Inspired by Pumping gas - a question

[laurie31]

I read someplace that one shouldn't talk on a cell phone while pumping gas as there is a risk (wich I presume is very small) of an explosion. I'm not much for talking while I pump gas, so that didn't concern me too much, but then it (sorry, can't remember where I read it) went on to say that you shouldn't get back in your car while the gas is pumping. I always did this in winter - it's too cold to stand out there! Also, and I know this sounds pathetic, but I get bored. I used to sit in my car and read while the gas pumps. Since I read about this, I have taken my book outside with me and read there while the gas pumps. Is it really unsafe to get back in the car? Lat year I had to con my DH into pumping gas for me the whole winter because I believed this was true. I won't go outside in the cold. I'm not a "winter person"

SO...can you talk on a cell and pump gas? Can you open the car door and get back inside? Or does DH get to keep pumping my gas until spring comes

Laurie

 

[Cindy B]

I don't know.. Since my state is entirely full serve, I never pump my gas.

I have seen warnings all over the pumps though. I guess maybe you shouldn't .

 

[jagmeister]

If I'm not mistaken, I think they tried some sort of experiment on MythBusters and busted that myth. But no need for DH to know. I can keep a secret if you can!

 

[smilie]

I saw a video of a girl who was on her cell phone started pumping gas then got in her car. when it was a full tank she got out to turn off the pump and it caused a fire explosion. They showed it to us at work to warn us, however, i don't know whether it was the cell phone or getting in or out of the car. But after seeing that video I stay at the pump until I'm done and never use my cell while pumping gas.

 

[Jenn Lynn]

OK, so should you not open and close the doors at all then? Sometimes I open the door to talk to DH or DD, put away my CC, etc.

 

[caitycaity]

whoops! since the dc law went into effect about not driving and using a cellphone, i always talk on my cellphone at the gas station.

no explosions here yet.

 

[bballmom56]

I saw the report on TV about explosions from getting in and out of the car. It had to do with the static electricity produced. I don't remember the solution, since I too am in a full-serve state. I don't even know how to pump gas!

I haven't heard about cell phones.

 

[poohtown]

i don't know about the cell phones, but.... if you go into the car while the gas is pumping, when you come out you have to touch the car before the pump to get rid of static electricity. It can cause the gas to catch fire - really.

 

[BeamsofLight]

Originally posted by laurie31
Is it really unsafe to get back in the car? Lat year I had to con my DH into pumping gas for me the whole winter because I believed this was true. I won't go outside in the cold. I'm not a "winter person"
Laurie

I'm not sure about the cell phone thing, although I have seen the signs around.

The getting in and out of the car part is supposed to be dangerous because of static electricity build-up. When your pants/shirt/coat/whatever rubs against the seats of the car, you could be building up a static charge (think grade school science when you rubbed a balloon on your hair, and then it 'attracted' your hair). If you have sufficient charge, when you touch the metal of the gas pump to remove it from your tank, you could generate a spark (like when you touch a door knob (or sibling .. lol )after walking across the carpet in winter). That spark could be sufficient to ignite the fumes that come up out of the tank. The danger would, theoretically, be higher in the winter because of the drier air (if you live in that kind of climate).

I've heard this before too, and actually saw an episode of Oprah when she had someone one who had started a fire that way. I have no idea what the odds of such a thing happening are, though. I guess better safe than sorry?

(edit: looks like all us static electricity fans posted at the same time .. heh)

 

[mmexpress]

Ok,
The cell phone causing gas to ignite is all a myth, however.
If you sit back in your car while your tank is filling your body can build up static electricity, then when you get up and grab the METAL nozzle you create a spark and BOOM!
This is why at most self-serve stations the little lever to lock the nozzle has been removed.

edit: looks like I was a little slow at typing. lol.

 

[caitycaity]

When your pants/shirt/coat/whatever rubs against the seats of the car, you could be building up a static charge

AHA! i have leather seats. perhaps this is why i have never had a problem.

 

[cobbler]

Yes they did an episode on Myth Busters on the cell phone gas explosion thing and it was busted. There was no way they could get any explosion from a cell phone.

So I think we are ok.

As for the static one, I have heard that one but don't know how accurate it is.

 

[BeamsofLight]

Originally posted by caitycaity
AHA! i have leather seats. perhaps this is why i have never had a problem.

I wondered about that when I was typing (well, not about *you* specifically, but leather-seat people in general. ). I imagine the 'danger' would be greater for us cloth seat folks. Interesting point.

