Gas pump accuracy?

At least in New Jersey, we have pump attendants that fill our tanks for us.

Up here in Canada, one sometimes sees signs warning to not use cell phones near the gas pumps. Is there any science to back this up?

What's the argument for and against this practice?

Why is that?

I've often wondered....

Self serve is illegal in NJ.

pump attendants will not overfill. most of the time, they leave the car when the it is being filled and when they come back the fill is complete. with no time to refill upto the brim, they just take off the nozzle when done. they also will not put gas when your engine is running or someone in the car is operating a mobile phone.

I suggest you watch the movie "Thank you for smoking", the ending says a lot about mobile phones, funny movie.

Why is a mobile phone dangerous?

The gas station owners will not buy the temperature compensated meters, even if the pump manufacturers offer them - it is not required by law, and they love the thought of selling their gas 1% to 2% short in the summer. Added profits, baby...

They did a radio interview on the subject of selling gas short out here, IIRC it was Al Rantel on KABC. One of the gas pump makers was told by a major customer (chain of independent stations) to take the compensated meter mechanism out of the catalog totally, they don't even want it visible as an option. If there was evidence it was even available they'd buy their replacement gas pumps from one of the other major makers.

But the temperature compensation IS required and installed on the wholesale metering when they load the tank trucks. We (the gas station) don't want to get shorted when we buy the gas, but it's just fine and dandy to short the retail customer when we sell it...

And there's a wrinkle you need to watch out for - chipped gas pumps. They change the ROM chips in the pump totalizer, where it counts the volume pulses from the totalizer and rings up the price display. Perfectly accurate up to the 5-gallon and 10-gallon test points where they'd get caught by Weights & Measures, then it starts selling way short after that.

The rigged pumps get busted when someone notices an obvious rip, like the pump telling them they put 100 gallons into their motorhome with a 95-gallon tank - and it was 1/4 full when they got there.

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Yes - it's literally a one-in-a-billion plus type thing, but your cellphone does have a little brush-type electric motor inside for the Vibrate function, and there's mechanical contact switches behind the keyboard that make minute little sparks when you press the keys. Given a healthy cloud of gasoline vapors it does produce enough energy to light them off, it does not take much.

I tell people all the time when I see it - it is NOT the law in the US, but it's simply a good idea to back off 10 feet from the pump and yack on the phone, or the two-way radio, or do anything with any battery operated device in a potentially flammable atmosphere. And don't take any active moves like answering or hanging up a call when right next to the nozzle. A tiny little bit of paranoia can be healthier for you.

Think about it. One in a billion is really good odds - unless you're the one, then it sucks. Let someone else be the one. ;-)

They do make a few phones and two-way radios that are FM rated for Type 1 Division 1 Explosive Atmospheres, but they ain't cheap. The refineries and fuel distribution tank farms buy them for use on the grounds, nobody else bothers.

There's more hazard from getting back in the car while the gas pumps, because you can build up a serious static electricity charge on your clothes. A healthy static ZAP from your hand to the dispenser nozzle on a very dry day can be enough to light off the fumes. That is not a one in a billion, that's somewhere down in the low millions.

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"sharx35" >>>

Actually, I had c-sections, so it was never dilated.

:-P

Natalie

MUCH funnier book.

Of course, people who don't read are missing out on all the fun.

And that's how it should be even for people who pump their own.

To stop idiots from hurting themselves or others and to save Punjab and Singh from loosing their jobs ;)

mike

Just one more thing that adds to the price of gas at the pump.

mike

You are NOT kidding.

Compare "Hitch Hiker's Guide", the book, to "Hitch Hiker's Guide" the movie. A much better book!

How is that cloud possible with vapor recovery hoses?