End of Coleman liquid fuel in California! (3 Viewers)

[doug720]

I was buying Coleman liquid fuel (white gas) yesterday at a store in San Dimas, CA. The owner and I started talking about Coleman equipment and asked if I knew that California is going to ban the sale of all liquid fuel used for cooking, heating or lighting! I did not know about this and had not heard about it, but have noticed that many stores no longer sell Coleman fuel. He said his distributor told him about this earlier this year. It appears the state wants all camping type gear to be compressed gas models, which they feel are safer and burn cleaner!

He said the ban is being enforced partially now and that groups like the Boyscout's already can not use liquid fuel appliances at their own group camp grounds, but it's still ok for them to use at public camp grounds for now? Weird.

I regularly travel to and camp at well over 8,000' elevation, and compressed gas equipment does not work well, so I use liquid fuel.

I guess it's time to stock up and/or buy out of state, as it's next to impossible to ship liquid fuel anymore. Plus I'm not going to stop using my liquid camp equipment. And yes, I have some dual fuel stuff, but I like Coleman fuel anyway as it way less odor.

Just a heads up to those who use liquid fuel camp equipment.

Doug

 

[doug720]

http://www.bdlaw.com/news-647.html


Here is a link about this and law. It appears to be related to solvents and VOC's. Coleman fuel contains Naphtha, which is being banned, and Coleman feels their fuel must use this product to be safe and effective.

It looks like the ban will affect Coleman fuel starting 12/31/13.

What BS.

Doug

 

[3DAMAN!]

Damn stuff is 14$ a gallon now at Wallyworld

 

[Dynosoar]

I always thought that White gas is just regular old unleaded fuel. Am I wrong?

Dyno

 

[Fly Rod]

I always thought that White gas is just regular old unleaded fuel. Am I wrong?

Dyno

Yes you are wrong.

 

[MANUCHAO]

I only use white gas fuel for high altitude camping climbing in the sierras..
I have a little but loud primus fuel stove that burns 3 different types of fuel.. so, no worries there..

Im sure like with most other, they will replace a fine product like white gas with some water down version of it....
That will probably suck the most... just like the use of CARB fuel cans....

 

[IdahoDoug]

That's f-ing hilarious. If you added up all the emissions of all the camp stoves in the entire state of Kalifornia, its probably less than the output of a single wildfire for about 90 minutes. Or another way, probably about what the backyard barbecues of a single small community put out in a single evening. Total misguided BS. Typical lawmakers - destroy an entire product line and tens of millions of dollars in corporate revenue to achieve a result that is so miniscule it cannot even be measured.

DougM

 

[custyota]

Im so glad im living in nc now. State has gone to crap

 

[Kofoed]

sheesh. CARB strikes again.

 

[Itchy Sides]

What horse feces! I love many things about this state, but some aspects are a joke.

 

[Coolerman]

You can still have your cake and eat it too... If your willing to risk blowing yourself up...

Here is a link to a couple of videos showing "distilling" Coleman fuel from RUG (Regular Unleaded Gas) Gets all the additives out that will clog up Coleman generators.

Note that Coleman adds a anti-corrosion to their naptha fuel...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fY6stOum0wM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_DM6WUAwKU

 

[rusty_tlc]

Im so glad im living in nc now. State has gone to crap

Just wait, as goes Kalifornia so goes the rest of the country.

 

[Koffer]

Coleman no longer offers a "coleman fuel only" lanterns on there US web site and just one stove so they know its coming for the rest of the US

 

[tag3]

Just bought 2 gallon cans yesterday at ACE for $9.95 each.

 

[shfd739]

Coleman no longer offers a "coleman fuel only" lanterns on there US web site and just one stove so they know its coming for the rest of the US

Not sure if this is related but I noticed today Wal-Mart and Academy have stopped selling the liquid fuel stoves. They do still have the fuel, but a lot less inventory of it. Havnt been to Bass Pro to see if they still sell liquid fuel stoves.

REI has the stoves but only in Dual Fuel.

 

[TrickyT]

That's f-ing hilarious. If you added up all the emissions of all the camp stoves in the entire state of Kalifornia, its probably less than the output of a single wildfire for about 90 minutes. Or another way, probably about what the backyard barbecues of a single small community put out in a single evening. Total misguided BS. Typical lawmakers - destroy an entire product line and tens of millions of dollars in corporate revenue to achieve a result that is so miniscule it cannot even be measured.

DougM

x100. Am I going to have to sneak into Nevada to buy this stuff? I can always stock up on a few gallons now, which will last me a long time. Of course then my house will be a hazardous materials "dump" and if a fire ever breaks out I'll be negligent for not warning my local FD of my dangerous cache of Coleman fuel. How can a gallon of CF really be considered more harmful to the environment than the 5gal container or two of propane that countless households use for their BBQ? This legislated restriction is totally misguided and reminds me of the CARB compliant jerry cans that always spill a bunch of fuel while you are struggling with the "non-spill" spout.

 

[IdahoDoug]

Yep. The old law of unintended consequences the gummint often causes. Outlawed high capacity gun clips become a basis for a good defensive shooting to be turned into a prison sentence for a homeowner. Misguided emissions standards mean a beautiful classic car with an engine conversion won't be issued a California registration. And some day a camp stove mishap on a school camping trip will result in a huge lawsuit when it is revealed Coleman fuel was being used in Kalifornia.

They never stop issuing ridiculous new laws, rather than enforcing existing ones that actually DO protect the public.

 

[TrickyT]

OK, not quite ready to call BS on this, but something is not adding up. Went to OSH, REI, and a local hardware store today. All had a good stock of gallon cans of CF for prices ranging from $13-$16, and the two managers I talked to said they knew nothing of any impending ban on CF. Now bare in mind I live in the SF Bay Area, which is the heart of CARB. They did say there is not much demand any more for CF and that "everyone" wants propane now a days, but as far as not being able to get it/sell it they didn't know about any impending restrictions. I am well aware of the CARB VOC restrictions and had to switch to water-based stain on the exterior siding of my home several years ago, plus its been impossible to buy oil-based paint/stain for my wood-working projects for several years now. So I wonder if this is really about a legal restriction on buying Coleman Fuel, or a marketing decision based on low demand for the stuff.

--tom

 

[Butt Ugly Chuck]

I'm with Tricky Tom. I suspect it's more of a demand thing. Google search of 'white gas ban' turns up little other than this thread and the Boy Scouts discouraging its use at Boy Scout events for safety reasons.
Butt

 

[doug720]

I don't know 100%, but the second post has link to the law and discusses the the materials to be banned by California. One the chemicals is Naphtha, which is the main component of Coleman fuel. To me it's not a stretch to see a problem with Coleman not wanting to change the fuel makeup, with all the possible testing costs and potential problems for something that fewer people use each year.

I know many gun enthusiast use Coleman fuel to clean guns due to the use of Naphtha, and many gun sites are having discussions on the ban and what they are going to due. Another source of Naphtha was an oil and fuel dealer I have an account with in Long Beach, CA, Dion and Sons. They told me a few weeks ago that Naphtha is going to be banned in California.

So who really knows, but I know of so many chemicals and fuels you can no longer purchase in California, and when a major component of material is banned, the costs to reformulate,many times exceeds the market to recover those costs.

In SoCal, many stores no longer sell liquid fuel or equipment at all, Sportmart, Dick's, some Big 5's, REI, and many hardware stores. So who knows, we will have to wait and see, but in the mean time, I wil stock up on a few extra gallons since this fuel does store well.

DOug