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Fuel Caddy, I'm lovin it! One year Update, the flame has flickered!

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3.5K views 20 replies 8 participants last post by  Ridgetopboy  
#1 ·
Last summer I got tired of the various gas cans I had lying around especially all the ones with the Rube Goldberg EPA nozzles and also wanted something the kiddo could use to refill the mower w/o having to hoist a 5-gallon can up as it weigh about 1/2 as much as her. Another driving factor was at out local grocery store we accrue gas point and eventually get gas for or well under $1 a gallon and can get up to 25 gallons. So I looked around and settled on the 14 gallon Scepter fuel caddy for around $125. I figured it would pay for itself in short order using gas points. It works either by gravity or you can keep squeezing the handle and it will siphoned. I had though about rigging a hoist in the shed to lift it up so it could be gravity flow but that limits use to only the garage. Perusing YT I came across several videos where people adapted compressed air to drive the gasoline out. Again the air compressor is a decent idea but limited to being close to a power outlet. I then stumbled onto a guy that used a rechargeable ball inflator and decided to go that route. The idea is you only need about 5 psi for it to effectively dispense fuel so a low volume low pressure pump actually works pretty well.

I have been using this set up all winter and have dispensed 45 or so gallons of fuel and am absolutely satisfied with it. The biggest user turns out to be my DRZ400. With a 2-1/2 gallon tank and 100 mile range I found every time I went out and put on more than 20 miles I stopped to top up the fuel tank. Now I just top'er up in the garage and not have 15 $2 transactions every month at the local gas station.

For those savvy folks FBMP or CL is a great place to look for used Flow-N-Go's I ended up buying another thank (minus the hose) for $45.

I have also made a air drive for it



Image


Do this at your own risk. If you have any doubt DO NOT do this mod. If you think you will have any doubt or any concerns DO NOT do this. If you are uncomfortable with this mod DO NOT do it. Also no need to mention grounding. You cannot ground plastic so it's a moot point.

I am not asking for you opinion on this mod or if you think it is safe or not. I am an adult and have made the decision to try it. Much like darksiding I'm tired of reading about it I wanna see how it works or doesn't.


What I needed to modify my 14-gallon flow-n-go more the filler cap to accept very low pressure compressed air to drive the fuel instead of using gravity or the siphon handle.

1/4" female x male x female brass tee
1/4" female x Schrader adapter
1/4" adjustable/proportional relief valve set to 5 PSI

1. Install the filler cap on the F-N-G stand it upright and see what slot is oriented most toward the top and note it. Remove the gas cap
2. Unscrew and pull off the manual tank vent (black plastic doodas under the gas cap in th epic below)
3. Dope up the threads on the tee and, relief and schrader.
4. Screw in the tee and line up one outlet with the slot that is most towards the top. This is the relief port.
5. Screw in the schrader and relief
6. Inflate the tank to 6 or 7 PSI. Do this carefully and slowly. Keep checking with a pressure gauge so you do not overfill.
7. Once pressurized to 6 or PSI adjust eh relief until you hear it release some pressure. When it stops check the pressure in the tank. Adjust until you get it to stop reliving at 5 PSI.


Automotive tire Font Auto part Bullet Circle


Relief set to 5 PSI and after set the ball inflator is screwed on and set to 5 PSI, turned on and once pressure builds you can start to dispense fuel

Hood Fender Gas Automotive lighting Auto part




Image
 
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#2 · (Edited)
Interesting part of these current idiotic EPA-mandated fuel nozzles is how much a 5-gal container will pressurize as temps change. Lots of air comes out when you crack the nozzle, I’m sure all that fuel vapor is safe! That said, 5psi should be no issue.
 
#3 · (Edited)
Yeah, they do swell up like poison dog. I found that I spilled about 10X more fuel trying to get the EPA nozzle to work verses just pour it it w/o a spout.

Maybe the developer of the EPA fuel can nozzle is the BIL of the BMW keyless ride inventor??
 
#5 ·
As I've gotten older, I've taken to using the smaller 2.5 gal metal cans, made by Wavian. They are expensive, but they take a lot of abuse and seal well. Even ethanolized gas can stay good for well over a year if it's sealed in a metal can. You can import plain old spouts for them from GB and other countries as they use the standard NATO small neck.

