Just had quite a scare.

[MrBeast]

So I run a small towing company, I have a couple of cars that have been abandoned on my lot. The time has come to take them to scrap. Before I can do so however I had to pull the gas tanks.

First car up was a 95 Ford Escort Wagon. I was working on cutting the exhaust pipe with the trusty blue wrench when all of the sudden the car burst into flames underneath.

Apparently the reason the car was abandoned was because the fuel line had cracked and the car quit. It was impounded from a gas station, and suprise suprise the gas tank was plumb full.

Luckily when ever using the torch I keep a hose near by and I was able to rapidly extinguish the flames that had enveloped the under belly of the car.

The lesson being boys and girls, safety is always important, I was lucky that I planned ahead and brought the hose over, it is a habbit that I got into years ago, today it might have saved my shop, and possibly my life.

Had I not had the hose there I would have had to drag it over and by then it would have been too late and the fire department would have been putting out the car for me.

Please be safe everyone.

[fastwillie 696969]

did you save the gas ?

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by fastwillie 696969

did you save the gas ?

Its for sale, about 30 gallons, just a little water in it.

[71swb4x4]

These days that tank of gas was worth almost than the car for scrap!!

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by 71swb4x4

These days that tank of gas was worth almost than the car for scrap!!

Lets see 18 gallon tank of gas@ 3.799 a gallon: $68.38
3200 lb ford escort @ 145.00/ton: $232.00

Getting closer isnt it!

[68C15]

pretty close to how this happened
http://keloland.com/NewsDetail6162.cfm?Id=111884

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by 68C15

pretty close to how this happened
http://keloland.com/NewsDetail6162.cfm?Id=111884

wow, I wonder what the deal was. that is a really sad story.

The real question is, how in the heck did the fire spread so fast.

That right there is a good reason for keeping a clean shop.

[Maxxd07]

About 3 or so years ago one of the towing/salvage yards in town had this happen and it didnt end so well. They lost their whole building and everything in it. The building was only about 70 years old so they got to update substantially with a nice big fancy new shop/office. That building was burning along time and there was a ton of smoke, as you could see it from many many miles away.

[68C15]

they were draining a gas tank with a siphon hose and 5 gallon buckets. then someone dropped an incandescent shop light.

I use an electric pump, a 30 gallon steel drum with sealed bungs, and LED drop lights.
fire scares the crap outta me.

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by 68C15

they were draining a gas tank with a siphon hose and 5 gallon buckets. then someone dropped an incandescent shop light.

I use an electric pump, a 30 gallon steel drum with sealed bungs, and LED drop lights.
fire scares the crap outta me.

I have had a couple of runins with fire, and there is nothing more helpless than the feeling of not being able to put one out.

Caught my field on fire on time welding up my neighbors semi trailer, that really sucked. Good thing the VFD is only 3 miles away from where my old place was, almost lost my 72.

[Maxxd07]

Being on a VFD its suprising what you can see, such as how you may do or have done something one way for a while and someone else does it the same way and they start their shop or field or house on fire. Shure makes a guy watch what he is doing and how he is doing it.

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by Maxxd07

Being on a VFD its suprising what you can see, such as how you may do or have done something one way for a while and someone else does it the same way and they start their shop or field or house on fire. Shure makes a guy watch what he is doing and how he is doing it.

In my case we were in a severe drout, hadnt had any rain in almost 2 months, everything was dry and dusty, and it was actually the grinder that started it of all things.

I was grinding out a weld that I had just done because the wind blew my shielding gas away and the weld came out porus, it was still fairly hot when I hit it with the grinder.

[Maxxd07]

Yea it sure doesnt take much. I have started a sunflower field on fire while combining and there was just enough burning I couldnt put out myself that I had to call one of the trucks out. It sure is a helpless feeliing.

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by Maxxd07

Yea it sure doesnt take much. I have started a sunflower field on fire while combining and there was just enough burning I couldnt put out myself that I had to call one of the trucks out. It sure is a helpless feeliing.

Yeah, how much you want to bet the next time I tell my girlfriend to stand there and hold the hose she doesnt think it is so dumb!

[Maxxd07]

There ya go! FYI, if its E85 that hose wont do much for you but spread out the fuel, if its dripping or pooled on the floor. That stuff is hard to put out.

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by Maxxd07

There ya go! FYI, if its E85 that hose wont do much for you but spread out the fuel, if its dripping or pooled on the floor. That stuff is hard to put out.

that is why I also have the ABC extinguisher.

[Maxxd07]

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by Maxxd07

Also made me glad I paid the insurance today...

[60ratrod]

i occasionally catch myself doing something dumb like adding any flamable fluid to my vehicles while smoking, or priming a carburator with gas while i'm smoking, or at least attempting to. then i realize how stupid i am being and either finish the ciggarette first(after i put down the flamable fluid and step away), or i put down the cigarette and finish pouring the fluids. i bet the guy was smoking when the place went up in flames. us smokers can be really stupid sometimes

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by 60ratrod

i occasionally catch myself doing something dumb like adding any flamable fluid to my vehicles while smoking, or priming a carburator with gas while i'm smoking, or at least attempting to. then i realize how stupid i am being and either finish the ciggarette first(after i put down the flamable fluid and step away), or i put down the cigarette and finish pouring the fluids. i bet the guy was smoking when the place went up in flames. us smokers can be really stupid sometimes

Happened to a guy in my home town, He was working on a carburator, trying to dial it in, it was running really really really rich, the car sputtered and back fired as he was leaning over it. The gasoline squirted back up in his face force fed by a plume of air, that ignited when it hit the cigarette hanging from his mouth.

It burnt all of the skin off of his face, destroyed his eyes blinding him permanently, he died about a week later.

Let me tell you, you never feel so stupid after something like that has happened and you were not aware and you walk into the shop asking to talk to the guy.

Funny how quiet a place can get.

[treveiger]

Were taking a old van to the scrap yard soon and i need to drop the gas tank so i ran it until nearly empty then filled it full of water then took a floor jack with a pointed bolt standing up on the jack and punctured the gas tank and let it run out. Still need to cut it off but i think im pretty safe of it not exploding on me also ran wather through the motor until it quit so i knew theres no fuel or at least very little in the lines.