When Underwriters Laboratories (UL) “suspended” listings
on pumps that were being used to sell E85, they pointed out that those pumps
were not suitable for blends of “greater than 15% alcohol” – which might make a
person believe that they were suitable for blends of less than
15% ethanol. Maybe we’re just reading
too much in to that statement. But, don’t
take our word for it, check
it out yourself.
Also, you might notice some bullet points in the middle
of the article, right
under the bold section heading “No reported safety incidents for UL Listed or
Recognized subassemblies with E85”, which we have assumed to mean no reported
safety incidents for UL Listed or Recognized subassemblies with E85.
UL followed this up with a survey that showed that
there were, well, no reported safety incidents for UL Listed or
Recognized subassemblies with E85.
Actually, the study said more than that – no corrosion, no maintenance
concerns, and if you look on page 8, you’ll see that 96% of the pumps UL looked
at were either in the same or better condition than the standard gas pumps… and
that was with E85!
So now, after years of talking about pumps that can use
15% ethanol (UL 25
– Meters approved for 15% ethanol, UL 79
– Pumps approved for 15% ethanol, UL
330 – Hoses approved for 15% ethanol), UL has decided that when they said 15%,
they
actually meant 10%. We were
perplexed. Still are. In fairness, the standard they are talking
about, UL
87 Standard for gas dispensers, doesn’t actually mention 15% ethanol – but
several of the subsections below it (the ones in the links above) sure do.
And one last thing.
Here is a list of all of the pumps in the United States and Brazil that
have reported safety issues due to use of more than 10% ethanol:
I don’t know. Maybe we’re overreacting. Read for yourself, and tell us what you
think.
Posted by RL, 2/17/09
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