might be as well monitored. I would think that the same people who check for percentage of water in gasoline would check for overflow of the tanks but I'm not sure.
Feb 23, 2008 at 1:57 p.m.
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if water is getting into the underground tanks then gas should be able to get out. why isnt anybody looking into that?
Feb 23, 2008 at 11:38 a.m.
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Can't the tank be drained from a fuel line and filled with fresh gasoline and a can of heet? Water in gasoline often forms from condensation in a tank that is partially filled with air, the lower the gas level, the more air you have. That is why it is important to use a gas line antifreeze additive in cold and changing weather. 90% water is hardly water in gas. It is more like gasoline-flavored water. It would take more than a can of heet to fix that.
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