Good Grief! Fungus in my Gas?

Fungus in gas tank

When we started out in the fuel tank cleaning business in 1983 there was lots of water and additives dropping out of fuel but now in 2015, we see fungus.
Fungi will plug up your filters and shut down your pumps whether it is in a service station, backup generator or your boat. It just isn’t a good thing to have in your fuel.

Almost every living thing on planet Earth requires water and oxygen to survive. Fungus is no different. If you allow an environment to be created in your fuel storage then you will have critters.

The secret to clean fuel is managing and preventing water from condensation from taking over your tank. If you do not remove the water bacteria and fungus will move in and set up a colony since you are providing the basics of life for them. They will eat the paraffin wax out of your fuel and breathe the oxygen in the water. When they run out of oxygen they will warm up the fuel and the tank and cause more condensation. Have you ever seen a terrarium? It is similar to that – living things can create a habitat that is just right for them to grow.

You can remove the water mechanically by cleaning your tank annually or you can put up with fungus, bacteria and sludge. Changing filters every 10 days from sludge in the tank will cost you approximately $5,000 per year in filters, downtime and labour. Annual fuel polishing and tank cleaning is around $1500.00 per year a fraction of the cost of changing filters, especially in a gas station where replacing a customer’s fuel pump due to water is running around $5,000 a pump installed.

Maintenance of your fuel tanks is just good engineering practice and will save you money.

Call or email for a fuel sampling and assessment of your fuel tanks.