I've used 55 gallon drums for gas as well with the old school hand crank pump with a self shut-off pump handle. Gasoline rated electric pumps tend to be pretty expensive, but having a gas station at home is awfully nice.

I also have some 30+ year old poly 5 gallon cans made by Rubbermaid that swell up like a bloated tick if they are filled and then allowed to get hot. Amazingly, they continue to not leak and soldier on after all those years. They have regular old spouts so I don't plan to ever get rid of them. HDPE certainly has a good service life with gasoline.
 
#6 · (Edited)
At work we use 2-1/2 and 5 gallon metal cans and unless you have a wide fuel opening they are a disaster as they flow a lot of fuel very quickly. I had originally fooled with the idea of a 32 gallon fuel caddy with a hand pump but it would have been a chore to load/unload it onto the truck even using the motorcycle lift as an elevator. It's also sizable (take up more floor space than I want to give up) a and we'll honestly I just do not need that much fuel at home. I do have a gas station about 150 yards from my house I'm just trying to limit the 100 extra $4 transactions per year for small quantities of gasoline and the hassle of going to get it.

The 14 gallon caddy seemed to be the best compromise. Good bit of fuel storage in a small footprint that is light enough for me to load/unload without mechanical aid. The nozzle makes dispensing fuel very easy with no lifting up a gas can. While it's not super fast dispensing it good enough for loading a couple of gallons into the mower or motorcycle.

As it were right after I bought my 1st F-N-G I found another on FBMP sans the hose. I got it for $45 and over the winter I use it for kerosene for my garage heater. NIce thing there was I used a small section of garden hose as the fuel hose to top up the heater. It was nice having 14 gallons of kerosene in reserve as the nearest gas station that sell it is about 5 miles away.

4/23/25 Update this responce:

I mention the MC lift to load/unload turns out its easier than lifting the filled 14 gallon flow-n-go in/out of the Tacoma or especially the 4-runner. The filled 14 gallons tote is light enough to muscle around but if I don't have to lift 100lbs that makes me happy.

I also mention getting a 32 gallon gas caddy but didn't want to give up the floor space or need that much fuel on hand. Turns out buying the additional flow-n-go takes now takes up the same floor space or possible a bit more than one roll around gas caddy and I have the same general fuel holding capacity while decreaseing the number of potential leak points aka the valves at the bottoms of the flo-n-go's.

This past winter I have even gone back to a 5 gallon fuel container for kerosene and a bulb pump. While I don;t have the luxury of 14 gallons on hand with 5 gallon can I can put it on my bike to get a refill and again I don't have the potential for the valve at the bottom of the flow-n-go to leak.

I also had one of the flow-n-go valves develope a excessive leak. They are a ball valve that is a two piece design and to get it to seal you can tighten it with a hex key. Basically squeezing th etwo outter piece of the valve assembly against the ball. Not a big deal but the ball had to be tighted so much the on/off handle was so tight I broke it trying to actuate the 1/4 turn ball valve. Looked for a new valve assembly online and they are not avalaible as an individual piece. Luckly I noticed the 1/4 turn levers on my garden hose splittter were similar and with a bit of filing got it to work.

I really wanted the f-n-go to work as the concept is great. Unfortunately it didn't meet my expectations.
 
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#9 ·
PerazziMx14 Great idea! The nearest gas station to my place is ~ 11 miles away and we experience frequent power outages. Keeping a supply of gas around the place is a necessary evil and a PITA . So I found brand new F-N-G on Craigslist as you suggested paid $60 for it and found the brass fittings on Amazon so I thought I'd post the links here for the group to make it easy.
Tee: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08L9RFKV1?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
Pressure relief Valve: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M12WYHQ?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
Shrader Valve adaptor: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D1BYZGLJ?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1
BTW: Costco has a great little battery inflator for $30 which is also great to have in your travel kit.
 
#10 ·
This is a pretty neat idea. I keep a couple of 6g fuel containers around that I fill with 100LL at the airport for all my lawn and garden machines around the house. Yeah, avgas is expensive but I don't have to add anything to it for it to keep well in things that sit idle for months. I use it in all my premix 2T things as well (chainsaws, blowers, etc). And I have the same problem when my daughter needs to refuel the mower with lifting a 6g container and not watering the ground with 100LL.

