The Patriot Clean Fuel sample of the month comes to us from the South-eastern United States. The sample on the left was extracted from a mission critical bulk storage tank. The fuel in the photograph is extremely degraded and is contaminated with extreme levels water, sediment and microbial growth. This sample was the direct result of emergency equipment failure. The post-reconditioning sample on the right displays certified ASTM quality stored diesel fuel. This sample extracted from the dead bottom of the tank following fuel remediation and displays fuel your generators and equipment can operate on. Don’t fall victim to equipment failure resulting directly from heavily contaminated stored diesel fuel. When testing your fuel, ensure you are extracting the sample from the dead bottom of the storage vessel and test this sample extraction against ASTM standards.

Don’t let your facilities greatest asset become your facilities cause of failure; contact Patriot Clean Fuel to schedule your diesel fuel test today.

Hurricanes and tornadoes have been a regular focus of Patriot Clean Fuel blogs on multiple occasions due to the magnitude of damage often produced, but more importantly the lack of preparedness many municipalities and facilities have for these events. Like most natural disasters these events usually occur with very little notice and often lead to widespread damage and power outages. This weekend produced another outbreak of severe storms in the Midwest. For just the second time in US history the National Weather Service issued a severe storm notice more than 24 hours in advance. When discussing natural disaster warnings a 24 hour notice is a very timely notice for individuals, but not enough time to prepare a facility without a competent disaster readiness plan ready to deploy. On Saturday, April 16, 2012 approximately 121 individual tornadoes were spotted across Oklahoma, Nebraska, Kansas and Iowa. These storms led to multiple power outages to residential homes, businesses and many mission critical facilities including hospitals. As noted in several past blogs disaster preparedness measures are critical in these situations. Below are highlights of disaster preparedness from past Patriot Clean Fuel blogs referencing then-current natural disasters, click the link to read the full edition of each respective blog.

In early-May 2011 Patriot Clean Fuel highlighted the effects of Tornadoes in the Southeastern US, highlighted in this blog was the importance of fuel testing –

"Contaminated stored diesel fuel is the root cause of over 80% of generator failure. Disaster preparedness is the key to success. All diesel generators rely on stored diesel fuel to operate efficiently and reliably. Many critical operations rely on inaccurate or outdated information giving them a false since of security. Deploying best practices can help avoid impact outages and catastrophic meltdowns."

In mid-May 2011 Patriot Clean Fuel highlighted post flooding procedures in the blog "Flooding Hits the Mississippi," read below to see some the key points –

"During times of flooding stored fuel tanks are prone to contamination, buoyancy, erosion, scour, product displacement and electrical system failure."

A check of the post-flooding check list in the full length blog and determination of if any emergency repairs are needed will help to mitigate equipment downtime.

To highlight hurricane season beginning on June 1st, 2011 Patriot Clean Fuel featured "Disaster Preparedness" to mitigate disaster from sudden storms –

"Any critical facility during time of power failure will be relying upon emergency generators for power to prevent catastrophic loss. Many generators will fail to come online due to improper preventative maintenance practices. The only way to ensure your facility is 100% hurricane prepared is to test your diesel fuel per ASTM D975 standard. The samples should be extracted from the dead bottom of the tank, not the middle, not the top and not from the filter. This extracted sample should be forwarded immediately to an independent certified ASTM accredited laboratory for analysis and conducted by a true fuel solutions expert."

As highlighted in the information above disaster preparedness is key to any natural disaster no matter the classification of event, the common
denominator of all these events is power loss. With power loss comes the need for emergency power sources, while often readily available, emergency power is often never truly tested for optimal performance when needed. By instituting best practices to not only generator maintenance, but more importantly proper fuel maintenance you can ensure your facility is prepared when disaster strikes.

The March Sample of the Month comes from just south of Patriot Clean Fuel’s headquarters.  The samples above are from a sub-base generator storage tank used as an emergency power source for a local retail establishment.  The fuel on the left was extracted prior to Patriot Clean Fuel’s reconditioning and maintenance service.  This left sample displays severely degraded stored diesel fuel contaminated with water, particulate and microbial contamination.  Following NFPA 110 regulations this location opted to remediate the stale fuel in the tank.  The sample jar on the right was extracted following Patriot Clean Fuel’s diesel fuel management service.  This sample displays ASTM quality stored diesel fuel necessary for optimal performance per the generator manufacturer’s specifications.  Don’t be a victim of generator failure, contact Patriot Clean Fuel today!

The February Sample of the Month comes from Patriot Clean Fuel’s home market.   The above samples extracted were extracted from a mission critical facility enrolled in an annual fuel management program.  The sample on the left extracted prior to reconditioning services displays fuel contaminated with water, sediment and trace bacteria contamination.  With services completed only 12 months ago, the fuel still tested outside of ASTM specification due to condensation occurring in the tank.  The natural occurring process of condensation displaces moisture in the fuel thus contamination the fuel with water, but also providing a breeding ground for microbial growth.  As this facility knows, annual services must be completed at a minimum to ensure 100% equipment reliable to be disaster ready.   The sample on the right is following Patriot Clean Fuel’s annual fuel management services.  As the photograph displays, the sample if visually clean, but also tested within specification to be certified ASTM quality diesel fuel. Without a fuel management program in place there is a liability looming in your tanks. 

Don’t be caught unprepared, contact Patriot Clean Fuel today!

The January Sample of the Month comes from the South-eastern United States. The above samples are from a freight trucking terminal that typically receives multiple inbound fuel deliveries per week.  The sample on the left was extracted from a 10,000 gallon underground storage tank.  The samples tested outside of ASTM specification for water, sediment and microbial contamination.  This fuel was responsible multiple costly fleet shutdown due to clogged filter, blown injector tips and engine shutdown.  The on-road diesel fuel on the right was extracted following Patriot Clean Fuel’s multi-stage filtration process.  This post-reconditioning sample is certified ASTM quality diesel fuel and will continue to keep the fleet on the road. 

Keep your fleet trucking with Patriot Clean Fuel!