Geodesic Fuel Tank

Geodesic fuel tank ENERGY Miscellaneous 17-2-3 A home-built, trailer-mounted 300-gal. "geodesic" diesel fuel tank, designed to withstand the use of air pressure, lets Merlin Boxwell, Cut Bank, Mont., refuel even his biggest tractors or trucks in 3 1/2 min. or less. The strong "geodesic" design of the tank lets air be used to pump diesel fuel out under pressure. An electric arc welder mounted on the trailer acts as a portable generator to operate an air compressor. Fuel is pumped out through a high-volume 2-in. dia. hose and nozzle that runs out of the top of the tank. There's also a long 1-in. hose on a reel at the front of the tank. "It replaced a pickup-mounted fuel tank I had been using," says Boxwell. "The trailer license costs only $15 compared to several hundred dollars for a truck license, not to mention the other costs of running a pickup. "I've built two 300-gal. geodesic tanks and can pull the two trailers together, one behind the other, down the road. The geodesic design allows the tank to withstand 15 psi safely. It would probably handle even more pressure, but I mounted a 15-lb. pressure relief valve on the filler cap. There's also a pressure relief valve on the air hose that hooks up to the compressor. The 2-in. dia. hose requires about 5 psi while the 1-in. dia. hose requires about 15 psi. "I welded the geodesic fuel tank together .myself after reading a book about geodesic domes. I also built a geodesic greenhouse. The tank is welded to the trailer frame which I built from 3 1/2-in. sq. steel tubing. I recommend using a geodesic fuel tank only for diesel fuel. I don't think the added pressure would be safe for use with gas." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Me] lin Boxwell, Box65,1021 First St. S.E.,C Bank, Mont. 59427 (ph 406 873-4257).

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