Did something dumb today.

[Resonator]

It could be worse. A friend of mine worked for a company that did gas station construction and maintenance. He got an urgent call one weekend to have an underground storage tank pumped out immediately. Seems a tanker truck driver unfamiliar with the station, mixed up which color coded covers were to go with which fuel tank...

[Don P]

I've heard of someone transferring fuel into the fresh water tanks while out to sea  ;) :D.

[Southside]

A large part of Florida has a mess right now because someone at the dock mixed gas and diesel, then delivered it to a whole lot of filling stations across the state.  What is odd about that is at the dock and bulk tank levels of distribution the couplers are incompatable for the different fuels, so how did that happen? 

[K-Guy]

What is odd about that is at the dock and bulk tank levels of distribution the couplers are incompatable for the different fuels, so how did that happen? 

Never underestimate the power of an idiot!! smiley_jester

[Crossroads]

I did pretty much the same thing about 5 years ago, but after I topped off my main tank, I started filling my auxiliary tank. After a few minutes I happened to look down at the pump and noticed the price was different from what the sign said. The sad part is that I didn't even need fuel, I already had 60 gallons on board, which was more than enough to get home. So, I ruined 60 gallons of fuel and got to spend 2 more days in post falls idaho. This was when I was buying the property we now live on. I still have about 40 gallons of that "hot fuel" for starting fires

[SawyerTed]

My Dad did that one time - diesel in gas tank though.  He went in and told the station clerk.   She gave him a number for a hazmat vacuum service that they had used previously. 

They came and removed the fuel from his truck at the station. IIRC $125 after they gave him some credit for the fuel.  He refilled with gas.  The truck never had any problems related to that incident.  

[firefighter ontheside]

That would have been nice to have someone come to the station and take care of it there.  I just came back from the shop where my truck is.  I took them 10 gallons of diesel to put back in after they drain the tank and clean it out.  

[doc henderson]

Dr. Slomka will tell you to buy Mercedes.  His is diesel, and his wife's is gas.  you can guess what happened when she took his on a trip.  the car ran a few feet, and a sensor shut it down.  to the Mercedes dealer to fix, and they do nothing cheap, and leave nothing to chance.  It was in the thousands if that makes you feel better.  I think they even pulled the tank and flushed it.  a bit much maybe.

[firefighter ontheside]

I've always wanted a diesel Subaru, but they never came to America.  Maybe that's a good thing, because that would probably happen if we had one.  I have no doubt that driving the truck with the gas in it would cause thousands of damage.  He is going to drop my tank.  He said that's easier than trying to siphon it.  They do not have a drain at the bottom.  That would be easier and I don't understand why they don't have a drain.

[Southside]

Imagine the number of DIY hazmat spills if tanks had a drain. The old mil-spec 6.2's would run on straight gas. Whole training troop had to do a bunch of extra PT after discovering that tid bit. Truth be told that old bus never ran better than it did on those three tanks. 

[rusticretreater]

There would also be tons of fuel theft happening if they had a drain, accidental deaths of DIYs or thieves, or pranks(which could turn deadly).

[Jim_Rogers]

Back in the mid 1980's I drove a tank truck and delivered gasoline and diesel to gas station that the company owned.
All the fill pipes at the gas station had the same fitting on top. So you could use your elbow and hoses to hook up to deliver your product to a tank. All products are color coded for which tank is which.
Back then we had regular leaded gas, unleaded, and super unleaded. At one location the company owned a section filling station side by side. The second one sold diesel.
I had to park in a totally different area to hook up to the diesel tanks.
The way the elbows worked is that the vapor in the ground tank would come up the pipe on the outside of the center pipe, through a hose and back into the truck tank. This was supposed to cut down on air pollution by capturing the vapor and taking it back to the gas loading terminal.

One day, while delivering gas, I accidently delivered leaded gas to the super unleaded tank. I didn't realize my mistake until the vent hose filled up with gas and dripped a little out at the fitting. I had to wait until the sold enough to disconnect my hoses.

I told the boss, and we had to pump all the leaded gas super gas mix out of the super tank to the regular tank because if they tested the super tank and found leaded gas in there, it was a $10,000 fine. So, we had some really nice leaded gas for a while.

Jim Rogers

PS. when I worked there as a gas attendant, I guy came in once with a diesel car and had me put a few gallons of regular gas into his tank, it was wintertime. He said he did that so that the diesel wouldn't gel up on him.

[Resonator]

I've heard of that with truckers in the old days, thinning the diesel in their saddle tanks with a few gallons of gasoline when it was below 0. 

Another fuel story, years ago I worked driving semi hauling hot-mix asphalt from a portable plant doing highway work. The upper management wanted to be "green", and burn used waste oil in the burner that heated the drum that cooked the asphalt. They got a tanker load from an auto parts store that allowed anybody to dispose of their oil there. The asphalt plant had issues trying to get the fire hot enough, and that brought work to a halt. They found out they were trying to burn parts cleaner, tranny fluid, antifreeze, and any other automotive liquid mixed with the motor oil. 

[Don P]

Yup, you could siphon it mostly out, fill with diesel and go on your way. The rest of those cleanups is about profit.

[firefighter ontheside]

My truck is back home and in the garage.  He dropped the tank and drained it and then wiped it clean on the inside.  Replaced the fuel filters.  Now it says it has 36 miles before empty.  I better not forget to get fuel on the way to work.

