SIPHONING GAS??

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boondocks - 21 Aug 2006 00:41 GMT

I am trying to get the gas out of my 96 accord before the mechanics drop
out the gas tank. It is full..

I thought "no problem, I'll just siphon out the gas and put it in my
600000lb van..."

I tryed for an hour to get the darn hose down into the tank with no
success...

Is there some sort of trick to get the hose in (Besides spitting on it...)

BD

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Eric - 21 Aug 2006 10:45 GMT

> I am trying to get the gas out of my 96 accord before the mechanics drop
> out the gas tank. It is full..
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
>
> Is there some sort of trick to get the hose in (Besides spitting on it...)

I hope you weren't going to try siphoning the gas by mouth, that's really
not the brightest idea. Anyways, most techs would just pull the drain plug
out of the bottom of the tank. Of course, you'll need to jack up the car
and use a suitable container to collect the gas. Don't use a plastic one.
I know of a shop that burned down from this and it took a few other
businesses along with it. Someone was draining gas out of a car and their
drop light fell. The spark from bulb started the inferno. It burned hot
enough to soften the frame of a car that had it's front end jacked up such
that the front end was visibly bent at a downward angle. To answer your
question, perhaps your hose is neither small enough nor flexible enough. By
the way, that must be some big van...

Eric

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Dave Garrett - 21 Aug 2006 19:52 GMT

> > I am trying to get the gas out of my 96 accord before the mechanics drop
> > out the gas tank. It is full..
[quoted text clipped - 18 lines]
> question, perhaps your hose is neither small enough nor flexible enough. By
> the way, that must be some big van...

Many vehicles have a restrictor of some sort about a foot and a half or
so downstream of the gas cap, intended to prevent siphoning. Doesn't
matter how small or flexible your hose is, you will probably not be able
to get it past the restrictor if one is present.

I discovered this the hard way last year after we'd evacuated from the
path of a hurricane, and wound up 120 miles from home at a relative's
house. Our car didn't have enough gas to make it home, and there was
none to be had immediately anywhere in town. There were two cars in the
garage with full tanks at the house we were staying at, and the owners
were perfectly willing to let us siphon gas out of the tanks, but they
both had restrictors in the filler neck. I tried several different
diameter tubes, and gave up when I couldn't get a 1/4" tube far enough
in to draw gas out. There are probably ways around this with tools
slightly more advanced than a length of rubber tube and a gas can, but
that was what I had to work with at the time.

Dave

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TeGGeR® - 22 Aug 2006 00:58 GMT

> Many vehicles have a restrictor of some sort about a foot and a half
> or so downstream of the gas cap, intended to prevent siphoning.
> Doesn't matter how small or flexible your hose is, you will probably
> not be able to get it past the restrictor if one is present.

The '99 Toyota Tercel hasn't got one of those. I discovered that when my
lawn mower ran out of gas a few weeks ago and I'd had too much beer by that
point to risk driving to the gas station. :)

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TeGGeR®

The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ
www.tegger.com/hondafaq/

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