Does anyone know how much E-85 you can legally transport without requiring a HazMat endorsement or anything on your license? Also, does it need to be transported in a certain type of certified tank or container? My friend can get a 100 gallon diesel storage tank, but I don't know if it's actually certified for fuel or anything. We have to drive almost an hour to the nearest station that carries E-85, but would really like to take advantage of the benefits from using it. Thanks for any insight.

 

110 gallons total including the fuel in your vehicles fuel tank. Anything over and you have to be placarded. There are two ways to go about containers really. You have the smart way, and the not-so smart way and of course some gray area in between. You can google title 49 for most of this. Personally, having owned an E85 distribution company, you are best transporting in sealed steel drums with an anti-corrosion liner similar to the VP cans. If you transport or store for that matter, E85 in an untreated steel container, they will corrode after a short period. There are several companies, hazmat pac is one of them, and you can purchase the correct steel containers from them. The steel drums are much safer for storing fuel given their higher resistance to heat then say plastic containers. Providing that you are not transporting commercially, you can generally get away with just standard containers regardless of their construction; think of the VP plastic containers that many many racers use to transport fuel back and forth. That being said, a plastic container such as the VP ones or Summit are a second option for transporting, but just be aware of their non-ability to withstand as much heat in the advent of a fire. I have had first hand experiences with steel containers in a fire and even with direct flames, they held up fine. Another note, not too sure on the area where you live, but the storage of type III flammable liquids is another thing to look into.

Just read title 49 and call your local fire marshal.

 

X2

1000# or more of this class puts you into the hazmat driver requirement. Generally considered to be 110 gal. Make sure the barrels are secure. A few guys use 110 gal bolt in pickup bed tanks but these may need to be ID'ed per state DOT regs.

Ben- how long will the unlined steel barrel (such as an oil barrel) really last- ok for 1 over winter season if kept up off the floor on 2x's if one cannot find a lined one?

 

I've seen them go bad in as little as 1 month. I did a test where I purchased about 16 unlined/un-treated steel drums and tested them all in different conditions. I found that in the cases where they started to corrode in as little as a month, they were filled less then 1/8th capacity and stored as such. I found that with untreated steel drums that were routinely filled and emptied on a weekly basis, on average lasted between 4-6 months.

 

Great info! Thank you gentlemen.

 

How long would a plastic drum last? I have one of those thick blue 55 gallon barrels that I want to store my E85 in. I know they aren't as safe as steel drums, but I'm sure they last longer right?

 

They won't corrode.

 

I used one of those for the past two years, and I didnt notice any side effects from at least 7 months of using e85 out of it/ storing it. My closest station is about 3 hours away, so I had to fill one of those up and bring it back. Probably not the smartest thing I've done, but it worked just fine the past two years for me.

I put the barrel on some 2x4's so its not just resting on the ground too btw.

 

I might just get 2 of those barrels and fill them to about 40 gallons each to allow more expansion due to heat. and I'll definitely put them on something with an emergency catch in case of a leak or something. Thanks for the info.

 

I use a 5 gallon pharmaceutical grade plastic container that is designed to have pharmaceutical grade 100% ethanol in it. Strong yet flexible.

I've been pulled over once when I was logging 3rd gear pulls in this pretty much unpopulated area because someone reported suspicious activity. Lucky me, he pulled up behind me and flipped the lights when I was already pulled over on the side of the road because I was tuning. He looked at the container and asked what is that for, a meth lab? I laughed, but he had his serious face on, so I explained that it was a fuel container.

He went on and on about how he thought it wasn't certified to be used as a container for fuel (I didn't tell him it was for e85 though). Right, those cheap *** gas containers that they sell at gas stations is way more safe than mine. If you attempted to smash em both, the cheapo would break first, while mine would have just flexed/expanded.

I'm pretty sure everything I said went right over his head.

 

He was probably curious why everything smelled like corn liquor

 

CFR 49 is your best friend right now. I wouldn't recommend trying to cheat the system either. I am a HAZMAT driver for the military and I will tell you that the fines are high as hell and stack up fast if you do get caught, so I would seriously recommend looking it up for your state. Your DOT will also know what the legal limit is. You will more than likely be told by your fire dept to contact them.

 

i use a 35 gallon plastic drum. usually empty in 3 weeks.

 

captain obvious here, i know e 85 is flammable but is it as volitale as regular unleaded as far as from static sparks and such? filling these plastic containers and sliding them in and out of truck beds and back seats (smaller containers) it should be noted that static is a huge issue. i am considering switching to e85 in the supra and possibly the evo and would have to do the huge plastic containers as my closest station is 25 miles the other direction from my 80 mile commute everyday. so just wondering the precautions (other than the obvious) needed in transporting and storing these large containers? most people dont know the danger of pumping fuel into a truck bed that has a plastic liner so just wondering if the e85 is similar or has different precautions?

 

you should be ok transporting it.