Equipment Failure Prevention

Proper equipment installation, use, and maintenance are critical to preventing fuel site failures caused by equipment or fuel contamination. Regular equipment testing and maintenance procedures can catch potential problems before they occur and save the site operator and fleet manager unnecessary headaches and expense.

It is equally important for the site operator to keep thorough records of the site's design, equipment installations or conversions, maintenance, containment area evaluations, tank monitoring, and inspections.

Some maintenance procedures are common sense, but easy to overlook, such as a daily "walk-by" to make certain equipment is functioning properly or to ensure no leaks are visible. The filters used on fuel dispensers are replaced regularly, based on the volume of fuel being pumped through the system. Typically, the replacement cycle for gasoline stations is every 3 to 6 months. With E85, a smaller filter (1- to 2-micron) is used. A typical replacement cycle may be used with E85. If fuel contamination were to occur, the smaller filter would clog and slow dispensing, which would indicate clean up action is required.

Other maintenance will be dictated to the fuel site operator by federal, state, or local regulations. In general, these include the notification/registration of any new storage tanks or a change in their use; specific leak detection requirements; leak monitoring tests; and corrosion protection tests.