“Drivers have reported vehicles breaking down and being left stranded due to bad fuel from numerous gas stations across the Denver metro area.”
https://kdvr.com/news/local/bad-fuel-causing-issues-for-drivers-around-denver-metro-area/
Probably just one delivery driver putting the wrong fuel into the the different gas stations fuel tanks… Could be several causes, a driver who does not know what they are doing. the wrong fuel was put into the tanker, or the paperwork the driver is using is wrong…
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Well, there’s one driver who will be looking for another job…
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As fast as it happened, It’s to many stops for one driver, so most likely a supplier issue.
Fuel drivers haul full loads of fuel, the station gets the full load or none, that’s why they measure the stations tanks when they get there to make sure they can take the full load, it’s an all or none type of delivery.
Fuel drivers don’t want partial tanks sloshing around, makes driving the truck/trailer to unsafe on the road.
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As I wrote… “The wrong fuel was put into the tanker…” So the terminal did not know the fuel was contaminated, or they did and someone filled the taker from the wrong holding tank.
As Reported… “The Division understands that regular unleaded gasoline contaminated with diesel fuel was loaded from the HF Sinclair terminal in Henderson, Colorado and sent to numerous gas stations
AI Research…
Fuel tankers almost always have separate compartments, often with double bulkheads, to carry different fuels like gasoline (various octanes) and diesel on the same trip, preventing contamination and improving efficiency. This allows them to deliver multiple fuel types to a single station in one delivery run, using dedicated hoses and meters for each product to ensure safety and accuracy.
No, you are mistaken; fuel delivery is not an “all or nothing” delivery…. Tanker trucks hold thousands of gallons (8,500-11,000+), but they often carry different fuel types (regular, premium, diesel) in separate compartments, meaning they might fill up one tank at a station and move on to another.
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I know several fuel truck drivers, not one of them will deliver a partial load.
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Way back in the late 70’s I worked at a few FBO’s. An FBO is a gas station at an airport (Fixed base operator).
I pumped gas and jet fuel and towed planes around the ramp. Often my boss would say: “Andy, go meet the truck at the fuel farm to accept a load of 100LL (gas), or JetA. Make sure you stick the truck before and after”. That means you verify the amount on the truck before and after it empties. I guess there were rare times a driver would try to swipe gas by closing the valve before the truck was empty.
These trucks did not have separate compartments for different gas. The whole truck held 8000 gallons, all one type of fuel. Remember, this is 45+ years ago (I’m old). There was a big sign on the truck specifying gasoline or jet fuel.
Happened around here some years back but too much ethanol in the tanker. I think the stores paid the repair bills but then I suppose went back on the taker delivery.
My, what wonderful drivers you know… So, if after they measure the contents of the gas station’s fuel tank and find they cannot deliver a full load, they go up the station owner and Say, “Too Bad, So Sad…” and then drive away, where to, I ask… If they intended to empty their full load, what are they going to do now, take the load back to the terminal? I cannot imagine they were given a list of “consolation stations” where they might be able to unload their gas if one of the stations further up on the list “cannot take the full load…” not a very good business strategy… Your friends could be driving around all day and still return to the terminal with a full taker…
Yes, and then the station has to hope they have enough fuel to last until another truck can be scheduled to deliver to them, which can be 3 or 4 days out.
When you’re dumping fuel at 200 gallons a minute there’s no way to measure a partial tank and shut it off.
They call their dispatcher and inform them, and get sent to the next station for that brand on the list that scheduled a delivery.
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Ok, If you insist you are right and since you know people, you must be right, Right? But below is a video to teach you a little bit about that modern fuel tanker trucks use precise electronic meters and flow computers to measure the exact amount of fuel delivered. They ensure accuracy for billing and preventing theft. These systems include GPS and remote monitoring for real-time tracking of fuel levels and dispensing. These advanced systems replace older, less accurate methods, providing detailed records of each delivery.
