Gasoline & Fuel Storage
Spot it
Gas in a milk jug or sports-drink bottle; an old metal or pre-2009 plastic can without a flame arrester; fuel stored beside the water heater; more than a few gallons kept at home.
Fix it
Store only small quantities, only in approved containers — the Portable Fuel Container Safety Act (2020) requires flame-mitigation devices (ASTM F852-family standards) on new cans. Keep fuel in a detached shed if you have one, always away from water-heater pilots and other ignition sources, locked or up high. Never decant into food or drink containers.
Safer swaps
What actually fixes this — the category to look for, not a brand we were paid to name.
Approved fuel container with flame arrester (PFCSA-compliant)
Replaces legacy cans; child-resistant closures
Flammables storage cabinet (lockable)
One cabinet solves fuel, solvents, and pesticides at once
No shopping list for this hazard — the fix is a habit, not a purchase.
Related product category: Air quality
Sources cited
Sources
- Gasoline is a double hazard: vapor ignition near appliance pilot lights, and pediatric poisoning when fuel is stored in drink bottles — U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2020 (how we check this source)
Every source we cite is checked against our criteria first — see how we check our sources.
Related checks
- Solvents, Strippers & Open Paint — The cabinet that holds fuel should hold strippers and thinners too.
- Medicines, Vitamins & Supplements — Medicines and supplements are the other things to keep locked away.
- Attached Garage Air Getting Into the House — How to seal the shared door and wall against what is stored.
More in Garage & Workshop
- Carbon Monoxide: Cars, Generators & the Attached Garage
- Antifreeze & Automotive Fluids
- Garage Door Entrapment
- Pesticides & Rodent Bait
- Solvents, Strippers & Open Paint
- Lithium & E-Bike Battery Charging
- Shelving, Tool Chests & Stored-Weight Tip-Overs
- Power Tools & Sharp Equipment
- Oily Rags & Spontaneous Combustion
- Old Pressure-Treated Wood (CCA) Stored or Reused
- Attached Garage Air Getting Into the House