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February 8th 04, 12:55 AM

In article ,
says...

snippety

I think the degree of work I've done with my van qualifies as
"experienced," so I'll be happy to answer on this. ;-)

When one visits petrol/gas stations here in Australia one sees signs saying
to switch off one's mobile phone as the electromagnetic radiation could
cause a spark and ignite fuel vapour. It has made me wonder how to make APRS
safe so that should you be filling up your car at a gas station you can be
assured that a regular APRS update from your mobile APRS setup won't run a
risk of causing a fire.

The "RF sources causing a spark which causes ignition" is, as far
as I can tell, little more than a modern myth. Static electric discharge
is far more likely to cause ignition than any RF source of the power
levels that amateur or cellular equipment puts out.

For example: You pull up to the pump, get out, start the fuel
going. The biggest and most dangerous mistake you can then possibly
make, especially if you're wearing synthetic-laden clothing and/or
shoes, is to get back in your car to do something, then get back out and
touch the metal of the fuel dispenser handle.

The effect is the exact same thing as scuffing your feet on a
carpet, or getting up out of a synthetic chair, and touching a doorknob.
ZAPP!! With a big enough spark, and enough fuel vapor around the filler
port, you could easily cause a small fire or risk of an explosion.

Best possible thing you can do: Touch the metal body of your car
at least a foot or so away from the filler port BEFORE you touch the
pump dispenser.

Have APRS users considered this possibility and what precaustions, if any,
are taken to deal with this problem?

Well, I make it a point to touch body metal, away from the filler
pipe, before I touch the pump dispenser handle. That, and I make it a
habit of never getting back into the car between the time I start and
stop fueling.

I have also left my own 25-watt APRS transceiver powered and
operational during many fuel stops. Never once did I feel the least
threatened by it, and never once has it caused a problem.

Worry about ESD. It's a far greater threat than any RF source.

--
Dr. Anton Squeegee, Director, Dutch Surrealist Plumbing Institute
(Known to some as Bruce Lane, KC7GR)
kyrrin a/t bluefeathertech d-o=t c&o&m
Motorola Radio Programming & Service Available -
http://www.bluefeathertech.com/rf.html
"Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati" (Red Green)

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