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

I just want to say how much I envy Jersey people. I grew up in NJ, and I think it's just in my blood that I'm gas pump-challenged, and it's difficult to find a full-serve station where I live in RI. There's one on the way to my mother's house (25 miles away), and I've been known to coast there on empty rather than get out and pump my own at a closer station.

I have a hard enough time doing the charge card, choosing the type of gas, getting the nozzle off, actually pumping the gas (how DO they get it to stop at $XX.00? I usually end up spending something like $40.03), and getting the nozzle back on to be able to manage using a cell phone, speaking, or chewing gum for that matter.

I have heard about static electricity, but there's no way I'd leave the gas pumping without me holding on. I just picture it going flipping through the air like an escaped water hose.

I need to move back to Jersey!

 

[Lachesis00]

We love Mythbusters

Originally posted by cobbler
Yes they did an episode on Myth Busters on the cell phone gas explosion thing and it was busted. There was no way they could get any explosion from a cell phone.

So I think we are ok.

As for the static one, I have heard that one but don't know how accurate it is.

 

[caitycaity]

Originally posted by BeamsofLight
I wondered about that when I was typing (well, not about *you* specifically, but leather-seat people in general. ). I imagine the 'danger' would be greater for us cloth seat folks. Interesting point.

you know, the reason i prefer leather seats is because sometimes, depending on what kind of fabric i am wearing my butt gets stuck on the seat if it's cloth.

 

[battricia]

They showed on myth busters what happened with the getting in the car was that when you get back out, it's likely that there is a spark with friction between your pants and the car seat, if the spark happens to hit gas fumes or something it can cause an explosion. On the same show they tried to explode a car/gaspump with the cellphone, however they couldn't get it to work.

tricia.

 

[Serena]

I also heard it's not the cell phone, but the static electricity.


I've pumped my own gas since I was 16. It would be really nice if I could have someone do it for me, especially in the winter.

 

[iNTeNSeBLue98]

This appeared on a local PA tv station's website last year....

Hidden Danger At Pump: Static Electricity
Static Electricity Can Cause Fire, Explosion

POSTED: 4:39 p.m. EDT October 21, 2002
UPDATED: 4:40 p.m. EDT October 21, 2002

RAPHO TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- Winter is on the way, bringing with it cold, dry air and perfect conditions for static electricity to build up.

While a static shock may be annoying, static electricity near a gas pump is dangerous.

The next time you pull in to fill up, take a look at the warning signs posted near the pumps.

"I don't think people really look up there and read that warning. The only thing I know not to do around the gas pump is smoke," said Kim Arnold, of Mountville.

Take a closer look at that warning sign and you'll find out that static electricity is just as dangerous. It only takes one little spark to create an explosion and/or fire. You collect the static when you get back in your car after placing the gas nozzle in your tank.

"At that point, you can build up a little static charge by moving across the car seat due to the dryness in the air," said David Callahan, with American Petroleum.

"I make a lot of deliveries, 80 or so times in and out of the truck a day, and in dry winter, every time I close the door I get zapped," said Rob Horning, of Lancaster.

The dry winter months make a difference. News 8 reported that in the last four years, static related fires and explosions at gas pumps doubled during the cold winter months as compared to the other eight months of the year.

The best thing to do to avoid this situation is to stay outside your vehicle while refueling. Of course, that may be difficult on a cold winter day when the temperature is about 10 degrees.

If you must get back in the car during refueling, simply touch a piece of metal with your bare hand to discharge the static and avoid a potentially dangerous situation.
Copyright 2002 by TheWGALChannel.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


And a similar story out of the Philadelphia affiliate of the same network...http://www.nbc10.com/news/1771649/detail.html

I'm still looking for an article about cell phones. I thought they too were dangerous because of possible static charge, but maybe with newer technology it's no longer the issue it may have once been.

 

[DisneyVillain]

The cell phone one is a myth:
http://snopes.com/autos/hazards/gasvapor.asp

The static one is possibly true:
http://snopes.com/autos/hazards/static.asp

I didn't see that episode of Myth Busters, but they can't have proven this impossible. They would have to try it under all atmospheric conditions. Different wind speeds/directions, different temperatures, different barometric pressures, different humidity levels. And don't forget different pump models, different automobile models, and different fuel formulations. And don't forget that scientific method requires multiple trials of each scenario. Then, when you're done, you've demonstrated that it is either possible or it is unlikley, and not whether it has ever actually happened.