Does anybody have any ideas on how to prevent propane tanks and kerosine from being stolen. Since the stuff must be kept outside, all looters will know this and sheds etc. are the first place to look. Chaining and locking the tanks won't help if they just decide to let the gas out if they can't take the tank.

I was thinking of sealing an area of my garage with plastic wall so that the area is exposed to the outside by letting the door up an inch or so to let any gas that leaks out. The door will still lock and you can't really see inside. The tanks can even be placed in boxes with holes at the bottom to let any leaked gas out.

Any comments or other suggestions.

-- Jeff Sanders (jeffs@ibm.net), December 11, 1999

Answers

Had a friend who kept his 10 gallon propane bottles in plastic trash cans outside. Never had any problems but then those were "normal" times.

IF I HAD to keep flammables in a garage I would build a completely sealed enclosure (prefferably against a north wall), ground the cans, and vent the enclosure to the outside using a small brushless electric fan (forcing air into the enclosure to be forced out a vent).

Were it me I think I might build a "fake" workbench with a swing-up top as an enclosure for 55 gallon drums and such.

-- Don Kulha (dkulha@vom.com), December 11, 1999.

Electric fan ?!?!. What electricty?

Hmm, seems like we all have a very serious hole in our plans if we can't protect our fuel supplies - no fuel means no heat means Oh dear what a waste of time preparing (we won't be alive to benifit from the work).

-- Jeff Sanders (jeffs@ibm.net), December 11, 1999.

I'm glad to see this question. When my husband went out to our shed a couple of days ago to fill our 5-gallon plastic gas cans, he discovered they were gone! Thankfully, it appears that was all that was stolen, so we learned a cheap lesson. Haven't found an answer yet. Guess I'll find some (answers) here.

-- Solomon (xyz@xyz.xyz), December 11, 1999.

Fishing wire attached to "personal alarms" tied to stakes around the perimeter of the shed. These are then set as tripwires by tying them to stakes. When the pin is pulled by the tripwires (tied to a stake) the alarm shrieks at 120 db which should give you enough time to grab your weapon and shoot the bastards. They are battery optd. and cost 5 dollars ech.

-- Jim Smith (cyberax@ix.netcom.com), December 11, 1999.

What happens if someone fires a round into a Propane Tank?

-- James (Don'twanna@blowup.com), December 12, 1999.

purchase a motion senser light, put senser by fuel, bring light in house. when someone nears fuel light goes off in your house Keith

-- keith fore (d.fore@worldnet.att.net), December 12, 1999.

No method is foolproof, but I tend toward the hide in plain sight methods. Disguise or conceal the tanks in other items (trash, lawn tools, old junk). Keep it where you can get to it easily and do so at night if possible.

Having a locked storage shed screams "STEAL STUFF IN HERE" to anyone looking for valuables.

-- Gary S. (garys_2k@yahoo.com), December 12, 1999.

Don wrote: "IF I HAD to keep flammables in a garage I would build a completely sealed enclosure (prefferably against a north wall), ground the cans, and vent the enclosure to the outside using a small brushless electric fan (forcing air into the enclosure to be forced out a vent)."

To which Jeff replied: "Electric fan ?!?!. What electricty?"

Oh, didn't know you were planning on roughing it. Small brushless DC electric fans draw extremely small amounts of power. The one I used to use (about 2.5" dia.) for venting my battery box drew about 2 watts per hour or about 4 ampere-hours per day. Even if I weren't solar powered here my DC generator would cover this power drain running for 1/2 hour once a week which requires about a pint of fuel. As it is it requires the output of one solar panel in my array for about 1 hour/ day to power a fan like this. A solar chimney driven vent would require sunlight but no moving parts or electricity.

-- Don Kulha (dkulha@vom.com), December 14, 1999.