Return-Path: Received: from rook.innercite.com ([158.222.5.8]) by truman.olsusa.com (Post.Office MTA v3.5.1 release 219 ID# 0-64832U3500L350S0V35) with ESMTP id com for ; Sat, 26 Feb 2000 11:30:49 -0500 Received: from innercite.com (plvpm3c-32-148.innercite.com [158.222.32.148]) by rook.innercite.com (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id IAA23310 for ; Sat, 26 Feb 2000 08:27:37 -0800 Message-ID: <38B7FEDA.FFF2D0F1@innercite.com> Date: Sat, 26 Feb 2000 08:27:06 -0800 From: Steve & Claudette Colwell Reply-To: colwell@innercite.com Organization: Ms Colwell To: a Subject: Re: Electrical bonding for static buildup X-Mailing-List: lancair.list@olsusa.com Mime-Version: 1.0 <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<--->>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> << Lancair Builders' Mail List >> <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<--->>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> >> This has been kicked around by Lancair, Glasair and other builder groups with the usual concerns due to the potential for a disaster at the fuel pumps. From all I have read over the years I can recall only a Glasair that had a fire, probably due to static and in that instance it was a defueling not a fueling. I have not heard of any other instance where a fueling fire occurred in a composite airplane. Still the "potential" had me concerned so I was relieved to read an article in Sport Aviation a couple of years ago by the guys at the CAFE Foundation. They did some testing that convinced me to ground the fuel filler necks to my vent lines. The vent line ends up near the filler neck so I just riveted a strip of the line to the neck. Then clamp a piece of braid from a coax cable to the external vent line to a ground point about 12" away. This can be done inside the wing tip. Their recommendation was to ground the fuel filler neck to the fuel truck. Then wipe the surface of the wing a foot or so from the gas cap with a wet rag before removing the cap which will dissipate most of the surface charge. Ground the fuel nozzle to the filler neck by touching it before removing the fuel cap and rest the nozzle on the grounded filler neck while refueling. Seems reasonable to me and not all that much trouble. Steve Colwell >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> LML website: http://www.olsusa.com/Users/Mkaye/maillist.html Builders' Bookstore: http://www.buildersbooks.com/lancair Please send your photos and drawings to marvkaye@olsusa.com. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>