[sawguy21]

I put 6"x6" DIESEL FUEL ONLY decals on our pickups, seems some of the crew had trouble paying attention. Fortunately no engines were destroyed. I never could get some of them to fuel up before dropping the truck off for the incoming crew, it was a pita dealing with vehicles those jokers brought in running on the fumes.

[firefighter ontheside]

I remembered to get fuel this morning.  27 gallons, which means when my truck says its running on fumes it actually has about 7 gallons in it.  So, between the 20 gallons or so of wasted fuel, $180 for the repair and assuming about $100 for the tow, it could have been a lot worse.

[DbltreeBelgians]

Be glad you didn't put DEF in the fuel tank. It seems to happen a lot. If ran that way your repair and tow bill would pale in comparison to the repairs on a truck with DEF in the fuel tank. If I recall your truck doesn't use DEF so not an issue but anyone that does I've heard upwards of $10,000 - $16,000.  And not a covered warranty repair. Just saying.

Brent

[Walnut Beast]

Never put gas in the Diesel truck tank until yesterday. Was at a small town elevator with a credit card self pay setup that was in a different location and punch the number in with a not normal pump setup and grabbed the wrong one and started pumping and my wife said your putting gas in 😂. Ran over there and stopped it luckily less than 3/4 gallon. So got the right stuff in and put in 20 gallons got back on the beaten path and added Howes then topped the tank off.

Just run it on gas 😂. 
https://youtu.be/s7bE-pTYmNI?si=pO_dHo343b48mKMw

[DbltreeBelgians]

I've seen that video. Hunter didn't give a hoot about trying to destroy it. That dude does some crazy stuff. 

Brent

[Crossroads]

$180 is pretty good deal. I was happy to pay the $340 (2 tanks) after being quoted $1400 from a bigger shop. 

[firefighter ontheside]

My truck does take def.  We will try to avoid that one at all costs.

[thecfarm]

I was mowing the field. Most times the wife does it. She loves to mow. But she started it and was not feeling good the other day, so I was pressed into service. 
We do it with a 30hp tractor and a 5 foot bushog. She does it once every couple weeks. We don't let it get 3 foot tall and then do it once a year.
I was mowing down by the edge of the woods. The grass don't grow much on the edge of the woods. The grass was not even an inch high.
I was moving right along mowing the grass, keeping away from the low hanging branches. Many hang down about 5 feet off the ground. The limbs need another trimming.
So as I said, I was moving right along and keeping away from the low limbs. I saw some small popple bushes trying to grow up on the edge of the woods, maybe a foot high. Well, I thought I will just whip right over there and nip those pesty things right off. So, I veered off to the right and cut those pesty things right off. We do have a fiberglass roof over the tractor. Just as I was doing a fine job on those pesty bushes, one of those low hanging branches, that I was keeping away from, hits the roof and tries to take me off the tractor. Remember I was moving right along. I did not plan on being under those low hangers but had to get those popple bushes. After fighting that limb that almost took my head off, I realized about 20 feet away that my glasses were not on my head!!!!
Tractor is stopped and I start looking. I can kinda see without the glasses and I was looking. I knew where it happened but thought the glasses might of went flying or maybe the bushog ate them. So I looked and I looked. Kept waiting for the crunch sound, meaning I just stepped on them. I looked for 15 minutes, on the tractor too and on the bushhog. I was going to go up and get the wife. Another pair of eyes sure can help. But I looked for a few more minutes and I found them!!! But happiness was short lived, only one lense. The search is back on. I took a stick and put that into the ground and put my gloves where I found the glasses. I looked where I found the glasses but no lense. I spend another 10 minutes looking and back to where I found them 2-3 times. Back one more time to the same spot I looked 2-3 times. That time it payed, off I found the missing lense!!! I was able to press it back in. I am back in seeing business again. 
I need new glasses, but just would like to have a pair while I am waiting for the new ones.
Not the first time I lost them.
Once I was trimming some low hanging branches off at just about dark. A branch came down and hit me in the face and I thought, it's almost dark, call it a night. Back to the house I go. I always remove my work clothes in the entrance way. I reach up to remove my glasses and they are not there!!! I knocked them off with that limb. I knew where it happened. I waited until morning to go look for them. I just about walked right to them. They was right where I thought they was.
Another time I lost them.
I was looking for a lost chain that I use with my 3 pt logging winch. I was kicking the ground to see if I could find it. Well, all I found was a hornets nest in the ground. I never saw the nest, but felt the hornets. They was around my face and not making me happy. I had my hands just a moving as I was running away. After I stopped running I realized my glasses was gone!!! This is where raspberry bushes are 4 feet tall. I went looking and found them in just a few minutes. 
Been lucky 3 times so far.
Probably will get a new pair and then I will lose them and won't be able to find them.

[beenthere]

When I get a new pair, I keep the old pair for backup.

Very glad you found them.

Similar happened to me when I tossed a small broken branch out of the way fall of '21. Grabbed the glasses and flicked them off. No idea how far either.
While looking, afraid of stepping on them. 
But there they were, just laying amongst the leaves.



  

[rusticretreater]

I was in a creek working on a tree felled by a storm.  Stumbled, branch across the face, plunged into the water, glasses gone.  Tried to find them but all I did was stir up the muck.  I wear a leash on em now.