Gasoline Fumes When Refueling?

[nvestysly]

Is it common to experience a significant smell of gasoline when refueling a B190? Specifically, I refueled a 1998 B190 that I was recently test driving. When I hopped back into the vehicle there was an obvious smell of gasoline. The person who was riding with me has owned three B190's - 1993, 1995 and 1999 - and he indicated all three had this problem.

All we had to do was open the driver and passenger window for a few minutes and the vapors cleared and never came back. Am I going to experience this problem every time I refill? How do you deal with it? Or, do you experience this problem at all? I'd like to hear your comments.

Thanks, Lucius

[lido14co]

I've only noticed it on our 92 when I've tried to manually top the tank. If I just let the pump auto shutoff there's no smell.


Cliff

[nvestysly]

Thanks I'll keep that in mind. I tend to manually top off the tank because several of my vehicles seem to stop pumping prematurely.

[skater]

My '91 was no worse than any other car. Strange.

[Reddeer]

On my 1993, it was the result of cracking in the filler hose for the tank. It finally starting leaking gas when the tank was filled up. I had to have the tank dropped and the hose replaced. After that there has been no smell.

[weekender]

Had similar on my 93. My mechanic was able to determine an overflow tub at the top of the tank has disintegrated. He was able to replace it without dropping the tank-- used and angle mirror to see the initial problem.

Steve

[EricZ]

My records show that in 2004 I replaced both the fuel vent and fuel fill hoses on my Airstream 190 on a 1993 Ford E350 chassis with gasoline engine. I brought the old hoses to an industrial hose shop and had them matched. I didn't record what hose types I used that time.

In 2013 the vent hose again failed; the symptom was fuel leaking when I filled the tank. I was able to feel the break in the hose while it was in place. This failed after 8.5 years; and I made a note to proactively replace the vent hose after about 7 years.

In all cases (both hoses in 2004, the vent hose in 2013) I replaced the hoses with the fuel tank in place. My notes from 2013:

"Loaded hose clamps onto center of hose before installing hose. Used a few drops of liquid dish soap on the tank fitting. Even with the soap found it VERY difficult to get the hose on to the tank fitting. Used a tiny 0.25"-drive thumbwheel ratchet and socket to tighten the hose clamps (there wasn't room for a standard 0.25" ratchet)." (I didn't use a mirror -- I just worked by feel.)

My records show that the 2013 vent hose replacement was with "one foot of 0.75" 300 PSI Parker Push-Lok hose," again obtained from an industrial hose shop (cost: $5.60).

(Disappointingly, I did not record enough information to uniquely describe the hose: there are multiple types of Parker Push-Lok hoses and none of them seem to be rated for exactly 300 PSI. Oh well; perhaps it will provide a starting point.)

[nvestysly]

Lots of good information - thanks for the replies. I'll certainly check for cracks in hoses and see if I can replace them without dropping the tank. We recently purchased the B190 and I'm still learning. It certainly makes sense that it could be the vent hose or even the fill hose. I didn't see any gasoline leaks but that doesn't mean the vapor is not escaping.

EricZ - you certainly have more detail than most people would have on hand. I might be able to come up with the cost of the parts because I track our expenses but it' unlikely that I would have any notes detailing the work performed. That's amazing!

Lucius

[nvestysly]

I haven't taken time to look for cracked hoses. However, I did refuel the van today and I avoided "topping off" - no gas fumes. I'll continue to monitor the situation and report back.

[Tucsonan]

I had a cracked filler hose on mine to. It's a likely suspect.

[nvestysly]

On a recent trip I took time to fill the tank using a couple different methods.

On one fill-up I purposely filled the tank as much as possible - I filled it so much, gas was leaking from somewhere - likely a cracked hose. In this instance there was definitely a smell of gas fumes and it lasted more than a day - I guess because of the actual overflow/leak.

During the other fill-ups I simply allowed the gas nozzle to turn off automatically when it sensed the tank was full. No leaks, no fumes.

I definitely need to take time to access the fill hose and vent and replace them if needed.