This web site teaches you all about “Modern Fuel Delivery systems…”
And this video teaches you all about modern Fuel Tanker Trucks…
Perhaps your friends drive trucks that only have a simple ON/Off Spigot, and they depend on the Terminal to put the full load in the tanker truck, and the customers your friends service have to depend on your friends actually delivering the full load…
What end of the country do you live where “Trust Me, I would not cheat you” carries so much promise…
I think those are worksite trucks, fuel is pumped into construction equipment.
Engine oil is delivered to dealership oil tanks in trucks like those, pumped through 2" hose. Fuel tanker discharge hose is twice that size.
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It’s done all the time. Especially if the gas station is low on gas. Some is better than none. And many times, a driver may have just 100 gallons left and instead of driving back dispatch might find an independent in need of cheaper gas which they’ll sell at a discount.
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Multi-compartment tanker trucks are very common around here at least. There is no concern for partial loads since they usually have 4 compartments to hold diesel and grades of gasoline. Pretty sure some stations get only low and high octane and mix at the pump for mid grade gasoline. Look at the truck when they are dispensing and the nozzle covers are retracted (if equipped). One nozzle is for vapor recovery, the rest are the various fuel compartments. They verify the station tank(s) will accept the ordered load and dispense what was ordered.
What I find interesting is it is completely up to the delivery driver to verify the proper fuel is being pumped into the station tank. The tank covers are color coded but the filler nozzles are the same between tanks, unlike the consumer situation where the diesel nozzle does not fit into a gasoline tank.
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Every station I know of only has t underground tanks - One for 87 octane and one for 90 octane. The mid grade is the mixture of the two. Even Sunoco which has several octane levels only have 2 tanks. It’s mixed in the pump. Add another inground tank if the gas station sells diesel (most don’t).
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Our guy that owned the Mobil station had his own tanker. That’s why during th3 days of gas shortages, h3 was able to keep us supplied. He had a local fuel service also. Never had to worry about the quality of the gas or diesel. Retired now like all the rest but he always came through for us. Sometimes he said he couldn’t get a full load from the refinery but he always did what he could.
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If the station tank is low, there is room for 2 or 3 loads. The underground tanks are much larger than tanker compartments.
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Speaking from years of experience running a typical service station with three 10,000 gallon underground tanks, you can’t just order 3000 gallons of unleaded. The oil company, jobber, distributor, whoever your supply partner is, will not deliver a “short load”. The cost to truck around thousands of gallons of air is prohibitive. They will only send a full truck out of the loading rack. They may split a load between 2 locations if there’s another station that wants a short load, but charge an additional drop fee that eats all the profits. I can’t imagine a station not wanting a full load. Perhaps decades ago when you might find a little mom and pop store, but they have long been run out of business for a number of reasons.
Tanker trucks (10 years ago) had 5 compartments, each a different size, totaling 11,100 gallons. It was up to me to order the proper combination of unleaded, premium, and diesel to fill a truck and get a delivery. If somehow I order too much unleaded and it won’t fit in my tank, they will “retain” a compartment and charge me mileage and a “no-drop” fee, since that truck now has to return to the rack with a full compartment that may be scheduled for a different grade product on the next run.
Yes. And that’s one place where errors can happen. I was always sure to maintain the tags and covers on the fill necks so there was no question about which tank was what. Errors can happen at the loading rack as well. Back in 2006 when E10 became required, the loading rack near me wasn’t ready for that, so they were “splash blending”, meaning there was a tanker parked uphill from the rack, and would add ethanol to each compartment as needed before filling with gas. Loved that one.
Another time, my zone manager informed me that quality control had determined that the premium I had been selling for the past 5 weeks was actually only 91.5 octane instead of 92. The “fix” for that one was to lower the rack price for premium by .10 for 5 weeks and suggest I lower the street price by that much as well. Gotta love the corporate mindset.
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There’s a marina near me with tanks above ground. That’s the only example I’ve ever seen.
Octanes available vary where you are. High altitude areas (Think Denver) premium might be as low as 90 octane. Where I live at sea level premium gas is 93. I’m not sure why Mike In NH has 90? It’s very rare here to find a station that doesn’t carry Diesel.