Do you know what precautions you should take when filling up a portable gas container?

Here are 5 things to remember if you use portable gas containers:

1. According to the Provincial Fire Code, the only portable containers you can dispense gas into must be CSA or ULC approved.
2. Gas expands as it warms. When filling a portable container, remember to leave an air space of about 5% just in case the gas expands.
3. Do not fill any container while it is inside a vehicle, a vehicle’s trunk, pick-up bed or any surface other than the ground. Fumes could collect posing a serious fire threat. When a container is sitting on a non-grounded surface, like a plastic liner in the back of a truck, it is possible to have a static spark ignite the gas fumes. Remove the approved container from the vehicle and place it on the ground and away from the vehicle before filling.
4. Keep the nozzle in contact with the container during filling. This lessens the chance of a spark occurring between the nozzle and the container.
5. Never engage a latch-open device (these are found on pumps where you don’t have to hold the nozzle) to fill a portable container. This type of container does not generate sufficient back pressure to turn off the pump.

Please remember these safety procedures when dispensing your own fuel into portable containers.