We have something similar we use for dispensing smoke oil for our aerobatic aircraft. On wheels so easy to move around and it meters out how much is being dispensed. Much more expensive solution and what you've done seems pretty spot on for my needs at home.
 
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#11 ·
UPDATE one year later I actually really dislike the Flow-N-Go

Here is the revision from another forum that was asking about Vevor branded goods:

In late 2023 fed up up with EPA nozzled 5 gallon ply tanks and wanting to capatolize gas point at he local grocery store I bought a Skeptor 14 gallon flow-n-go. For gas points were are allowed up to 25 gallons and since neither the wife's or my vehicle hold anything close to that we were leaving at times $40 to $60 worth of fuel at the station. My kiddo also does a good share of the mowing and lifitng 5 gallon cans is something I preferr she not have to do so the F-N-G seemed like the greatest thing since sliced bread. Turns out after year of use I began to dread uing the F-N-G as it was slow and using the gravity feed system was not always plausable. I did build and air drive system that solved speed and gravity feed problems but created more leaks as if the factory ones were not enough. The fuel handel also held about 1/4 cup of fuel that no matter how hard to get it to drain back into the tank after dispensing fuel it would not and would leak out when you were coiling gup the hose. So FF a few days back after shopping fuel caddys I settled on a Vevor brand (they are all the same chineasium on Amazon) 30 gallon unit off Amazon for $206 delivered. Packaging was almost good enough (one small dent, not enough to worry about a return) assembly was a breeze and with no shallow thead problems, pin hole leaks, recessed welds or sticking pump vanes as reported on some of the 1st units brought over from the Isle of red two years ago when they hit the US shoreline. I also watched a ton of videos on YT and was preparred to do what I had too too to fine tune the unit brefore it went into use. Turns out I did not need to do anything other than put it together. Two days ago I loaded it in the bed of the truck then wnet to the gas station and loaded in 29 gallons of fuel (not sure 30 gallons will fi) and brought it home. Not a drop spilled and with the help of the MC lift the loading onto and off of the truck was a breeze. Later that day I dispensed a few gallons into the zero turn and no probles. Yesterday dispensed a few more gallons into a motorcyle and again no drama. One of the nice features of the hand crank is one way (clockwise) dispenses fuel reverse direction (counter clockwise) and it will pull fuel. This came in handy with the zero turn as the fuel tank is wonky and is easy to over fill. I topped up the tank to almost the point of overfilling turned the hand crank counterclockwise two turns and it sucked out just enough fuel to get it to the proper level. You can also empty fuel cells with this feature if you need to remove the tanks off your bike to access what lies beneith or when summerizing/winterizing boats, mowers, tillers, snowblowers etc..

In short after 4 days of onwership I am 100% satified with the Vevor 30 gallon fuel caddy. For the record I was also happy with the F-N-G at the 4 day anniversary. So before I really promote the Vevor, I'd like to get 60 or so gallons dispensed over the next few months to see how it acting after some fuel has sat it in for a while and also going from cool to the dogs days of summer hot. If this units keeps working like it is currently it will be some of the best $206 I have ever pissed away on a tool and honesly will pay for itself in a few month in discounted gasoline using gas points, win/win!

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#13 ·
Curious how the long term review goes. I detest the EPA imposed spouts too, reviews seem mixed on the metal caddys on Amazon as well. Definitely seems better potential with metal vs plastic.

Love the way you are loading/unloading. 180 pounds of fuel would be a lot to muscle without the lift!
 
#14 ·
Honestly I looked at these fuel caddys before I bought my flow-n-go and was concerned about the wet weight and how to get it on/off the truck. Right after I bought the F-N-G it hit me like a ton of bricks that i could just use the MC lift as the elevator. Homer Simpson D'oh moment. Funny thing is there are many times I've used the lift to load/offload heavy objects into the pickup bed.

As for the fuel caddy itself my two concernes are interior rusting. Not sure how the metal inside will be once the humidity picks up. The second would be the pump failing. I think the key to pump longevity is not seeing how fast you can dispense fuel simply crank the handle at a nice even pace like one revolution per second. Fast enough to flow a good amonun ot fuel but slow enough to allo the vanes to not be stressed. IDK, time will tell.
 
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#16 ·
I went down that road as well and the peckerhead on the pump barely fit into the fuel can opening (both gasoline and kerosene). If you were not careful and pulled the pump straight out instead of wiggleing it out the impeller cover would fall off and then you had to fish it out with a hook. Also the thin plastic ring that holds the hose onto the pump body is a bit janky. While these transfer pumps do work you are getting all $13 worth of quality.

This was my 1st course of action before I searched out the flow-n-go. While I am a proponent of Harbor Freight this is one of these products that fell short for me.
 
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#21 ·
PerazziMx14 said:
I live in the Redwood forest, where power outages are commonplace and the nearest gas station is 10 miles away. I like to keep a supply of gasoline on the property so the Flow-n-go with the suggested mods to pressurize it sounded like a good idea. Found an unused Flow-N-Go on CL for $50 and all the parts to pressurize it on Amazon. IT's too heavy when full to tote to the gas station so I typically just use my 6 gal fuel to transport gas back home and fill the Flow-N-Go. Works well to keep the generator going and top off the bike when the road is calling.


Last summer I got tired of the various gas cans I had lying around especially all the ones with the Rube Goldberg EPA nozzles and also wanted something the kiddo could use to refill the mower w/o having to hoist a 5-gallon can up as it weigh about 1/2 as much as her. Another driving factor was at out local grocery store we accrue gas point and eventually get gas for or well under $1 a gallon and can get up to 25 gallons. So I looked around and settled on the 14 gallon Scepter fuel caddy for around $125. I figured it would pay for itself in short order using gas points. It works either by gravity or you can keep squeezing the handle and it will siphoned. I had though about rigging a hoist in the shed to lift it up so it could be gravity flow but that limits use to only the garage. Perusing YT I came across several videos where people adapted compressed air to drive the gasoline out. Again the air compressor is a decent idea but limited to being close to a power outlet. I then stumbled onto a guy that used a rechargeable ball inflator and decided to go that route. The idea is you only need about 5 psi for it to effectively dispense fuel so a low volume low pressure pump actually works pretty well.

I have been using this set up all winter and have dispensed 45 or so gallons of fuel and am absolutely satisfied with it. The biggest user turns out to be my DRZ400. With a 2-1/2 gallon tank and 100 mile range I found every time I went out and put on more than 20 miles I stopped to top up the fuel tank. Now I just top'er up in the garage and not have 15 $2 transactions every month at the local gas station.

For those savvy folks FBMP or CL is a great place to look for used Flow-N-Go's I ended up buying another thank (minus the hose) for $45.

I have also made a air drive for it



View attachment 38691

Do this at your own risk. If you have any doubt DO NOT do this mod. If you think you will have any doubt or any concerns DO NOT do this. If you are uncomfortable with this mod DO NOT do it. Also no need to mention grounding. You cannot ground plastic so it's a moot point.

I am not asking for you opinion on this mod or if you think it is safe or not. I am an adult and have made the decision to try it. Much like darksiding I'm tired of reading about it I wanna see how it works or doesn't.


What I needed to modify my 14-gallon flow-n-go more the filler cap to accept very low pressure compressed air to drive the fuel instead of using gravity or the siphon handle.

1/4" female x male x female brass tee
1/4" female x Schrader adapter
1/4" adjustable/proportional relief valve set to 5 PSI

1. Install the filler cap on the F-N-G stand it upright and see what slot is oriented most toward the top and note it. Remove the gas cap
2. Unscrew and pull off the manual tank vent (black plastic doodas under the gas cap in th epic below)
3. Dope up the threads on the tee and, relief and schrader.
4. Screw in the tee and line up one outlet with the slot that is most towards the top. This is the relief port.
5. Screw in the schrader and relief
6. Inflate the tank to 6 or 7 PSI. Do this carefully and slowly. Keep checking with a pressure gauge so you do not overfill.
7. Once pressurized to 6 or PSI adjust eh relief until you hear it release some pressure. When it stops check the pressure in the tank. Adjust until you get it to stop reliving at 5 PSI.


Automotive tire Font Auto part Bullet Circle


Relief set to 5 PSI and after set the ball inflator is screwed on and set to 5 PSI, turned on and once pressure builds you can start to dispense fuel

Hood Fender Gas Automotive lighting Auto part




View attachment 38692
Click to expand...
 
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